DWF—Ed Williams

DWF has appointed Ed Williams as a partner in its disputes practice in Leeds, bolstering the firm’s public sector dispute resolution offering. Williams joins from DAC Beachcroft and brings more than 15 years’ experience advising on complex disputes involving public and private sector bodies.

Williams specialises in contractual disputes, procurement challenges and technology disputes, with experience across sectors including central and local government, TMT, defence, health-tech, education, transport and infrastructure. He has acted on high-profile procurement challenges, advised on urgent risk mitigation following major incidents, and supported government suppliers on high-value defence and technology contracts.

At DWF, Williams will focus on developing a national public sector disputes practice, working closely with colleagues across the firm’s Procurement Centre of Excellence and wider public sector teams. Commenting on his appointment, he said the opportunity to build and lead the practice was ‘hugely exciting’ and highlighted DWF’s ‘outstanding reputation in the public sector’.

Jonathan Branton, global head of public sector and managing partner in Leeds, said Williams’ arrival ‘significantly enhances our ability to support clients when disputes involving the public sector arise’, while Stefan Paciorek, global head of dispute resolution, added that his appointment ‘significantly strengthens our dispute resolution capability’ as public sector disputes become increasingly complex.