New York-based securities law firm Sichenzia Ross Ference is expanding West after hiring three partners from CKR Law, two of whom will launch a new Los Angeles office for the firm.

Partners Joe Tagliaferro III, Barry Brust and Barrett S. DiPaolo have joined Sichenzia Ross' corporate and securities practice. DiPaolo is based in New York, while Tagliaferro and Brust will be in Los Angeles.

"It was not that we were looking to be in LA, we just thought these two people who were available were a really good fit for the firm. And it made sense to accommodate them by opening an LA office," said Gregory Sichenzia, a founding partner at Sichenzia Ross.

Sichenzia said another of the firm's attorneys, litigation associate Gary Varnavides, will move from New York to join the crew in Los Angeles. The three-lawyer Los Angeles office will focus on corporate, securities and litigation work, the firm said.

"We have a lot of LA-based clients, you know, public company clients that might benefit from having people on the ground," Sichenzia added.

Tagliaferro will lead the new office. He has over 20 years of experience advising clients on corporate matters, involving private equity, hedge funds, transactions, securities and corporate finance.

Brust, who only practiced at CKR Law for about a year, has built a 40-year legal career in corporate, transactional and securities law, working with both private and public companies. Before joining CKR law, he was at Baker & Hostetler for about four years.

"After speaking with [Sichenzia Ross Ference], I really was interested in trying to replicate what they have developed in New York in terms of their firm practice and client base, and relationship-based, and expand it to the West Coast," Tagliaferro said of his plan for the Los Angeles office.

"I have been in Los Angeles for over 22 years now, and developed my own group of clients and relationships," he added. "We see eye to eye on how we should grow the firm and the practice, how we should position ourselves."

The firm is still searching for an office space for the new site. However, Sichenzia said the two attorneys are already taking on work for the firm's clients in the region and are talking to other local attorneys for future expansion.

In a statement responding to the partners' departure, a spokesperson for CKR Law said: "We wish them best in their new endeavor."

New York-based CKR Law has been experiencing financial struggles this year, The American Lawyer has reported, even reportedly struggling to pay its partners. It recently struck a tentative deal with China's Yingke Law Firm to create a new entity, called YKR Law, to focus on the U.S. market.

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