Marisa Chun (Photo: Jason Doiy/The Recorder)

Bay Area litigator Marisa Chun has strong ties to the nation's capital, and so does her new law firm.

Chun has joined Crowell & Moring's San Francisco office as a partner, coming from McDermott Will & Emery, where she most recently headed the firm's litigation group in the Bay Area.

“I think Crowell is the best-kept secret in the Am Law 100,” Chun said, noting that she was drawn to the firm's “deep commitment to legal excellence, to their clients, to the legal profession.”

Chun, who also has long-established ties in Washington, D.C., focuses her practice on commercial litigation and consumer class actions. She joins a group of over 300 litigators at Crowell, according to the firm.

Before returning to private practice, Chun served as deputy associate attorney general at the U.S. Justice Department for four years, where she oversaw intellectual property, antitrust, fraud, telecommunications and privacy matters. Also during that time, she served as a special assistant U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia and the District of Maryland.

Chun was tapped in 2009 to join the administration of her former Harvard Law classmate, former President Barack Obama.

“Marisa has tried more than a dozen civil and criminal bench and jury trials in state and federal courts, including winning every trial as a prosecutor,” Jennifer Romano, co-chairwoman of Crowell's litigation group, said. “She has a proven track record [of] handling high-stakes matters on behalf of clients in the technology, energy and health care sectors.”

Chun started her legal career at the Department of Justice in 1992 through the Attorney General's Honors Program. She practiced at Coblentz, Patch, Duffy and Bass, where she was promoted to partner in 2003, before returning to Washington, D.C., in 2009. But before she went into private practice at Coblentz, Chun worked briefly as a television reporter.

“For me, one of the joys of practicing law is the opportunity to represent clients that I really care about,” Chun said. HP Inc., which is a longtime client of Crowell, is one client she has represented.

Chun represents clients in matters involving commercial disputes, intellectual property, and consumer class actions alleging antitrust, false advertising and unfair business practices. She also represents clients in government investigations involving alleged health care and financial fraud, FCPA violations and sexual harassment or misconduct, handling matters in the U.S., Asia and Latin America.

“With [Crowell's] focus on investing its resources and growing in California and in Asia, I think that kind of strategic support is also going to be helpful with regard to growing my practice and serving my clients,” Chun added.

The Am Law 100 firm recently hired a 10-lawyer international trade and regulatory team from Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner, including three in Los Angeles, while another seven-member Shanghai team joined its affiliated consulting business as the firm awaits a Shanghai license.

With Chun's arrival, Crowell will have about 35 lawyers in San Francisco and over 100 across its three offices in California, which also include Los Angeles and Orange County.

“Marisa will expand our team of seasoned first-chair trial lawyers in C&M's San Francisco office,” Thomas Koegel, managing partner of the San Francisco office, said in a statement. “We know Marisa will provide clients with the highest possible level of representation when facing matters in the trial and appellate courts.”

Asked about Chun's departure from McDermott, William Gaede, managing partner of the firm's San Francisco office, said in a statement: “It has been a pleasure working alongside Marisa, and we wish her the very best in her next endeavor.” He said the firm will continue to grow in San Francisco.

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