Significant Expansion of Intellectual Property, Litigation and Corporate Practices Includes Partners from Sonnenschein’s Silicon Valley and San Francisco Offices and Former Managing Partner of Buchanan’s San Diego Office
BOSTON– LAWFUEL – Law Firm News –Continuing its rapid West Coast expansion, Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C., has added several lateral partners to its San Diego and Palo Alto offices.
Former Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney attorneys Daniel T. Pascucci, who led Buchanan’s San Diego office as well as its California Litigation Group, and Andrew D. Skale, an intellectual property litigator, have joined Mintz Levin’s San Diego office as Members. In addition, corporate attorneys Matt Kirmayer and Jason Altieri, formerly of Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal’s Silicon Valley and San Francisco offices, have joined Mintz Levin’s Palo Alto office as Members.
With the new additions, Mintz Levin’s San Diego office has tripled in size to 22 attorneys, since opening nine months ago with a group of former Fish & Richardson partners. Mintz Levin’s Palo Alto office, formed last year with the acquisition of The Reed Intellectual Property Law Group, a prominent Silicon Valley boutique, has nearly doubled to 11 attorneys serving clients in the life sciences, technology and venture capital sectors. Also joining the San Diego office from Buchanan are associates Nathan Hamler and Benjamin Wagner and joining the Palo Alto office are two associates from Bozicevic, Field & Francis, LLP. Other associates are expected to be joining both offices in the near future.
“Mintz Levin has quickly established a significant presence on the West Coast by expanding our ability to serve clients through the expansion of our key practice areas and attracting a series of top tier lateral partners, a number of whom held leadership positions at their former firms,” said Steven P. Rosenthal, Mintz Levin’s co-managing Member. “Dan, Andrew, Matt and Jason are outstanding attorneys who not only have exceptional track records representing clients in a range of industries, but also share an entrepreneurial spirit that is rooted in this firm’s nearly 75-year history. As we continue to attract new clients and grow our existing practices in our offices in San Diego and Palo Alto, these new partners will provide excellent leadership for our continued growth.”
“Mintz Levin has added top quality corporate and intellectual property partners in both major tech areas (San Diego and Silicon Valley), which has been a challenge for many national law firms,” added Larry Watanabe, a partner with the search firm of Watanabe & Nason, LLC. “Mintz Levin’s ability to attract nearly three dozen lawyers in the technology and life science areas within a 12-month period evidences the firm’s national strengths. The California market is highly competitive for lateral partners within these practice and geographic areas.”
Mr. Pascucci has a wealth of experience representing clients in complex business litigation, intellectual property litigation, class action defense, unfair competition and telecommunications related cases. He has led more than a dozen major cases in federal, state and appellate courts that have played a significant role in shaping current telecommunications law. Most recently, Mr. Pascucci achieved a significant victory in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th District on behalf of Sprint PCS. The case involved the placement of cell towers in San Diego County, but the ruling has far-reaching implications for wireless carriers nationwide. He also obtained the first published decision in the U.S. applying entry barrier provisions of the Telecommunications Act to wireless carriers. Prior to joining Buchanan, Mr. Pascucci was a shareholder of Fish & Richardson, focusing on patent litigation and counseling. A graduate of Fordham University, Mr. Pascucci earned a law degree from Pepperdine University School of Law.
Mr. Skale concentrates his practice on patent and trademark prosecution on behalf of companies and inventors in the fields of electronics, the Internet, business methods, software and mechanical arts. He also specializes in complex business litigation, including unfair business practices, class action defense and intellectual property cases. A graduate of the University of Illinois, with a degree in electrical engineering, Mr. Skale earned a law degree from New York University School of Law.
Mr. Kirmayer, who previously practiced in Sonnenschein’s Corporate, Venture Capital/Emerging Growth Company and Life Sciences groups, represents emerging technology and life sciences companies in corporate and securities matters as well as venture capital and private equity funds in their fund formations and investment transactions. He has significant experience handling deals ranging from seed stage financings to initial public offerings, leveraged buyouts and mergers & acquisitions. A graduate of the State University of New York at Albany, Mr. Kirmayer earned law degrees from Rutgers University School of Law and New York University School of Law.
Mr. Altieri, who practiced in Sonnenschein’s Corporate and Venture Capital/Emerging Growth Company groups, represents both private and public companies in a range of industries, including technology, medical device and retail, as well as venture capital firms. He has extensive transactional experience covering venture capital financings, mergers & acquisitions and public equity and debt financings. Prior to joining Sonnenschein, he was with Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati PC in Palo Alto. A graduate of the University of California, Davis, Mr. Altieri earned a master’s degree from the University of California, San Diego, and a law degree from the University of San Francisco School of Law.
One of the most active major law firms in the intellectual property and life science areas, Mintz Levin has more than 90 attorneys, scientists and other professionals focused on the protection, licensing and enforcement of intellectual property rights. The firm’s roster of more than 400 intellectual property-related clients includes many of the most prominent names in the life sciences and technology industries including: StemCells Inc., Merck, 454 Life Sciences and Neuromolecular Pharmaceuticals Inc. The firm also represents a number of life sciences companies, including Coley Pharmaceutical Group, Inc., Curagen Corporation, OSI Pharmaceuticals and QIAGEN, in other areas including mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and strategic alliances, and public and private financings.
On the corporate transaction side, Mintz Levin completed more than 200 transactions with a value of more than $13.5 billion in 2006. The transactions included more than 80 merger & acquisition transactions totaling more than $12 billion; more than 70 venture capital transactions totaling more than $635 million; and 13 public offerings, totaling more than $1.2 billion.
Mintz Levin is an AmLaw 100 law firm with offices in the US and the UK. The firm has exceptional depth in a broad range of practice areas, but our clients recognize that what sets us apart from other law firms is our industry focus. By truly understanding business drivers and industry trends, the firm is able to provide clients with more than just legal advice. Mintz Levin provides legal solutions to its clients’ business issues. Since 1933, the firm’s lawyers have represented entrepreneurs, emerging growth companies, government agencies, and leaders in primary industries that include Life Sciences/Biotechnology; Technology & Communications; Financial Services & Insurance; Healthcare; Real Estate, Hospitality & Construction; and Retail & Consumer Products. The firm’s practical knowledge combined with its industry expertise enables it to provide clients with enterprise legal advice that gives their business a competitive advantage in the marketplace. For detailed information on the firm visit www.mintz.com.
