Teresa Ko has been selected to fill the hot potato role of Freshfields' China managing partner, stepping into the breach left by departing head Doug Markel.

Ko will remain based in Hong Kong for the job, with Chris Wong to fill Markel's shoes as office managing partner in Beijing. Clive Rough and Melissa Thomas will remain as managing partners of the Hong Kong and Shanghai offices, respectively.

Markel's departure for US firm Simpson Thacher, where he will build the firm's newly minted Beijing office, came only a year after former China head Michael Moser departed for greener pastures with US firm O'Melveny & Myers. However, the departures have not stopped the firm from advising on some of last year's pioneering transactions in the region, particularly large-scale global capital market offerings by Chinese enterprises.

The firm will be hoping that long-serving Ko, who joined in 1988 and was made partner in 1993, is a safe pair of hands to steady the China ship. Ko told ALB this year that Freshfields had always given her the right environment and flexibility to grow her practice effectively, and that she had every intention of staying with the firm.

Senior partner with Freshfields, Guy Morton, said the two candidates were ideal for their respective top jobs. "They've worked on some of the most prestigious transactions in the region and are both highly respected lawyers in the market with extensive experience in China," Morton said. Ko said she was thrilled to take on the management role at a time when the firm's China practice is thriving and becoming internationally recognised.

The firm recently closed its Singapore office, terminating its Joint Law Venture with Drew & Napier, in favour of focusing on the China market.