King & Spalding Extends Lateral Hiring Tear With 2 More Mass Tort Partners From Orrick
The moves bring King & Spalding's lateral partner haul to at least a dozen so far in February in New York, Washington and Chicago.
February 26, 2020 at 06:13 PM
3 minute read
The original version of this story was published on The American Lawyer
King & Spalding, Atlanta HQ. Photo: John Disney/ALM
King & Spalding is continuing to lure partners from Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe in an effort to bolster its mass tort practice, one of the firm's "largest and most celebrated," one King & Spalding leader said Wednesday.
The Atlanta-based firm announced that it had added Shaila Diwan and Alvin Lee to its ranks in New York. They're part of the same team King & Spalding imported from Orrick earlier this month—Morton Dubin, John Ewald, Kristen Fournier and Kathy O'Connor.
"We have a long history in the mass tort space in this firm and we're continuing to build that out," said Andy Bayman, the head of the firm's trial and global disputes practice group. "There's a lot of mass tort litigation, there's a demand for trial lawyers—people who have true, first-chair experience. It's the state of litigation these days."
Like the four Orrick partners who came to King & Spalding before them, Diwan and Lee also worked on mass tort cases involving Johnson & Johnson and Dow. Both Orrick and King & Spalding have counted the companies as clients.
Diwan and Lee are on "the younger end" of their law careers, said Bayman, who pointed to their hiring as a sign that the firm was investing in its future. Bayman declined to say whether more defections to the firm were expected from Orrick.
Diwan and Lee's addition brings King & Spalding's lateral partner haul to at least a dozen so far in February.
Earlier this month, the firm added a benefits and compensation partner Jeanie Cogill from Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, in New York, and two partners in Washington, D.C.: Rick Vacura, the former chair of government contracts and public procurement at Morrison & Foerster, and Steve Cave, who led McKinsey & Co.'s public sector legal team.
Then on Tuesday, King & Spalding brought on a trio of international arbitration partners who specialize in Latin America from Kirkland & Ellis, including Chicago-based Javier Rubinstein, who was also previously global general counsel for PricewaterhouseCoopers, and New Yorkers Lauren Friedman and Lucila Hemmingsen.
"Our New York office has enjoyed an incredible start to 2020 with nine lateral partners adding talent to the firm's trials, international arbitration and benefits practices," said Edward Kehoe, the managing partner of the firm's New York office, in a press release. "We anticipate investment to continue across all our practice groups in New York and look forward to further expanding our strength and depth."
An Orrick spokesman said the firm thanks for Diwan and Lee for their contributions and wishes them the best.
Read More
King & Spalding Lands New York Tort Trial Team From Orrick
King & Spalding Grows Again in DC, Adding Morrison & Foerster Gov't Contracts Founder
Int'l Arbitration Trio, Ex-PwC GC Leave Kirkland for King & Spalding
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
© 2025 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
MoFo Associate Sees a Familiar Face During Her First Appellate Argument: Justice Breyer
Amid the Tragedy of the L.A. Fires, a Lesson on the Value of Good Neighbors
Litigators of the Week: Shortly After Name Partner Kathleen Sullivan’s Retirement, Quinn Emanuel Scores Appellate Win for Vimeo
Law Firms Mentioned
Trending Stories
Who Got The Work
J. Brugh Lower of Gibbons has entered an appearance for industrial equipment supplier Devco Corporation in a pending trademark infringement lawsuit. The suit, accusing the defendant of selling knock-off Graco products, was filed Dec. 18 in New Jersey District Court by Rivkin Radler on behalf of Graco Inc. and Graco Minnesota. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Zahid N. Quraishi, is 3:24-cv-11294, Graco Inc. et al v. Devco Corporation.
Who Got The Work
Rebecca Maller-Stein and Kent A. Yalowitz of Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer have entered their appearances for Hanaco Venture Capital and its executives, Lior Prosor and David Frankel, in a pending securities lawsuit. The action, filed on Dec. 24 in New York Southern District Court by Zell, Aron & Co. on behalf of Goldeneye Advisors, accuses the defendants of negligently and fraudulently managing the plaintiff's $1 million investment. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Vernon S. Broderick, is 1:24-cv-09918, Goldeneye Advisors, LLC v. Hanaco Venture Capital, Ltd. et al.
Who Got The Work
Attorneys from A&O Shearman has stepped in as defense counsel for Toronto-Dominion Bank and other defendants in a pending securities class action. The suit, filed Dec. 11 in New York Southern District Court by Bleichmar Fonti & Auld, accuses the defendants of concealing the bank's 'pervasive' deficiencies in regards to its compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act and the quality of its anti-money laundering controls. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian, is 1:24-cv-09445, Gonzalez v. The Toronto-Dominion Bank et al.
Who Got The Work
Crown Castle International, a Pennsylvania company providing shared communications infrastructure, has turned to Luke D. Wolf of Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani to fend off a pending breach-of-contract lawsuit. The court action, filed Nov. 25 in Michigan Eastern District Court by Hooper Hathaway PC on behalf of The Town Residences LLC, accuses Crown Castle of failing to transfer approximately $30,000 in utility payments from T-Mobile in breach of a roof-top lease and assignment agreement. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Susan K. Declercq, is 2:24-cv-13131, The Town Residences LLC v. T-Mobile US, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Wilfred P. Coronato and Daniel M. Schwartz of McCarter & English have stepped in as defense counsel to Electrolux Home Products Inc. in a pending product liability lawsuit. The court action, filed Nov. 26 in New York Eastern District Court by Poulos Lopiccolo PC and Nagel Rice LLP on behalf of David Stern, alleges that the defendant's refrigerators’ drawers and shelving repeatedly break and fall apart within months after purchase. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Joan M. Azrack, is 2:24-cv-08204, Stern v. Electrolux Home Products, Inc.
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
