Sydney, 17 January 2007 – Baker & McKenzie has announced that tax lawyer Paul Welch has joined the Australian offices of the firm as a Partner.

Paul Welch, who specialises in transaction-based advisory and international tax planning, joins Baker & McKenzie from accounting firm Deloitte where he was a corporate and international tax partner.

Mr Welch says that he was attracted to Baker & McKenzie for two reasons: "The Firm's tax team is well regarded and has capability across the full spectrum of tax advisory services. Baker & McKenzie has an excellent reputation on the corporate advisory front, having been involved in a number of high profile transactions over the years. I'm looking forward to working with the firm to grow the tax practice and develop our relationships in the market."

Mark Chapple, the Australian offices' Managing Partner, sees Mr Welch's addition to the team as a coup for the firm. "His highly specialised experience augments our established strength in tax and allows us to respond to the significant amount of transaction-based and international tax work we currently undertake."

Mr Welch is a fellow of the Taxation Institute of Australia and an Associate Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Australia.