March 12, 2007

THE DAILY JOURNAL

By Emma Dewald

Marcus McDaniel is moving up in the world, while his rates are coming down.

The former Latham & Watkins partner recently moved to Ogletree Deakins, whose offices are located on the 53rd floor of the U.S. Bank tower, where Latham occupies floors 35 to 45.

One reason for the move, the labor and employment partner said, was Latham had “priced itself out of a lot of the labor and employment market.”

Ogletree Deakins focuses on labor and employment law, although according to its Web site, the practice is “complemented and supported by related practice groups.”

McDaniel said the firm “encourages flexibility with regard to rates,” including discounted rates and fixed-fee arrangements.

“More and more clients are considering those types of arrangements,” McDaniel said, at the same time noting the move wasn’t just about rates; he also appreciates the fact that “the expertise here in the labor and employment area is extremely broad and deep.”

McDaniel started at Ogletree’s 17-lawyer Los Angeles office on March 5, following 17 years with Latham.

“My decision to leave had nothing to do with any bad blood,” he said. “I got called by a recruiter.”

The deal was brokered by Watanabe Nason Schwartz & Lippman.

“We recruited him away,” confirmed Lori A. Bowman, managing partner of Ogletree’s 4-year-old Los Angeles office, which is expanding its attorney roster. “We will have 19 by May 1.”

Nationwide, the firm boasts 28 offices with more than 350 labor and employment attorneys.

McDaniel joined Ogletree as a Class A shareholder, he said. Among his clients are Katzkin Leather, the University of Southern California and Employers Direct Insurance Co. He expects his clients will follow him to Ogletree Deakins, at least for their labor and employment work.

For example, he said, Employers Direct is “still a client of Latham, just not in the labor and employment area.”

A spokesman for Latham & Watkins, in a written statement, said, “Marcus McDaniel has been a valued member of the Litigation Department in our Los Angeles office since joining Latham in 1990 following his graduation from Harvard. We wish him all the best in the next phase of his career at Ogletree Deakins.”