Firm Launches Fifth Office in California with Key Partners in Intellectual Property, Securities Litigation and Corporate Practices
Boston, June 6, 2007 – LAWFUEL – The Law Firm Newswire – Goodwin Procter LLP, one of the nation’s leading law firms, today announced the opening of a Palo Alto office, establishing its fifth California office in the past 14 months. The firm’s West Coast expansion is a key component of its national strategy to create a bi-coastal platform for serving clients in the areas of technology companies, life sciences, private equity, corporate M&A, intellectual property, and securities litigation.
Joining the firm as partners are: Byron W. Cooper, Gregory S. Bishop, April E. Abele and Thomas F. Fitzpatrick, formerly of Townsend and Townsend and Crew; Lloyd Winawer, formerly of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati; and William Davisson, formerly of Latham & Watkins. Kyle Wombolt, formerly of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, joins the firm as counsel.
Joining these new partners in Palo Alto will also be Kevin Dennis and Kathy Fields, corporate partners based in Goodwin Procter’s Boston office, who will relocate to California in the near future to serve as co-chairs of office.
“Establishing a Palo Alto office has long been a key component of our national client service strategy,” said Regina M. Pisa, chairman and managing partner of Goodwin Procter. “These are fine people and extremely talented attorneys with a combined practice mix that will serve as a strong foundation from which we plan to grow our presence in this market. Intellectual property, securities litigation and corporate/transactional work are practice strengths of our firm.”
“Byron, Greg, April and Tom are joining an IP group that is focused on our clients’ real business objectives and strategies,” said Thomas J. Scott, Jr., chair of Goodwin Procter’s Intellectual Property Practice. “They have reputations for providing responsive service and cutting-edge legal work to national clients with whom they have developed extraordinary relationships.” Cooper, Bishop and Fitzpatrick will reside in the new Palo Alto office; Abele will reside in the firm’s San Francisco office
Last month, eight partners joined the firm’s IP practice in its Washington, D.C. and New York offices bringing the number of attorneys focused on IP in Boston, New York, Washington, D.C., and now Palo Alto, to 145. Goodwin Procter represents some of the world’s leading companies in the area of IP law and has been ranked by IP Law & Business as one of the nation’s most active IP law firms.
Lloyd Winawer and Kyle Wombolt join Goodwin Procter after spending the last two decades defending corporations and their officers and directors in securities class action and shareholder derivative lawsuits, SEC enforcement proceedings, and related
matters. Winawer has handled some of the most significant shareholder lawsuits brought in the Western U.S., and will help spearhead this practice for the firm on the West Coast.
“The addition of Lloyd and Kyle in the securities litigation area, as well as Will joining our business practice group, further strengthens our already broad-shouldered, national practices in these areas,” said Pisa.
Nationally, Goodwin Procter now has more than 80 attorneys who handle civil and white collar securities matters, and its practice in this area is one of the largest and most active in the country. The firm’s clients in these matters include publicly-traded operating companies, including technology and bio-technology companies; hedge funds; REITs; mutual funds; and venture capital funds, banks, insurance companies, and other diversified financial institutions; and the senior executives, directors, and trustees of these organizations.
In addition to IP and securities litigation, Goodwin Procter is expanding its Corporate Practice, which includes private equity, technology companies and life sciences, fund formation and mergers & acquisitions. Davisson, a highly-regarded attorney, joins the firm’s Corporate Practice. He represents issuers, investors and investment banks in equity and debt offerings, restructurings and venture capital and other financing transactions. Last year, the firm added a private equity team to its Washington, D.C. office and this March, a highly-regarded technology and life sciences team, led by Stephen Ferruolo, launched the firm’s San Diego office. The firm consistently ranks among the nation’s leaders in private equity and technology company deals, ranking 6th overall in the U.S. based on volume of private equity and venture capital deals closed in 2006, by Private Equity Analyst.
Rounding out the Palo Alto-based team are two corporate partners who will co-chair the Palo Alto office — Dennis and Fields, who will be relocating from the firm’s Boston office. Dennis is a partner in the firm’s Business Law Department and focuses
his practice on private equity, mergers and acquisitions, general corporate representation, and corporate finance. Prior to this new position, Dennis was in charge of the firm’s professional development and training. Fields, also a partner in the firm’s Business Law Department, concentrates on mergers and acquisitions, private equity, venture capital and representation of technology companies.
Goodwin Procter first established its West Coast presence in 2006 by opening offices in Los Angeles and San Francisco. In March 2007, the firm added offices in Downtown LA and San Diego. With the new office in Palo Alto, the firm now has five offices in California and plans to continue its investment in the state.
About Goodwin Procter
Goodwin Procter LLP is one of the nation’s leading law firms with more than 750 attorneys in offices in Boston, Los Angeles, New York, Palo Alto, San Diego, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C. The firm was recently ranked in the top 50 firms on the AmLaw 100 and has received recent accolades from Chambers USA, which ranked 84 of the firm’s attorneys for excellence across 21 practice areas. The firm’s core areas of practice are corporate, litigation and real estate, with specialized areas of focus that include financial services, private equity, technology, REITs and real estate capital markets, intellectual property and products liability. Information may be found at www.goodwinprocter.com.
Partner Biographical Information:
April E. Abele focuses on patent litigation. She has handled numerous patent infringement lawsuits in district courts nationally and before the U.S. International Trade Commission. She has worked as a researcher at Harvard Medical School and at Children’s Hospital in Boston. Abele has represented clients on patent cases involving life sciences, medical devices, e-commerce,
semiconductor and software design, among others. She is registered to practice before the U.S.
Patent and Trademark Office and has served as both a prosecutor and criminal defense attorney in
the U.S. Navy’s Judge Advocate General’s Corps, trying numerous felony jury trials. She received an A.B. from Mount Holyoke College, an M.S. from the University of Chicago and her J.D. from Vanderbilt University School of Law.
Gregory S. Bishop specializes in patent litigation, particularly matters involving computers, electronics, semiconductors and software. He is experienced in cases brought before the International Trade Commission as well as in federal district court. He also practices in the area of antitrust litigation and other commercial litigation. He is registered to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, beginning his legal career as a patent prosecutor. Prior to attending law school, Bishop worked as a design engineer. He received a B.S. from Brigham Young University, an M.S. from Syracuse University and his J.D. from Brigham Young University.
Byron W. Cooper focuses his practice on protecting the technology required to achieve his clients’ business goals. In addition to patent litigation in federal district courts across the country and before the U.S. International Trade Commission, he counsels a wide range of clients regarding licensing, patent prosecution and patent portfolios, and provides opinions regarding infringement and the validity of patents. He has also drafted and prosecuted patent applications before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and participated in reexaminations. He received a B.S. from the United States Military Academy at West Point, an M.S. at the University of Southern California and his J.D. from the University of California at Los Angeles.
William Davisson focuses his practice on corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions and general company representation in a broad range of industries. Davisson represents issuers, investors and investment banks in equity and debt offerings, restructurings and venture capital and other financing transactions. He also represents public/private companies and private equity firms in merger and acquisition transactions. Davisson received an A.B. from the University of California, Berkeley and his J.D. from New York University.
Thomas F. Fitzpatrick focuses his practice in intellectual property trials, including litigating patent, trade secret, trademark, copyright, technology licensing and other related disputes. Fitzpatrick has successfully represented clients in industries ranging from computer architecture and software, to wireless communications and consumer goods. He also served in the San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office where he prosecuted criminal cases. He received a B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley and his J.D. from Santa Clara University School of Law.
Lloyd Winawer focuses his practice on securities and complex business litigation. He has represented numerous companies, directors, and officers in shareholder class actions and derivative lawsuits filed throughout the country. In addition, Winawer has handled a wide range of business disputes, including cases involving multi-million dollar contract and business tort claims. He received a B.A. from Brandeis University and his J.D. from New York University School of Law.
Kyle Wombolt focuses on the defense of securities class actions, shareholder derivative actions, and other complex business-related disputes. He also advises audit committees and boards of directors on internal and regulatory investigations. He received a B.S. from the University of Idaho and his J.D. from the University of Idaho College of Law.
