Douglas Flaum

Douglas Flaum, the global co-chair of Paul Hastings' securities litigation practice, is heading to Goodwin Procter as the firm continues its expansion efforts in New York City.

Flaum, whose clients have included Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs, Barclays Capital and the Bank of New York Mellon, is joining Goodwin as a partner in its financial institutions industry practice in Manhattan.

Flaum joined Paul Hastings in 2013 from Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson, where he first began his legal career in 1986, eventually becoming the head of the Wall Street firm's securities and shareholder litigation practice. 

For more than three decades, Flaum has litigated on behalf of national and international corporations, directors and special board committees in a wide range of complex financial and business disputes, including shareholder actions under the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. 

At Los Angeles-based Paul Hastings, he led the securities litigation group along with Palo Alto, California-based Peter Stone. Paul Hastings on Monday said it wished Flaum well in his move.

Flaum said it was Goodwin's commitment to and desire to grow its financial services and litigation practice in New York that initially enticed him to join the firm. Goodwin also stands out for its work for clients on both the transactional and litigation side, he said. 

“My clients, and clients generally, are looking [for] legal services that are incredibly sophisticated, that include litigation—but really understand their business and focus on propelling their business interests forward,” he said.

“That's an exciting difference, and I think it's the future and the right way to go,” Flaum added.

While he has handled his share of matters for traditional banks, Flaum's client base has come to encompass more nontraditional, international financial players, and he said Goodwin is active in those areas.

“I think Goodwin looks at financial services broadly and has expertise in a lot of areas that I hope to tap into, and hope to help them tap into clients I've been working with,” Flaum said.

“Doug's addition as a first-chair senior litigator who's represented some of the world's largest financial institutions, including Goldman Sachs and others, just gives us added gravitas and capability with the client base that we already have, as well as with certainly the clients that we aspire to represent,” said Marshall Fishman, the head of Goodwin's New York commercial and financial litigation group.

Flaum is just the latest hire in New York for Boston-founded Goodwin, which boosted its revenue by 16.1 percent last year, reaching a new high of $1.198 billion.

In December, the firm added New York derivatives specialist John Servidio from Winston & Strawn. Earlier this year, Goodwin added Kirkland & Ellis partner Joshua Soszynski to its private equity group in New York. It also added Latham & Watkins private equity partner Gregor Klenk to its office in Frankfurt, Germany.

Among recent notable matters, Goodwin is representing the underwriters in ride-sharing giant Lyft Inc.'s initial public offering.