Watson Farley & Williams chair to move to New York as the firm hires Mishcon's litigation head
Firm's chair set for New York move as it makes bet on growth in the Big Apple
June 08, 2016 at 07:05 PM
3 minute read
Watson Farley & Williams (WFW) is making moves to grow its New York office, as longstanding firm chair Frank Dunne gets set to move Stateside and it hires Mishcon de Reya's New York litigation head Joshua Sohn.
Dunne said the firm is making a concerted effort to boost its capability in New York.
He said: "Over the last ten years or so, Watson Farley & Williams has invested heavily and looked eastward – and this is quite a significant step in investing in the westward direction."
Shipping partner Dunne, who has chaired the firm since 2004, is set to move from London to New York in the next few months.
He said: "I am a maritime commercial and finance specialist – I see tremendous opportunity in New York. New York has been an engine of growth in our industry, the maritime space especially, as a creative source of new capital and new finance to the industry."
The firm's co-managing partner Chris Lowe said WFW has identified New York as a significant opportunity for the firm. He said: "There may be 100,000 lawyers on Manhattan but it's not overlawyered, particularly in our space."
In addition to Dunne's move, the firm has hired Sohn and a team of three associates from Mishcon's New York office.
A litigator with more than 20 years' experience, Sohn joined Mishcon from DLA Piper in 2014. He made partner at DLA in 2006 and was national co-chair of the firm's real estate litigation group.
Daniel Rodgers, WFW's New York head, said: "Chris and Lothar [Wegener, co-managing partner] and I sat down in the fall of 2013 to talk about where we go in the New York office and at the time, the decision was taken to make a significant commitment and an investment in premises and people."
The firm moved to a larger office in New York in February 2016, signing a 15-year lease for a new office on 250 West 55th Street.
Rodgers said the firm had broadened out from its shipping base in New York, adding a "significant real estate component" and "with Josh we have rebalanced our litigation practice to diversify from the maritime sector".
Rodgers said the firm was also looking to boost its finance and corporate practices in New York.
"We have 11 partners; if I count Frank that makes 12 and with Josh coming in that brings it to 13 – we could have 15 before the end of the year," he said.
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 All
Trending Stories
Who Got The Work
Dechert partners Andrew J. Levander, Angela M. Liu and Neil A. Steiner have stepped in to defend Arbor Realty Trust and certain executives in a pending securities class action. The complaint, filed July 31 in New York Eastern District Court by Levi & Korsinsky, contends that the defendants concealed a 'toxic' mobile home portfolio, vastly overstated collateral in regards to the company's loans and failed to disclose an investigation of the company by the FBI. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Pamela K. Chen, is 1:24-cv-05347, Martin v. Arbor Realty Trust, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Arthur G. Jakoby, Ryan Feeney and Maxim M.L. Nowak from Herrick Feinstein have stepped in to defend Charles Dilluvio and Seacor Capital in a pending securities lawsuit. The complaint, filed Sept. 30 in New York Southern District Court by the Securities and Exchange Commission, accuses the defendants of using consulting agreements, attorney opinion letters and other mechanisms to skirt regulations limiting stock sales by affiliate companies and allowing the defendants to unlawfully profit from sales of Enzolytics stock. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Andrew L. Carter Jr., is 1:24-cv-07362, Securities and Exchange Commission v. Zhabilov et al.
Who Got The Work
Clark Hill members Vincent Roskovensky and Kevin B. Watson have entered appearances for Architectural Steel and Associated Products in a pending environmental lawsuit. The complaint, filed Aug. 27 in Pennsylvania Eastern District Court by Brodsky & Smith on behalf of Hung Trinh, accuses the defendant of discharging polluted stormwater from its steel facility without a permit in violation of the Clean Water Act. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Gerald J. Pappert, is 2:24-cv-04490, Trinh v. Architectural Steel And Associated Products, Inc.
Who Got The Work
Michael R. Yellin of Cole Schotz has entered an appearance for S2 d/b/a the Shoe Surgeon, Dominic Chambrone a/k/a Dominic Ciambrone and other defendants in a pending trademark infringement lawsuit. The case, filed July 15 in New York Southern District Court by DLA Piper on behalf of Nike, seeks to enjoin Ciambrone and the other defendants in their attempts to build an 'entire multifaceted' retail empire through their unauthorized use of Nike’s trademark rights. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald, is 1:24-cv-05307, Nike Inc. v. S2, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Sullivan & Cromwell partner Adam S. Paris has entered an appearance for Orthofix Medical in a pending securities class action arising from a proposed acquisition of SeaSpine by Orthofix. The suit, filed Sept. 6 in California Southern District Court, by Girard Sharp and the Hall Firm, contends that the offering materials and related oral communications contained untrue statements of material fact. According to the complaint, the defendants made a series of misrepresentations about Orthofix’s disclosure controls and internal controls over financial reporting and ethical compliance. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Linda Lopez, is 3:24-cv-01593, O'Hara v. Orthofix Medical Inc. et al.
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
