Eric Kuwana has joined Cooley as a partner from Katten Muchin Rosenman, where he co-chaired the firm's securities litigation and enforcement practice.

Kuwana, a seasoned securities and commercial litigator who previously served in President George H.W. Bush's White House Counsel's Office, will split time between Cooley's Washington, D.C., and New York offices. Kuwana said he was not looking to make the move but was lured to the firm by lawyers there with whom he has personal relationships.

“What really sold me though, bluntly … is that there is an atmosphere where trial lawyers and people who really try cases and [have] broad experience thrive here,” Kuwana said of his new firm. “They don't pigeonhole you. They don't put you in a small square and say, 'That's all you're going to do.'”

He said Cooley has a strong reputation in several of the areas of crucial importance to his practice, including venture capital, emerging companies and the technology, life sciences and education sectors.

Kuwana joined Katten in 2006 from Patton Boggs, where he was deputy chair of the firm's litigation department. His notable cases at Katten have included representing alt-right media outfit Breitbart in a defamation suit brought by former U.S. Department of Agriculture official Shirley Sherrod; securing a $235 million judgment against Lennar, a publicly traded homebuilder; and successfully defending Costco and a food supplier in a products liability case tied to a hepatitis A outbreak.

Bay Area-based Cooley's strong financial performance over the last year will likely help its concerted effort to grow its footprint on the East Coast. Cooley's annual gross revenue cracked the $1 billion threshold for 2017, and the firm has added more than 50 lawyers in D.C. in the last four years.

At 52 years old, Kuwana said he expects he will ”hopefully” remain at Cooley for the rest of his career. He said it was a “very tough” decision to leave Katten, and, while a handful of lawyers on his core team will join him at Cooley, he said he has no plans to recruit others from his former firm.

Katten did not immediately respond to request for comment on Kuwana's exit.

Kuwana said he's eager to dive into his practice at his new firm.

“What is surprising as I've talked to people is how many of my close business friends and clients have had very positive experiences at Cooley at either their current or their former companies,” he said.