Robin Henry and Motty Shulman, two longtime partners at Boies Schiller Flexner who have represented financial institutions in high-profile litigation, have jumped to Fried Frank Harris Shriver & Jacobson's New York office.

Henry and Shulman, who left Boies Schiller on Sunday and started remotely at Fried Frank on Monday, said they were drawn by the opportunity to work with Fried Frank's client base and help build the capabilities of its litigation department, which firm chairman David Greenwald has said was very busy last year.

Both Henry and Shulman practiced at Boies Schiller for about two decades.

Henry said she anticipated that they would be working with new clients at Fried Frank as well as introducing clients to their new firm. According to publicly available court records and announcements, the two partners have represented, individually or together, BNP Paribas in major litigation with Bank of America; Deutsche Bank and Bank of New York Mellon in various residential mortgage-backed securities cases; bond insurer MBIA; The Weinstein Co.; and Fortis Advisors. They also worked for insurance giant AIG on a major tax case.

Henry and Shulman are the most recent departures at Boies Schiller, which shook up leadership by naming in December Nick Gravante and Natasha Harrison as managing partners alongside David Boies and Jonathan Schiller. At least eight other partners, out of about 150, have announced moves from the firm since the start of the year, Law.com reported last month, and two others left earlier in March.

Henry and Shulman said in a joint interview that the new leadership had nothing to do with their decision to change firms, with Shulman saying they had "utmost respect" for the four leaders and think they will do well.

"I can't stress enough," Henry said, "Fried Frank has a phenomenal client base, first-rate, and the opportunity to help a firm of Fried Frank's stature with Fried Frank's client base to further build out what is already a first-rate litigation practice was frankly a unique opportunity."

Henry and Shulman, who were posted to Boies Schiller's Armonk office, will be partners in Fried Frank's litigation department and its securities and shareholder litigation practice. The firm said they would represent funds, insurers and financial institutions in their disputes, settlement talks, diligence and internal investigations, saying they have extensive experience in cases involving "esoteric financial products."

Shulman said the move came together "over the last couple of weeks and months through some mutual people that we know in the industry." Henry said a recruiter was not involved.

In a statement, Gravante said: "Robin and Motty have contributed enormously to the firm's success over the years. We wish them luck at their new firm."

Gravante has said the firm has more people joining and said some departures were bound to happen as the firm's founders passed the torch. The firm added Tracy Dovaston, Barclays' head of litigation for Europe, in October, and Jesse Pannucio, a former top Justice Department official, in November.

|

Read More

At Boies Schiller, New Leaders Grapple With Departures, Compensation Questions