Mayer Brown, a leading global law firm, announced earlier this month that Ayela Semerdjian & Associates have merged with Mayer Brown’s Paris office.

Ayela Semerdjian & Associates is a law firm headed by Christophe Ayela and Renaud Semerdjian and founded in 2006.

The firm joins Mayer Brown as partners and bring with them three associates and two of counsels.

Thanks to the addition, the team will be expanded from five to 12 lawyers in litigation and arbitration and is hoped to broaden the services of the department. Actively involved in mergers and acquisitions, Mayer Brown Paris now provides comprehensive services to clients in all crisis situations.

This development is in line with Mayer Brown’s global positioning policy and the firm’s strong litigation activity on a global level.

“The synergy, common values and entrepreneurial approach of the new team is a significant asset in achieving the success of this combination,” said Jean-Philippe Lambert, Managing Partner Paris.

Ayela, 40, began his career at Gide Loyrett Nouel, prior to joining Stasi, where he became a partner in 2000. Since 2005, he has been a mediator authorized by the Centre de Médiation et d’Arbitrage de Paris – CMAP (mediation and arbitration center). In this capacity, he regularly acts on commercial disputes on a national and international level.

“We were at a strategic crossroads of our expansion process,” Renaud Semerdjian said. “We have met a complementary team that shares our values and whose technical know-how is highly regarded. That is why we chose to join Mayer Brown, with the double intention of accelerating our expansion process and meeting our clients’ needs effectively.”

Ayela was the first in France to publish a book on cross examination techniques, which he also teaches at the Ecole de Formation du Barreau de Paris (Paris Bar admission school).