King & Spalding had recruited four more complex commercial litigators from Boies Schiller Flexner, including one who had served on its executive committee.

The departures of New York-based Damien Marshall, Andrew Michaelson, Leigh Nathanson and Laura Harris from Boies Schiller come on top of the firm's earlier raid of 15 partners from the firm's West Coast offices in April. The exits also come one week after Boies Schiller saw two high-profile rainmakers—Karen Dunn and Bill Isaacson—join Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison.

Marshall, like Dunn, was on Boies Schiller's four-person management committee when it was first announced in November 2018. In an interview, Marshall listed King & Spalding's collaborative culture as well as its support for complex litigation that often has an investigation aspect as some of the reasons why he and his group are leaving.

"The decision-making process wasn't driven by what was happening at [Boies Schiller] or what was happening with others who were making other decisions about opportunities at the firm," Marshall said. "It was really about this incredible platform and opportunity King & Spalding was offering us. When it became clear to us this was a unique and great fit for our entire group, we decided to accept it and explore the opportunity."

While King & Spalding has now recruited 19 partners from Boies Schiller within two months, it also has deferred its distributions for current partners, which were due to be paid around May, by two months, Law.com reported Friday. Sources said King & Spalding had deferred the distributions as a "precautionary measure" and the firm had also developed a cautious and strategic approach to hiring.

A King & Spalding spokeswoman said the New York group's first day is Tuesday.

Marshall said the fact that he knew so many lawyers at King & Spalding was a factor in his decision to join. The other 15 partners who joined King & Spalding left Boies Schiller's San Francisco and Los Angeles offices.

Clients of the departing quartet in New York include a mixture of financial services and technology sector companies. Marshall declined to comment on client matters other than to say that the group has "a significant financial services practice in New York."

Marshall is the lead attorney in the trademark infringement lawsuit being waged by Ripple Labs, Inc., against YouTube. The financial tech company has accused YouTube of failing to address a cryptocurrency scam on its platform.

Nathanson has defended both Barclays and the daily fantasy sports company DraftKings in litigation. Michaelson represented ValueAct Capital Master Fund after its $2.5 billion purchase of shares in Halliburton and Baker Hughes led to federal scrutiny. ValueAct settled the case with the U.S. Department of Justice in July 2016 for $11 million.

Boies Schiller managing partner Natasha Harrison wished the group well at their new firm in a statement, calling them "outstanding people and brilliant legal minds."

"While it may disappoint, it is not a surprise that competitors are going to recruit what we have cultivated and sometimes succeed," Harrison said. "We wish Damien, Laura, Andrew and Leigh every success in their new pursuits."

Since December, Boies Schiller has lost at least 25% of its partnership, according to ALM data. The firm said it is restructuring itself, and more departures would be occurring, the firm's leadership said earlier this week.

"Departures are an inevitable development as the firm continues its all-important work of restructuring and building on our position of being one of the leading and most profitable law firms in the country," Gravante said in a statement.

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