The top 10 list included several important hires across the state. But those weren't the only moves worth noting. There were 10 more shifts that took place over the course of 2018 that deserve a second look. The runners-up list includes name partners making moves, along with a few firms bulking up innovative practice areas including emerging technologies, intellectual property and data privacy to name a few. The list includes one attorney leaving her firm to expand her practice's reach, an employment lawyer who had the same idea—but in a cloud-based office—as well as a group hire that aided in the launch of the firm's newest practice area: intellectual property. Many of these attorneys made these moves to help grow their practices in both size and geographically. Some of those practice areas included health care, alcohol, medical malpractice, complex litigation, and diversity and inclusion. Babst Calland Bulks Up Tech Practices Pittsburgh-based Babst, Calland, Clements and Zomnir doubled down on emerging technologies, including driverless vehicle technology with these hires back in July. The firm hired shareholder Justine Kasznica in its mobility, transport and safety group, as well as its corporate and commercial group. Intellectual property shareholder Carl Ronald and associate Michael Fink, also in the corporate and commercial group, joined Kasznica in the move. Kasznica's practice is focused on unmanned aircraft, driverless cars and space companies. She and Ronald both joined from Baer Crossey McDemus, a business and technology law boutique with offices in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. Fink was an associate at Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney. "When I was approached by a recruiter who talked about Babst Calland, I had known of them as an oil and gas, environmental firm," Kasznica said. But she quickly learned that the firm was also investing in its technology-related practices. A major selling point, she said, was that Babst Calland last year had hired Timothy Goodman, a former U.S. Department of Transportation lawyer, in Washington, D.C. He now leads the firm's mobility, transport and safety group. Saxton & Stump Adds IP Practice Three-year-old central Pennsylvania firm Saxton & Stump launched an intellectual property practice in June, bringing on a partner from another local firm to form its third new practice area in less than a year. Saxton & Stump brought on shareholder Bruce Wolstoncroft from McNees Wallace & Nurick to lead the IP practice. Senior counsel Helen Odar Wolstoncroft also joined the firm. The two lawyers are married. Bruce Wolstoncroft spent nearly a decade at McNees Wallace. Before that, he practiced in-house at Armstrong World Industries, where he managed the intellectual property department. He was previously a partner at Barley Snyder, another central Pennsylvania firm. Odar Wolstoncroft also has in-house legal experience, having worked most recently at Lititz-based Tait Towers, which designs and constructs equipment used for concerts and other live events. She also worked at Barley Snyder in the past, but joined that firm after her husband had gone in-house. Alcohol Practice Leader Jumps to DLA Piper The leader of Pepper Hamilton's alcoholic beverage industry group made a move to DLA Piper, after only two years at Pepper Hamilton. Philadelphia-based Alva Mather said DLA Piper reached out to her, but she was hesitant to make a move, given how recently she had joined Pepper Hamilton from Griesing Law. But as her clients looked to grow globally, she said, it made sense to join a firm with an international platform. "Where I see my clients' industry going was the tipping point in deciding to make a move," Mather said. "Ultimately I need to go where I can best serve my clients and meet the needs that are on the horizon for them." Most of her clients are breweries and distilleries, she said. And for a long time their legal needs were regional, but that's changing. "While craft alcohol has done very well in the states, it's looking overseas for growth," Mather said, and she didn't want her clients to outgrow the services she is able to offer them. She also represents grocery store chains and other companies that sell alcohol, she said. Mather noted that DLA Piper is focused on growing its food and beverage practice, and will be able to provide support she needs for her clients. As a result, she said, she would be able to focus more on litigation than her clients' regulatory needs. Med Mal Group Joins Burns White Pittsburgh-based Burns White continued to grow its medical malpractice group, bringing on a five-person team from Thomson, Rhodes & Cowie, including the firm's president. David Johnson, co-founder of Thomson Rhodes and its president until his move, joined Burns White along with partners Ashley Griffin and Daniel Margonari and a paralegal and legal assistant. The team represents hospitals, physicians and other health care professionals, and joins a professional liability practice of more than 30 lawyers at Burns White. Johnson said the move presented his group with the opportunity to join a larger, "progressive" firm. "There are tremendous challenges with a small firm like where we're coming from that was nearing the end of its lease, with high overhead," Johnson said. Johnson said it was sad to leave the firm he helped establish, but going to Burns White created a "fresh new beginning." Rhoads & Sinon Moves as Firm Closes

The curtains closed on Harrisburg law firm Rhoads & Sinon in 2018, as nearly two dozen attorneys and staff, including managing partner Drake Nicholas, left to join other central Pennsylvania firms.

Lancaster-based Barley Snyder took on 10 lawyers and nine staff members from the quickly shrinking firm. In addition to Nicholas, the lawyers who joined Barley Snyder were: Stanley Smith, Thomas Nehilla, John Coles, Thomas Anthony French, Robert Tribeck, Kevin Scott, Stephanie DiVittore, William Boak and Sara Myirski.

Three other lawyers—banking and finance partners Charles Ferry and Dean Dusinberre and associate Zachary DuGan—jumped to the Harrisburg office of Reading-based Stevens & Lee, the firm said.

And the public finance group at Rhoads & Sinon found a home in the Harrisburg office of Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott. The four partners, an associate and two administrative assistants joined Pittsburgh-based Eckert Seamans on Jan. 8.

Partners Jens Damgaard, Jonathan Cox, Benjamin Ried and David Twaddell made the move to Eckert Seamans. Damgaard and Ried work with school districts and municipalities on tax-free bonds and other financing arrangements. Cox and Twaddell both serve as bond counsel and bank counsel for clients including school districts, hospitals and nonprofit entities. Shook Hardy Hires Morgan Lewis Partner Kansas City, Missouri-based Shook, Hardy & Bacon added to its Philadelphia office, bringing on a litigator from Morgan, Lewis & Bockius. Thomas Sullivan is the 10th lawyer to join Shook Hardy's Philadelphia location, which opened in 2012, according to the firm's website. Morgan Lewis has nearly 300 lawyers in Philadelphia, where it was founded, and over 2,200 worldwide, according to the firm. Sean Wajert, Shook Hardy's managing partner in the city, said Sullivan added bench depth in Philadelphia, where the firm was looking to grow. Sullivan focuses his practice on complex litigation, including class actions and mass torts. He also handles cases alleging fraud in state and federal health care statutes, as well as legal ethics and professional responsibility matters. His work has focused largely on the life sciences and food and beverage industries. "I'm going to be hitting the ground running with this premier litigation firm and its outstanding trial and appellate lawyers," Sullivan said in a statement. Dilworth Social Media Practice Head Goes Virtual An employment law partner and head of the social media practice at Dilworth Paxson made the move to cloud-based law firm FisherBroyles back in March. Eric Meyer, who also runs the blog "The Employer Handbook," became a partner at FisherBroyles on March 5. The change gave him a better platform to grow a national practice, Meyer said, and, of course, the flexibility of working from anywhere. Meyer said his blog, which he launched in 2011, has helped his practice to grow. "I didn't really appreciate the national reach and attention it could garner. Since that time, I really have a national following," he said. "I've longed for the chance to work at a firm that has a national footprint." Meyer started at Dilworth Paxson 12 years ago, he said. The firm launched its social media practice in 2014, which included employment law issues. While potential clients have come to him through the blog, Meyer said, many clients hesitate to go to a Philadelphia-based lawyer for a matter in another jurisdiction, if that lawyer has no colleagues there. FisherBroyles has a Philadelphia office listed on its website, but that's just a temporary space the firm can use when needed. Meyer said he planned to work from home, or at his local Starbucks, most of the time. Montgomery McCracken Launches IP Department Montgomery McCracken Walker & Rhoads added a practice area and a head of diversity and inclusion efforts in this move made in August. The firm brought on four lawyers from Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney's Philadelphia office. Partners Alfred Zaher and Shawn Li were slated to oversee the firm's new IP department, with Zaher as department chair. Of counsel Maryellen Madden and associate John Powell, who focus on complex litigation and commercial disputes, also joined Montgomery McCracken in the move. Zaher said he wasn't looking to leave Buchanan Ingersoll, but was intrigued by the prospect of joining Montgomery McCracken because of several contacts there, including vice chairman Richard Simins. Simins, who joined Montgomery McCracken in March 2017, also came from Buchanan Ingersoll. Simins also noted the diversity the group brings to the firm, and that Zaher will be serving as Montgomery McCracken's chief diversity and inclusion officer. Zaher is an openly gay lawyer, and a member of the board of directors for the National LGBT Bar Association and for the Gay and Lesbian Lawyers of Philadelphia. Madden, a transgender woman, has been open about her transition, which she underwent while practicing law at Buchanan Ingersoll. She was appointed to serve on the Pennsylvania Commission on LGBTQ Affairs, which Gov. Tom Wolf officially created by executive order. Zaher said the firm's smaller size is an asset to him as he works with clients seeking greater efficiency. Li said the firm has an "eye on the future" and offers the ability to adapt to changing client needs. Health Practice Grabs Ascension's Counsel Duane Morris added to its health law group in 2018, hiring a lawyer with longtime links to the industry. Delphine O'Rourke joined Duane Morris' Philadelphia office as a partner, fresh from a short stint in-house and after several years at a midsize health law boutique. O'Rourke was most recently vice president of legal services and associate general counsel for Ascension, which is the largest nonprofit health system in the United States, with more than 2,600 sites of care, including 151 hospitals. She took on that position full-time Jan. 1, 2018, but she had served as Ascension's outside counsel for over a decade before that. O'Rourke said she had long known Duane Morris chairman Matthew Taylor, as well as health law practice chair David Loder and health law partner Lisa Clark. She said she was interested in joining the firm because it has "a lot of depth serving institutional providers, as well as new stakeholders in the health care space," such as private equity investors and larger retail companies. "It's a pivotal time in health care and the landscape is changing so quickly," O'Rourke said. "It's really a high-stakes area. There's a lot of opportunity." Fox Snags New GDPR Partner Fox Rothschild has repeatedly said its ambitious expansion efforts are focused on the United States, but its 2018 data privacy hire definitely had an eye on international deals and Europe's new General Data Protection Regulation. The firm hired Philadelphia lawyer Odia Kagan to head up a GDPR compliance and international privacy group. Kagan, who joined from Ballard Spahr, is an M&A lawyer who now spends all of her time working with companies to structure their products, services and transactions so they are compliant with privacy and data security regulations and best practices, both in the United States and abroad, she said. Fox Rothschild's firmwide managing partner Mark Morris said her practice group is a new one, though it is a "subset" of the data privacy group, with existing data privacy lawyers already having done some work on GDPR compliance. He said he would like to hire more lawyers with international privacy expertise. "It's a really hot time for this, and it's a great time to really put the pedal to the metal and boost my practice," Kagan said, with GDPR going into effect and the passage of the California Consumer Privacy Act. "The privacy group is known in the firm and people know they can turn to it. That is very fertile ground on which to grow my practice."