Duane Morris will move into a new Chicago office next year, allowing the firm to increase its numbers there by close to 70 percent. The firm currently has 43 attorneys in Chicago, but will have room for 72 in the new office. The new office space will have about 45,000 square feet on two floors, and the option for more space. The Chicago office handles corporate, securities, employment, and real estate legal services, among others.
Source: www.nylawyer.com
Arnold & Porter has recruited international corporate lawyer, Juan Manuel Trujillo, to be a partner in the New York office. Trujillo specializes in corporate transactional work, including project, structured, and cross-border finance, as well as restructurings, mergers and acquisitions, commercial arbitration, joint ventures and investment projects throughout Latin America and other emerging markets. His arrival strengthens the firm’s Latin American practice, which has been steadily expanding all year. Trujillo’s work history includes serving as the lead counsel in the sale of the largest mining company in Bolivia and Argentina, and also overseeing the debt restructuring of one of the largest commercial groups in Chile.
Source: www.lawfuel.com
Merger talks have begun between Texas firm Hughes & Luce, and international powerhouse K&L Gates. Hughes & Luce has about 150 attorneys in offices in Dallas, Ft. Worth, and Austin, the majority working in Dallas. A combination of the two firms would create a firm of more than 1,500 lawyers in 24 offices the U.S., Europe, and Asia. Hughes & Luce is interested in the deal because the firm has increasingly seen a need to service clients outside of Texas. Additionally, the people and culture of K&L Gates seem like a good fit for the firm. For K&L Gates, having a stronger foothold in Texas is an attractive prospect considering that ten percent of Fortune 1,000 companies are located in Texas. The firms hope to come to an agreement and combine by the end of the year.
Source: www.dallasnews.com
Alston & Bird has recruited Kris Manzano from Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw. She joins the firm as a partner in its Charlotte office, strengthening its corporate and securities practice. Manzano’s practice focuses on alternative investment products. She has experience handling private investment funds, investment adviser registration and compliance, foreign offerings, and private offerings of equity and debt securities. Alston & Bird has over 750 attorneys in offices in Atlanta, Charlotte, New York, the Research Triangle and Washington, D.C.
Source: www.charlotte.dbusinessnews.com
Michael Knight will join Cooley Godward Kronish as a partner in the Antitrust & Trade Regulation practice group in Washington, D.C. Knight was formerly the Assistant Director of the Mergers II Division of the Bureau of Competition with the Federal Trade Commission. In that position, Knight managed staff investigations and the litigation of merger and civil non-merger matters. Since opening two years ago, Cooley’s D.C. office has expanded to 30 attorneys in various practice areas including corporate law, government contracts, international trade, patent counseling, intellectual property and commercial litigation. Because of the growth there, the firm expects to move to new and larger office space in September.
Source: www.sys-con.com
Bingham McCutchen has recruited Japanese lawyer, Hiroshi Iyori, for its Tokyo office. Iyori joins Bingham’s antitrust practice from Asahi Law Offices. Prior to entering private practice, he was the secretary general and then commissioner of the Japan Fair Trade Commission. Bingham plans to expand its Tokyo office to more than 50 attorneys by the fall. The Japanese practice focuses on large-scale cross-border, corporate, mergers and acquisitions, finance, antitrust and intellectual property matters.
Source: www.nylawyer.com
The Houston office of Fulbright & Jaworski has gained two international corporate partners. Kevin Trautner joins from King & Spalding, where he specialized in finance and M&A. Charles Powell left Haynes & Boone, where he was the head of the technology practice, providing counsel related to venture capital, securities offerings and mergers and acquisitions.
Source: www.nylawyer.com
Thompson & Knight has built up its 170-lawyer Trial Practice group by hiring three laterals. Robert F. Brodegaard joined the firm’s New York office as a partner, Richard J. Zook is a partner in Houston, and Jennifer Rudenick has joined the Firm’s Dallas office as an associate. Brodegaard’s practice focuses on international dispute resolution and U.S. commercial litigation. Zook is a trial lawyer who specializes in handling complex business lawsuits in state and federal courts and in arbitration. Rudenick deals especially with litigation and dispute resolution.
Source: www.newyork.dbusinessnews.com
Thompson & Knight announced that effective Aug. 1, its first and second-year associates will receive a pay raise. In all of its U.S. offices, starting salaries will be $160,000 and those for second-years will be $170,000. The compensation structure for other associate classes has yet to be determined. This Dallas-based firm is the fifth TX firm behind Vinson & Elkins, Andrews Kurth, Locke Liddell & Sapp, and Susman Godfrey to raise associate salaries in the last two weeks.
Source: www.nylawyer.com
Houston-based Susman Godfrey has joined the ranks of Texas firms raising associate salaries. The firm raised salaries to $160,000 for first-years, $170,000 for second-years, $175,000 for third-years, $180,000 for fourth-years and $190,000 for fifth years. Unlike other firms, Susman’s pay hikes have no hour requirements attached. For example, starting in their third year, Vinson & Elkins associates must bill 2,000 hours in order to be eligible for the full raise.
Source: www.law.com
