Elizabeth Deeley and Andrew Clubok

Latham & Watkins announced Tuesday the hire of a pair of former Kirkland & Ellis litigation partners, bringing on trial lawyers Andrew Clubok in Washington, D.C., and Elizabeth Deeley in San Francisco.

Clubok, who will also spend time in Latham's New York office, will serve as co-chairman of Latham's securities litigation and professional liability practice and will become a member of the firm's complex commercial litigation practice, the firm said. Also joining the complex litigation group is Deeley, whose practice covers a range of business disputes in the realms of fraud, consumer protection and unfair business practices, antitrust, securities and trade secrets, among others.

“Andy and Beth are fantastic additions to the talented team of trial lawyers and litigators at Latham & Watkins,” Jamie Wine, global chairwoman of Latham's litigation and trial department, said in a statement. “They join battle-tested colleagues with vast experience handling the most complex, tough and novel legal challenges that face corporations and executives today. I'm thrilled to welcome them both to the firm.”

For Latham, the litigation pickups come on the heels of another hire in its corporate department, announced last week. On Dec. 13, the firm said it had brought on Paul Hastings attorney Todd Beauchamp, a Washington-based partner with experience advising clients in the financial technology and electronic payments space. Beauchamp joined Latham as leader of the firm's payments and emerging financial services practice. The move follows a recent trend of firms looking to bulk up their fintech offerings, as more clients pose questions about digital currencies such as bitcoin and the blockchain technology that underpins those currencies.

Latham emphasized that both Clubok and Deeley have courtroom experience representing “key players” in the financial services and technology sectors. Clubok, who will step into a leadership role in Latham's securities litigation group, has trial court, appellate and administrative litigation experience in the areas of securities law, tax, environmental law, telecommunications and corporate restructuring.

Washington, D.C., office managing partner Michael Egge said in a statement that Clubok would complement the firm's U.S. and global work and “play a key role in further establishing the practice as the preeminent trial team for bet-the-company mandates.”

Clubok noted Latham's team-oriented approach, and said he views the firm as “unmatched” in its ability “to effectively resolve the most complex disputes.”

Deeley, meanwhile, was described in Latham's statement as a “seasoned trial lawyer with extensive experience defending companies in class actions and high-stakes lawsuits.” She has handled business disputes on behalf of clients in the technology, social media, banking, insurance and food industries, among others.

“She is a talented litigator with particular legal skill in complex technology disputes,” Kirt Switzer, managing partner of Latham's San Francisco office, said of Deeley. “Her skills align perfectly to the needs of companies in our innovative community, particularly as they grow and are faced with ever more complex and high-stakes legal challenges.”

Deeley said she was drawn to the firm's approach of “bringing together powerhouse trial lawyers and the best multidisciplinary legal talent.”

While Latham has also seen some lawyers depart in recent months, including a pair of private equity partners who left for Sidley Austin's outpost in Boston, the firm has made a number of notable hires in the past year. In late September and early October, for instance, the firm announced hires on both sides of the Atlantic, bringing on a litigator in London and, in New York, corporate and tax partners.

Also this year, Latham hired Juan Picon to head its office in Madrid, Spain, a move that came about 18 months after Picon had joined DLA Piper as that firm's global co-chairman.