Dickie Dees senior partner leaves for GC role at Middlesbrough FC's owner

Dickinson Dees senior partner Robin Bloom is leaving the firm to become general counsel at Middlesbrough Football Club’s owner Gibson O’Neill Limited.

Bloom, who will step down in 2010, will lead the legal team across Gibson O’Neill’s three businesses - tank container company Bulkhaul Ltd, luxury spa and golf club Rockliffe Hall in County Durham and Middlesbrough Football Club.

He said: “After deciding I wasn’t going to stand for re election I had to think about whether I would be happy to return to practice. My partners were very supportive of this, but I wanted to a new challenge. I would say this opportunity is serendipitous.

After joining Dickinson Dees’ employment practice in 2000, Bloom became senior partner of the firm in 2004. It is not yet clear who is in the running to replace him.

Bloom said: “I think there’ll be some time before there’s an election process. The role of senior partner has evolved with time. The firm needs to decide what it wants the role of senior partner to be.”

The Newcastle-headquartered firm has implemented some significant changes to its management team this year. In February The Lawyer reported that Dickinson Dees cut the size of its partnership with former managing partner Neil Braithwaite being one of four to take non-partner roles within the firm (23 February 2009).