Meredith Jones-McKeown, co-managing partner of Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton's San Francisco office and co-chair of the firm's construction practice, has joined Perkins Coie as a partner in the firm's commercial litigation and construction practices. Both firms have been active in the lateral market this year.

Jones-McKeown handles litigation that arises from private and public construction projects, real estate disputes and environmental matters. On the transactional side, she drafts and negotiates complex construction contracts, including architectural and design agreements for a recent $400 million project in San Francisco's Mission Bay neighborhood. She spent almost a decade at Sheppard Mullin, where she made partner in 2013.

The national strength of Perkins Coie's construction practice attracted Jones-McKeown to the firm, she said. Though she will be the first construction partner in its San Francisco office, Jones-McKeown said the expertise of her new firm's other lawyers, such as environmental, energy and natural resources partner Barbara Schussman and land development chair Matthew Gray, will benefit her clients.