Erin Callan, Credit Suisse Group's New York-based managing director and head of global hedge funds, took a personal leave of absence. A representative didn't reveal why Callan left or for how long, although reports said it may be for five months. The hedge fund business would carry on as usual, the bank said.

Callan took the position in September after 13 years at Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., where she was chief financial officer and a member of the executive committee. She had held the CFO job for six months when Lehman filed for bankruptcy.

It has been reported that Callan, along with other executives, including then-Lehman CEO Dick Fuld, are facing subpoenas regarding the bank's collapse.

Pali Capital, an independent institutional securities firm and investment bank, just hired five sales and trading professionals and opened a Chicago office.

Josh Altschuler arrives in Boston from Wachovia Securities LLC, covering research sales. Kevin Scherer, who spent 12 years with Citigroup Inc.'s Smith Barney unit, joins the international equities trading team in New York.

Steve Kepler and Mark Gabhart join as sales traders in the firm's newly opened San Francisco office, while Michael Savini joins as head of Midwest research sales, working out of Pali's Chicago office. Kepler was an equity sales trader at Jefferies & Co. for 16 years, where he helped build its West Coast effort. Gabhart has worked at Pequot Capital Management Inc. and was a senior equities trader at Citadel Investment Group LLC. Savini covered the Midwest and South as a research salesman for Susquehanna International Group LLP.

"Despite difficult market conditions we continue to see numerous opportunities to attract top-flight talent and to grow and diversify our business," said Pali CEO Joe Schenk in a statement.

Welton Investment Corp. opened a New York office, to be led by Justin Dew, who joined as senior managing director of strategic development. Dew was head of strategic development of Clinton Group Inc. and, before that, was global head of alternative strategies at Standard & Poor's in New York.

Close Brothers Corporate Finance enlisted David Benin as a managing director in its Paris office. He co-leads the French advanced manufacturing team with George Elliston. Benin comes in from Morgan Stanley, where he was an executive director in the investment banking division. Before Morgan Stanley, he was a senior director at Rothschild and was at Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. in the U.K. and U.S.

Michael Mortensen is now a director on the European institutional equity services team at Robert W. Baird & Co. Mortensen most recently worked on the U.S. equity sales team at Wachovia Corp. in London.

Ron Bolen joined investment bank and valuation advisory firm Howard Frazier Barker Elliott Inc. as a managing director. He is responsible for alternative energy mergers and acquisitions and corporate finance. Bolen was founder and principal of alternative energy advisory firm Da3 Co.

New York private equity firm Blue Wolf Capital Management LLC brought in Mike Musuraca as a managing director. Before this, he was assistant director in the department of research and negotiations with District Council 37 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP hired Norton Joerg as a director in its advisory practice, covering defense, finance and risk management matters. Joerg retired from the U.S. Navy after 32 years of service.

Chadbourne & Parke LLP appointed Olena Repkina in Kiev, Ukraine, and Lloyd MacNeil in Los Angeles as counsel and made Victor Mokrousov and Sergei Vataev international partners in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

Repkina advises on mergers and acquisitions, corporate, banking and finance, securities, employment and intellectual property. MacNeil covers project development, project financing and M&A matters in the energy and infrastructure sector. Mokrousov handles corporate, finance, M&A, energy, oil and gas. Vataev concentrates on litigation and arbitration, corporate law and project finance.

Workplace law firm Jackson Lewis LLP, with 530 attorneys, named 23 partners: Scott Allen, Nancy Arencibia, Cara Ching-Senaha, Holly Cini, Keith Dropkin, Eric Felsberg, David Greenhaus, Terri Freeman, Michael Griffin, Keith Hammond, Samantha Hoffman, David Hoiles Jr., Gina Janeiro, Marjorie Kaye Jr., Ted Kazaglis, Samia Kirmani, Stephanie Lewis, Scott Lacunza, Otieno Ombok, Nita Parikh, Paul Patten, Matthew Steinberg and Christopher Valentino.

Bankruptcy management consultancy Donlin, Recano & Co. took on Laura Campbell as a senior case manager. Campbell joins from Epiq Systems Inc. and has worked at Bankruptcy Services LLC, Integrated Resources Inc., Kaye Scholer LLP and Union Pacific Corp.