Following the August announcement that global firm Squire Sanders would establish a Perth office with the remaining majority of Minter Ellison partners, former Minters insurance and corporate risk partner Deborah Templeman broke off to head the Perth office of specialist insurance firm Gilchrist Connell.

Templeman was a Minters partner for 10 years and a veteran of the firm for 20 years. Senior associate Justine Siavelis and associate Bradley Baker also make up the foundation team for Gilchrist Connell's Perth office, which is the firm's third office to open in Australia after only three years of operation.

Gilchrist Connell has offices in Sydney and Adelaide and since parting ways with Thomsons Lawyers in 2008, has grown its practice by 50 per cent.

Minters' new Perth office opened on Monday (3 October) and is, unlike the previous Perth office, financially integrated with its east coast practices.

While only four partners from the previous Minters Perth office have joined its new practice, 14 have joined Squires, which also officially opened on Monday.

Minters partners Leith Ayres, Ben Cockerill, John Prevost and Andrew Thompson will work alongside 26 lawyers in the new Minters practice.

All three firms are located in the Perth's St Georges Terrace, with Squire Sanders now trading from the old Minter Ellison location.