This roundup features Alston & Bird, Blank Rome, Haynes and Boone, Hogan Lovells, Holland & Knight, Honigman Miller Schwartz and Cohn, LK Shields, Pierce Atwood, Shumaker Loop & Kendrick and Womble Carlyle.
Americas (USA)
Alston & Bird
Alston & Bird recruited Paul Tanck as partner in its New York office. Tanck is a trial and appeal lawyer with experience in sectors such as IT and finance. Tanck joined from Chadbourne & Parke, where he was chair of its IP group.
Blank Rome
Blank Rome hired patent specialists Jonathan M Harris and David M Wilson as partner and of counsel, respectively, in its growing IP and Technology group. Both practitioners focus on patent protection work in technology fields such as electrical engineering and software. They join from IP boutique Conley Rose and are based in the Houston office.
Haynes and Boone
Adam Siegartel joined Haynes and Boone’s New York office as a partner in its IP group. Siegartel leads the firm’s brand management group. He specialises in trade mark work including protection and enforcement. Siegartel joined from Proskauer Rose, where he was senior counsel.
Honigman
Simeon Papacostas joined Honigman Miller Schwartz and Cohn as a partner in its Chicago office. Papacostas deals with patent contentious matters before the federal courts and USPTO on behalf of companies in various sectors including life sciences. He was previously with Kirkland & Ellis.
Holland & Knight
Robert S Hill joined Holland & Knight’s Dallas office as a partner to establish its IP practice in Texas. Hill, who becomes the firm’s first IP lawyer in the state, is an IP litigator who is known for advising companies in patent disputes including Hatch-Waxman litigation. He was previously of counsel with Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan in Los Angeles.
Pierce Atwood
The firm welcomed four new patent lawyers including Robert Abrahamsen and Ilan Barzilay. They specialise in patent protection and enforcement work, especially in electronics and computer technology. Barzilay joined from Seyfarth Shaw, along with associates Christopher Baxter and Cyrus Miller, while Abrahamsen was previously with Wolf Greenfield & Sacks.
Shumaker acquires Ohio boutique
IP boutique Fraser Clemens Martin & Miller is now part of law firm Shumaker Loop & Kendrick. The merger bolsters Shumaker’s IP department, for example, with the addition of patent protection capability. Managing partner of its Toledo office Thomas Dillon said: “The 10 attorneys and five staff members bring tremendous experience and expertise. Now with more than 30 in our intellectual property group, we are confident that Shumaker will better serve our clients not only in Florida, North Carolina and Ohio, but also across the country.”
Womble Carlyle
Womble Carlyle hired patent lawyer Dan Ovanezian as partner in its Silicon Valley office. Ovanezian’s practice focuses on patent protection and related advisory work. His technical background is in electrical engineering. Ovanezian was previously with law firm Lowenstein Sandler.
Asia and Europe
Hogan Lovells
Akira Endo, former head of global brand legal management at Kao Corporation, joined Hogan Lovells as a consultant in its trade mark practice in Tokyo. Endo is experienced in trade mark and design protection and portfolio management.
LK Shields
LK Shields recruited Peter Bolger as head of its IP department. Bolger specialises in soft IP law and transactions. He was previously a partner at Mason Hayes & Curran. Both firms are ranked in IP STARS in Ireland.