Connecticut Movers: Shipman Partner Cunningham Named Chairman of Interlaw
"It's quite an honor," said Glenn M. Cunningham, who has been an active member of Interlaw's board of directors since 2015, serving recently as vice chairman under Michael Siebold.
November 09, 2018 at 11:59 AM
3 minute read
Interlaw, an international network with 80-plus firms and more than 7,000 attorneys, has appointed Glenn M. Cunningham, a partner at Hartford's Shipman & Goodwin, its newest chairman.
“It's quite an honor,” said Cunningham, who has been an active member of Interlaw's board of directors since 2015, serving recently as vice chairman under Michael Siebold. “We have 82 firms in about 150 cities and we're approaching 8,000 lawyers, and at Shipman we've become one of the largest exporters of work into the network.”
In contrast to a large multinational practice, Interlaw relies on independent firms to provide specialized services in their respective cities and countries, rather than satellite offices that have to report back to a centralized base. “It's really creating an alternative to big law,” Cunningham said. “My job as chairman is to make sure things are going smoothly, and we just launched what we call our Interlaw 2.0 Strategic Plan, which has firms working more in synch with each other, like a truly global firm. We have practice groups so we can approach clients as a team and earn more cross-border work.”
Cunningham's appointment follows a period of significant growth under Siebold's leadership at Interlaw, including the addition of firms in Latin America and Africa. The network has been around since the 1980s, and Shipman & Goodwin has been a member for more than 15 years.
Started by firm leaders with clients who needed legal services in faraway jurisdictions, Interlaw uses a strict due diligence process to interview new potential firms. The goal is to connect with firms that are known and trusted in each locale. “One of the benefits of the network is we're all independent,” Cunningham added. “We use the network because we want to use these other firms. We don't have to.”
Cunningham added that local firms tend to offer excellent, personalized service. “When I tell you we have a firm in Kuala Lumpur, it's not going to be a few attorneys from a big firm. It's going to be a firm that knows how to get things done there. It's truly a global reach, our pricing is less expensive, and, frankly, we're less cumbersome.” At Interlaw's recent annual meeting in Paris, Cunningham said, corporate leaders said they use the network because it involves less bureaucracy, which translates into better efficiency. “It's a very exciting time for our network, and I'm happy to be at the helm for next three years.”
Said Cunningham's predecessor Siebold, “It has been a privilege to lead this collective of dynamic, smart and enthusiastic independent law firm lawyers who all share a common vision: to deliver the very best legal advice and service to clients wherever they need it in the world. Today's client demands—and deserves—the combination of supreme technical expertise and deep local insight.”
“Under Michael's leadership, Interlaw has taken great strides in understanding and responding to the needs of global clients,” Cunningham said. “Thanks to his strategic focus, the organization is flourishing, and I look forward to working with our new board members John O'Sullivan, Neftali Garro and Kevin Degkai Zhu, as well as existing board directors, to drive forward our plans to become the global legal practice of choice for clients around the world.”
Shipman & Goodwin has 170-plus attorneys in Connecticut, New York and in Washington, D.C. Cunningham has chaired the firm's business litigation and intellectual property practice groups.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View AllConnecticut Movers: New Hires at SkiberLaw, Verrill and Silver Golub & Teitell
3 minute readTrending Stories
- 1Decision of the Day: Judge Reduces $287M Jury Verdict Against Harley-Davidson in Wrongful Death Suit
- 2Kirkland to Covington: 2024's International Chart Toppers and Award Winners
- 3Decision of the Day: Judge Denies Summary Judgment Motions in Suit by Runner Injured in Brooklyn Bridge Park
- 4KISS, Profit Motive and Foreign Currency Contracts
- 512 Days of … Web Analytics
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250