November 22, 2004

THE LOS ANGELES DAILY JOURNAL

By Lorelei Laird

SAN DIEGO – Keith Zakarin has a lot of history with San Diego’s Kaye, Rose & Maltzman.

Like the firm’s name partners, Zakarin was an associate with Lillick, McHose & Charles when it merged with Pillsbury Madison & Sutro (now Pillsbury Winthrop). He rejoined the partners years later and has worked with them for a total of 17 years.

But Zakarin bade farewell to the maritime firm earlier this month to join Duane Morris, where he became a partner in the firm’s trial group Nov.
10. Zakarin was represented by Watanabe Nason & Seltzer in the transaction.

“These guys [at Kaye Rose] have been my friends and partners for almost 17 years and I’ll miss them very much,” he says.

But Kaye Rose’s practice, primarily maritime and marine law, never did match well with Zakarin’s book of business as a trial lawyer and counselor to private post-secondary schools such as Kaplan Higher Education and American Career College.

Larry Kaye, a name partner with Kaye Rose, says it’s sad to see Zakarin go, but the firm understands. “[Kaye Rose does] maritime law and a smattering of general commercial litigation. But Keith is very specialized in post-secondary private school representation,” Kaye says. “He wants to join a firm that has more of a national presence and expand it outside California. “He’s not only an excellent lawyer and an asset to the firm, but he’s a friend of the partners here,” Kaye says. Zakarin says that Duane Morris will allow him to expand his practice. “Duane Morris’ national platform provides me an unparalleled opportunity to do that and to draw upon a depth of resources second to none,” Zakarin says.

Zakarin represents post-secondary institutions, primarily trade and vocational schools, in all their legal needs including employment claims, purchase and sale transactions and regulatory advocacy. All of his clients, which include Corinthian Colleges, the Concord Career Institute and Merritt College in San Diego, followed him to Duane Morris.

Christopher Celentino, Duane Morris’ San Diego managing partner, says that he hopes Zakarin can expand eastward as well. “We have other folks who practice that in East Coast offices, but none to the extent that Keith does. And we hope to capitalize on his good reputation to expand on the East Coast,” says Celentino. “When you take his practice and put it on our platform, it should be easy for him to expand his practice into the Midwest and the East Coast,” says Celentino.

Celentino adds that Duane Morris is continuing to pursue the aggressive expansion it’s enjoyed in San Diego. Since opening in 2003, the office has gone from three attorneys to 18, he says, and hopes to end up with 40 to 45 attorneys.

Philadelphia-based Duane Morris is a business firm with 550 lawyers in 19 U.S. offices and London.

Mark Davis of Watanabe Nason & Seltzer brokered the move.