July 28, 2009
THE DAILY TRANSCRIPT
SAN DIEGO – Sue J. Hodges, former managing partner of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman’s two San Diego offices, has joined K&L Gates as a partner.
The corporate lawyer focuses her practice on commercial transactions involving debt and equity financings. She also devotes a large portion of her practice to complex insolvency and restructuring matters.
“With Sue’s arrival, we take a significant step in diversifying our presence in the San Diego market and in industry sectors important to our future,” said Peter J. Kalis, K&L Gates’ chairman and global managing partner.
Hodges is the first new partner to join K&L Gates’ San Diego office since the firm entered the market through its combination with Bell, Boyd & Lloyd LLP this spring.
“I find the growing platform that K&L offers to be an exciting one,” Hodges said. “I find it very well built out, nationally and globally. “There is a relatively newly developed office here, and I was offered an opportunity to get in on the ground floor, which I found a wonderful opportunity.”
She represents a diverse roster of clients, including issuers and investors, financial institutions, technology licensees and licensors, creditors’ committees and debtors. In addition, Hodges has substantial experience advising both companies and investors in the alternative energy industry.
“I’m very excited about opportunity to grow my practice on the K&L platform,” she said. “It’s a larger platform, but it’s also one that is decidedly focused on the businesses that exist in the markets where the firm practices.”
The move is a signal that K&L Gates intends to strengthen its presence in San Diego, according to legal recruiter Larry Watanabe.
“She knows the market due to her management experience at Pillsbury,” said Watanabe, whose firm — Watanabe Nason — brokered the transaction. “It helps to have someone on the ground with management experience that knows the nuances of the market.”