April 14, 2003
THE SAN FRANCISCO DAILY JOURNAL
By John Ryan
PALO ALTO – Seattle’s Perkins Coie Lures Partner From Wilson Sonsini
Palo Alto’s Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati has lost partner Bruce McNamara to the Menlo Park office of Seattle’s Perkins Coie.
The corporate and securities specialist started at Perkins Coie April 7.
“It was an opportunity to join a very collegial and small office and really get back to the roots of what I liked about Wilson Sonsini when I joined 10 years ago,” McNamara says. “I’ll get to work to build an office with a real presence in the Silicon Valley.”
Of Perkins Coie’s 600 attorneys, 50 practice in the Bay Area. The full-service firm has 14 offices in the United States and China. Most of Wilson Sonsini’s 630 attorneys practice in Palo Alto.
Wilson Sonsini partner Donna Petkanics declined to comment on the defection other than to say that the firm wishes McNamara well.
Ed Wes, managing partner of Perkins Coie’s Menlo Park and San Francisco offices, says that the firm’s Bay Area corporate practice typically has been heavy on emerging, private-company representations.
McNamara, in contrast, specializes in public-company deals and will help round out the firm’s practice, Wes says.
McNamara says he is not expecting to bring any associates from his former firm. He added that it is unclear which clients will be following him to Perkins Coie.
Perkins Coie has been on a growth spurt in the Bay Area. Most recently, the firm lured five attorneys, led by intellectual property partner Paul Andre, away from the Redwood Shores office of Quinn, Emanuel, Urquhart, Oliver & Hedges.