The top lateral moves list included several important hires from across the state. But those weren't the only moves worth noting. There were 12 more jumps that took place over the course of 2023 that deserve another look. The runners-up list inlcudes a few big group jumps as well as a law firm merger. The list of 12 more moves features a rare one in which three attorneys altered their practices to join Feldman Shepherd Wohlgelernter Tanner Weinstock Dodig, seven patent attorneys who jumped to Berger Montague, a former city solicitor who returned to her old firm, and a pair from Greenberg Traurig who joined Ballard Spahr's bankruptcy and restructuring groups, a move that helped to strengthen that firm's focus on this increasingly busy area of the legal market. Many of these attorneys made these moves to help extend the reach of their practices. Some of those practice areas included bankruptcy, white-collar law and medical malpractice. Feldman Shepherd Lands 3 to Fortify Core Practices In a rare lateral move, three attorneys shifted their practices to join Philadelphia plaintiffs firm Feldman Shepherd Wohlgelernter Tanner Weinstock Dodig as part of the firm's efforts to shore up its core practices and begin expansion into new areas. Philadelphia Board of Education President Reginald Streater, formerly of Berger Montague, joined the firm at the attorney level along with Daniel Klaproth of Murray, Stone & Wilson and Samuel Mukiibi of Grant & Eisenhofer in September. Upon joining the firm, the group of attorneys altered their practices to support the firm's "bread and butter" cases involving catastrophic injuries and medical malpractice suits, although all three will retain parts of their individual niches in civil rights and nursing home neglect cases. Dechert Litigator Joins Klehr Harrison Klehr Harrison Harvey Branzburg brought on litigation partner Catherine Wigglesworth from Dechert, as the Philadelphia midsize firm continued to recruit from the region's largest shops. Wigglesworth joined Klehr Harrison's Philadelphia office as partner in November, departing Dechert as a senior associate after 11 years at the firm. Wigglesworth practices in complex commercial litigation, corporate governance disputes and internal investigations. Wigglesworth said of the move: "I really, obviously, enjoyed my time at Dechert—I spent a long time there. I was looking for an opportunity to have a front-facing role." Ex-Delco DA Joins Lamb McErlane Longtime prosecutor Katayoun 'Kat' Copeland joined West Chester firm Lamb McErlane in November 2023, helping the firm branch into white-collar litigation matters days before announcing her candidacy for state attorney general as a Republican. Copeland held leadership roles at the state and federal level, serving as district attorney for Delaware County and chief of the criminal division for the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Copeland had her eye on taking on a government position, announcing her pursuit of the Republican nomination for attorney general shortly after she began with the firm, known historically for its affiliation with the Republican Party. At the firm, her work centers on litigation focused on white-collar matters and investigations. Ballard Adds 2 to Bankruptcy Department Ballard Spahr added on two bankruptcy and restructuring attorneys from Greenberg Traurig to its Philadelphia office, bolstering its capabilities in an increasingly busy area of the legal market. Partner Diane Vuocolo joined the firm on Oct. 2, with of counsel Kevin Ray joining two weeks later on Oct. 16. The duo worked together in the bankruptcy space for "several decades," according to Ray, beginning when he first served as a summer associate at Duane Morris. Both attorneys brought their clients over with them in the move, lured over to the firm by its "strong presence in the mid-Atlantic region" as well as "the interplay between the [firm's] financial institutions group and the litigation group" when it comes to bankruptcy matters. The pair primarily handle the workout documents and restructuring aspects of bankruptcy together, with Vuocolo's practice also focusing on representing bankruptcy trustees and dealing with bankruptcy-related litigation. Ray, meanwhile, tends to represent secured lenders in loan restructuring. Philadelphia City Solicitor to Rejoin Morgan Lewis Philadelphia City Solicitor Diana Cortes returned to her old firm Morgan, Lewis & Bockius at the end of her term on Nov. 10. Cortes, the first Latina city solicitor and chief legal officer in Philadelphia's history, handled complex litigation, class actions, and criminal investigations upon her return to the firm as a partner. Cortes initially worked for Morgan Lewis in October 2008, when she joined the firm as a litigation associate. Upon leaving the firm in November 2013, she became an assistant district attorney for Philadelphia for nearly two years before joining Marshall Dennehey from 2015 to 2018. From there, Cortes became chair of the city's litigation department before rising to the position of city solicitor in 2020, just before the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. McCarter & English Adds White-Collar Litigator McCarter & English added a new commercial litigator with an unusual set of skills to its Philadelphia office as exits from Armstrong Teasdale's outpost in the city continued. Daniella Gordon, who co-chaired the construction services practice at Armstrong Teasdale, joined the New Jersey-founded firm as a partner in the business litigation group, in which she focused mainly on white-collar investigations and construction sector commercial disputes. Gordon brought her clients along in the move. She said she was looking to join McCarter due to its "unique position of being really well-established but also having a lot of potential for growth." 7 Patent Attorneys Jump to Berger Montague Berger Montague poached a group of seven attorneys from Montgomery McCracken Walker & Rhoads, claiming all of Montgomery McCracken's patent attorneys in the process. Leading the group of attorneys was Montgomery McCracken's former chief diversity and inclusion officer Alfred Zaher, who took on the role of shareholder and head of Berger Montague's IP group as well as a member of its diversity equity and inclusion task force. Joining him in the firm's Philadelphia office were senior counsel Shawn Li, Richard Moss, Patrick Farley, Aaron Haleva and Stephanie Benecchi. Maryellen Madden will be joining the firm as of counsel, along with two staff members. Zaher additionally said that all of the group's clients joined them at Berger Montague, which created a "multimillion-dollar" book of business split between hourly billing and alternative fee arrangements that will ultimately provide cashflow to the firm. Kleinbard Brings on New Executive Director, 4 Attorneys Philadelphian midsize firm Kleinbard brought on Bill McCall from Atlanta-based litigation firm Freeman Mathis & Gary as its executive director, and one of his first responsibilities was to aid in the integration of four new attorneys, including two partners. Aside from McCall, the firm brought on two attorneys from Am Law 100 firms, including a corporate associate from Troutman Pepper Hamilton Sanders and a litigation partner from Duane Morris. Rounding out the group was a government relations attorney joining as of counsel from the Montgomery County Redevelopment Authority. McCall left his previous position as administrative manager at Freeman Mathis & Gary to assume Mary Zove's position as director of legal administration, since renamed, as the firm took into account her plans of retiring around 2023. Eighth Ex-Dentons Attorney Joins K&L Gates in Pittsburgh Attorney Scott Graham, previously a corporate and tax group shareholder at Dentons, announced his departure from the firm to join K&L Gates' Pittsburgh office in April. Graham followed a group of seven corporate and private equity attorneys who left Dentons Cohen & Grigsby, the Pittsburgh unit of the global giant, to join K&L Gates, and joined the firm as an asset and corporate finance partner. According to Graham, the departure of this group was a "major factor" in his decision to move to K&L Gates and the possibility of working again with that team "spurred the conversation" behind his recruitment. Prior to joining K&L Gates, Graham originally worked for Cohen & Grigsby starting in 2012 and continued to serve the firm throughout its merger with Dentons in 2020. Barley Snyder Acquires Lebanon Firm Reilly Wolfson Barley Snyder absorbed Lebanon, Pennsylvania-based Reilly Wolfson. In a transaction that took over a year to complete, Barley Snyder gained eight attorneys, whose practices include real estate, trusts and estates, business and litigation. In attorney head count, the firm reached what it called an "all-time high" at 130 total attorneys across its 16 offices in Pennsylvania and Maryland. In January 2022, Barley Snyder bolted on Wyomissing firm Leisawitz Heller, adding 14 attorneys. According to Jeffrey Lobach, managing partner for Barley Snyder. An overlap between the practice areas of the two firms was part of what spurred the deal. However, both firms also had an eye on expanding their services to accommodate a growing legal market in Lebanon. Post & Schell Hires 3 Principals From Marks O'Neill Post & Schell acquired three attorneys with leadership experience from Marks, O'Neill, O'Brien, Doherty & Kelly, in a move that occurred before the Philadelphia insurance defense firm lost 19 attorneys to Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani in the first week of March. Attorneys Michael Kosar and Michael Notartomas joined Post & Schell as principals in the firm's casualty litigation department in its Mount Laurel, New Jersey, office, while Christian Scheuerman joined as a principal in the firm's professional liability department, operating out of its Philadelphia office. These moves occurred at the end of February. Post & Schell president and CEO A. James Johnston said in a statement that the strategic additions of these three attorneys "immediately expand our casualty and professional liability capabilities, as well as our footprint in southern New Jersey." Phila. Duo Returns to Stradley Ronon Attorneys Michael Engle and Ashley Shapiro left Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young in 2019 for Big Law, but as the Philadelphia-based midsize firm worked to deepen its white-collar bench, the duo landed back at their former firm with the goal of growing that practice. The pair, who were well-known in the Philadelphia white-collar bar, rejoined Stradley after two years at Midwest-born Armstrong Teasdale.

Stradley partner Michael O'Mara, who serves on the firm's management committee and board of directors, said the additions dovetailed with the firm's plans to grow its securities litigation and enforcement ranks, which includes the firm's white-collar bench. The duo joined other new arrivals to Stradley's white-collar practice, including Stephen Feldman, a former federal prosecutor who will co-chair the white-collar practice from New York, and Jan Folena, a former supervisory assistant chief litigation counsel in the U.S. Security and Exchange Commission's enforcement division who now heads Stradley's securities practice.