San Francisco Office Celebrates One-Year Anniversary

On the first anniversary of our launch in San Francisco in January 2021, our new office has already made a splash in the legal market, securing high-impact litigation wins, inking transformational private equity deals, and winning numerous recognitions.

Major accomplishments for our California-based clients on the litigation side include a landmark trial victory for Apple in Epic v. Apple, and a favorable settlement for Gilead Sciences in an FCA anti-kickback case, among others. The San Francisco litigation team also has important engagements for Recology, the University of California Health System and the Golden State Warriors, among other marquee clients. Lawyers in the office are playing key roles in two upcoming trials for new clients Ocwen Financial in a RICO class action and RingCentral in its contract dispute with Zoom.

Among other significant representations, the San Francisco corporate team lead-advised Golden Gate Capital in the $3.1 billion sale of its portfolio company Neustar to TransUnion, and its acquisition of student safety and device management platform Securly; and High Bluff Capital Partners in its acquisition of Church’s Chicken. The team also collaborated with our New York team on impactful transactions, including representing a SPAC sponsored by an affiliate of SoftBank Investment Advisers in its $5.5 billion merger with Symbotic, and General Atlantic in its investment in Chess.com.

Behind the growth of the office, now numbering 15 lawyers, are seven prominent partners with deep ties to the Northern California business and legal community. The office’s founding partners—litigators Melinda Haag, Walter Brown, Randy Luskey and Meredith Dearborn and private equity attorney Jeremy Veit—were joined by private equity partner Austin Pollet in April 2021 and litigation partner Joshua Hill in July. While bringing in numerous new clients to the firm, they have collaborated closely with others across the firm, helping broaden and deepen our relationships with some of California’s most important tech companies.

Their work has garnered numerous recognitions in their first year at the firm. Walt was recognized as a 2021 “White Collar Litigator of the Year” by Benchmark Litigation, and as a “Top White Collar Lawyer” by the Daily Journal; Melinda was named a “Top 100” lawyer by the Daily Journal; Walt and Melinda were recognized among the inaugural “West Trailblazers” by The American Lawyer; Randy was honored as a “Top Trade Secrets Lawyer” by the Daily Journal; and Meredith was recognized as a Law360 Rising Star in Technology, an Antitrust Rising Star in Bloomberg Law’s “They’ve Got Next” series, and a “Top 40 Under 40” lawyer by the Daily Journal.