Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP announced today that it plans to open an office in Seoul, Korea in the first half of 2012.

The global law firm Jones Day has announced that Maria Sendra has joined the Firm as a partner in the Private Equity Practice, resident in the Firm’s San Diego Office. Ms. Sendra comes to Jones Day from the San Diego office of Baker & McKenzie, where she was a partner and co-chair of the firm’s North America Life Sciences M&A subcommittee.

Steptoe & Johnson LLP is expanding the food safety practice of its Environmental Practice Group with the addition of Mitchell Cheeseman and Ralph Simmons from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).  Dr. Cheeseman, who served as Acting Director of the FDA’s Office of Food Additive Safety, and Mr. Simmons, a Senior Policy Analyst who served as Dr. Cheeseman’s senior advisor, are joining Steptoe as a managing director and partner, respectively.  They will be resident in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office.

Herbert Smith has advised longstanding client EDF Energy on its application to the Infrastructure Planning Commission (IPC) for development consent for the construction and operation of a new 3.2GW nuclear power station at Hinkley Point in Somerset. Once fully operational, the power station will provide approximately 6% of the nation’s electricity.

Global law firm White & Case LLP has advised joint bookrunning managers BNP Paribas, Crédit Agricole CIB, Natixis and Société Générale Corporate & Investment Banking in connection with French issuer Faurecia’s debut high yield bond offering of €350 million 9.375% Senior Notes due 2016. HSBC and Mitsubishi UFJ Securities acted as co-managers on the transaction.

International law firm Eversheds has appointed ex-Norton Rose corporate partner Virginie Deslandres to head the China practice in the firm’s Paris office.

Leading global law firm Mayer Brown announced the hire of Bernd Bohr to the Corporate & Securities practice. Bernd joins today as a partner from the New York office of Allen & Overy. He is relocating to London to help support the expansion of Mayer Brown’s US M&A and Capital Markets practice in Europe.