August 15, 2013
THE RECORDER
By Nathalie Pierrepont
SAN FRANCISCO “A patent attorney is decamping to Pillsbury before Goodwin Procter shutters its San Diego office.
Steven Moore wrapped up his work at Goodwin on Tuesday, after three years as partner in the firm’s litigation department and member of its intellectual property group. He will join Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman’s San Diego office as a partner on Monday. Moore’s practice will continue to focus on patent litigation in the electronics and software fields “for the most part,” he said.
Moore’s move comes a few weeks before Goodwin closes the doors of its San Diego office, costing 10 attorneys and 12 staff their jobs. Others have been offered relocation.
Goodwin’s San Diego office was opened in 2010 as a hub focused on life sciences and biotechnology transactions. However, in June, the firm announced that its forays in the Los Angeles, San Francisco and Silicon Valley markets held “greater promise,” according to a firmwide memo sent by Goodwin chair Regina Pisa and managing partner Robert Insolia.
Moore, however, said he is looking forward to sticking around San Diego. “I’m very happy with what the market looks like in the work that I do … Almost every case that I’m involved with involves wireless communications, so it’s a very good place for me to be.”
After considering “a lot” of firms with offices in the area, Moore accepted the opportunity at Pillsbury. “It’s a very exciting firm and a great platform, and [Pillsbury is] in all the right geographies,” he said. Legal recruiter Larry Watanabe of Watanabe Nason advised Moore on the transaction.
Moore said a few other employees from Goodwin’s San Diego office will join him at Pillsbury in the coming months. Richard Segal, the managing partner of Pillsbury’s San Diego office, was not immediately available for comment.