Paul Deacon

Founder

Contact
M: +44 (0)7974 230 058
D: +44 (0)20 7332 2680
E: paul.deacon@deaconsearch.com

Paul Deacon

Having trained and qualified in the City as a litigator, Paul discovered his true professional passion of legal recruitment in 1997. Two years later, he established Deacon Search. For more than 20 years he has focused on moving partners and teams to leading US and UK firms. Many of these moves make headlines in the legal press.

He also gives regular seminars and writes articles on the legal recruitment industry including the respected bi-annual Deacon Headline Partner Moves report.

Hard work, kindness and charity are the three fundamental values which Paul tries to adhere to. In this respect he is proud to have always donated 10% of his net annual profits to charitable causes.

Interests: Paul enjoys spending time with his friends and family, in particular his wife and four children; self improvement; and most sports, in particular, football and his beloved Liverpool FC.

Surprising fact about Paul: Paul managed to get into the elite University Air Squadron, without having any knowledge of planes or how to fly them!

What our candidates & clients say about Paul Deacon:

Mark Fennessy, co-head of the London Finance, Restructuring and Special Situations Group, McDermott Will & Emery

Paul Deacon is simply superb! Deacon Search provides a first-rate service which has been invaluable to building our restructuring and special situations practice in London.

Jonathan Jones, European Managing Partner, Squire Patton Boggs

I have known Paul since we were lawyers together many moons ago at Simpson Curtis. I always thought that he would make a better recruiter than a lawyer (that was not hard!) I am pleased to say that he and his team at Deacon have become a key provider of quality partners for our London office and I very much enjoy dealing with the team.

Nick Goldstone, Partner, Child & Child

I can recommend Deacon to others who are seeking a move from their current position in the legal sector. The team at Deacon understand the market and they understand what makes it tick both from the candidate's perspective and from the perspective of the acquiring law firm.

Jonathan Kropman, Partner, Trowers & Hamlin LLP

I wanted to say a big thank you for your expert handling of this recruitment. Great teamwork and I am really delighted to have reached this point.

Natasha Kaye , Corporate Tax Partner, Akin Gump

Paul Deacon is an outstanding recruiter who has placed me twice over the past 10 years, in excellent roles. He has deep market knowledge, great contacts and a wealth of experience. His calm manner and practical approach helps make the process smooth and efficient. I highly recommend Paul to anyone looking for a skilled, insightful and honest recruiter.

Head of Finance, Leading International Firm

Gita and Paul were a pleasure to work with. They combine excellent professionalism with a very deep and broad knowledge of the legal market. They are insightful and sensitive to the client’s needs, as well as using their knowledge and savvy to achieve the right result.

Darren Rogers, Real Estate Private Equity Partner, McDermott Will & Emery

I have had the pleasure of knowing and working with Paul and the Deacon team over the last 15 years including my recent team move to McDermott. Paul and his team took great care to understand what worked for us as people as well as lawyers which is so important from a cultural fit perspective and handled the move with great empathy, patience and above all integrity.

Leading IP/Media/Regulatory Partner, International Firm

What stands out about Paul and Scott is their empathy, wanting to understand your personal circumstances around considering a move, and providing a tailored and personalised approach to find the best way of achieving your objectives, whilst also offering helpful, constructive and highly informed feedback on opportunities and the market.

William Garner, Financial Services Partner, Taylor Wessing

I have known Paul Deacon for many years. He, together with Scott Lesner have a great knowledge of the market and excellent connections which gave me comfort when looking to move. I felt like I was in very capable hands.

Partner, US Firm

What impressed me most about Paul was his willingness to play the long game – Paul first reached out about a lateral opportunity about seven years before we worked together on my move. When I eventually said yes to exploring opportunities with Deacon, I found Paul to be very responsive, very knowledgeable, and very hard working; all qualities which, as a legal services provider at the highest levels, I value in others. It was a pleasure to work with Paul, and I expect to continue working with him and his team on placing further laterals within the team here.