Greenberg Traurig office. Photo: J. Albert Diaz

After saying farewell to a longtime bankruptcy partner and rainmaker last week, Greenberg Traurig has gone back to its trend of hiring in that practice, bringing on three new partners.

Two Utah-based Dorsey & Whitney bankruptcy partners, Peggy Hunt and Annette Jarvis, have joined Greenberg's Denver office as shareholders, while Holland & Knight corporate restructuring partner Jason DelMonico joins the firm in Boston.

The new hires are the latest in a streak of bankruptcy pickups for Greenberg, which is looking to continue to bolster the practice as government mandates in response to the novel coronavirus continue to interrupt business and drag down the economy.

"Since 2019, the number of restructuring attorneys at the firm has grown by nearly 20%," firm chairman Richard Rosenbaum said in a statement. "We are prepared for the challenge and are already addressing the most pressing issues for businesses that may appear regionally, nationally and globally from economies hampered by COVID-19, recession, or any other catastrophic occurrence."

Hunt and Jarvis will be based out of the Denver office, but Greenberg has also rented out a physical location in Salt Lake City, which the attorneys will use when they see clients in Utah, Greenberg CEO Brian Duffy said. Duffy added that the firm may launch an "official" Salt Lake City office in the future "when appropriate."

Hunt is the former co-chair of Dorsey's bankruptcy practice group and spent more than 11 years at the firm, according to her LinkedIn page. Over her three-decade career, Hunt has received numerous awards and served as a leader in various organizations, including as commissioner on the Utah Securities Commission and president of the Utah Bar Foundation. She is not admitted to the Colorado Bar.

Jarvis held significant leadership positions while at Dorsey. From 2012 to 2014, she was head of the firm's Salt Lake City office, and from 2013 to 2018, she was a member of Dorsey's firmwide management committee.

DelMonico's practice has a more corporate focus, and he will officially join Greenberg's corporate practice. But in addition to his transactional work, a significant portion of DelMonico's practice involves restructuring, loan workouts and bankruptcy finance matters, according to Greenberg.

The new hires come after a mixed couple of weeks for the restructuring practice. Last week, Greenberg lost bankruptcy rainmaker Mark Bloom, a nearly 40-year veteran of the firm who went to Baker McKenzie, along with 16-year restructuring partner Paul Keenan and John Dodd, whom Greenberg promoted to partner last year.

In March, Greenberg dipped into Baker McKenzie's restructuring ranks when it hired away Ian Jack, a two-decade restructuring veteran at Baker McKenzie and former global co-head of its bankruptcy practice.

Greenberg also linked back up with former bankruptcy co-chair Bruce Zirinsky, who left the firm in 2015 to start his own shop, Zirinsky Law Partners. Greenberg did not hire Zirinsky outright—instead, the two firms have formed a strategic partnership. According to Rosenbaum, that was done so they could get working together more quickly than a traditional lateral process would allow, given the rapid nature of the COVID-induced downturn.

Holland & Knight did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the departures. Dorsey & Whitney declined to comment.

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