Biglaw, Musical Chairs, Partner Issues

Latham & Watkins Enters the Boston Market

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The global megafirm of Latham & Watkins is in full expansion mode. The firm recently picked up a trio of real estate partners from Kirkland & Ellis in Chicago, for example.

And even though it’s not yet listed on the firm website, we understand that LW has quietly opened a Boston office. The official announcement will be made later this month, according to the Boston Business Journal.

This news shouldn’t come as a huge surprise. Latham loves geographic reach, and it has been mulling over a Beantown presence since late 2007, as noted by Am Law Daily.

Tipsters tell us that Latham has already been scooping up talent from different firms around town. We have at least one name that we don’t believe has been publicly announced yet….

“Have you heard about Latham setting up a Boston office?” one of our sources asked us. “A relatively large M&A partner in the Boston office of Proskauer, Alex Temel, is leaving with some senior associates. Rumor is he’s setting up the Latham office in Boston and is poaching others from around town.”

The rumor seems to be true. Alexander Temel, former co-head of the Private Equity Group at Proskauer, is no longer on Proskauer’s website (although his bio is cached here). Meanwhile, there’s a LinkedIn profile under his name that lists him as a private equity and M&A partner at Latham, effective February 2011. (Temel’s attorney profile on the website of the Massachusetts Board of Bar Overseers, however, still lists him at Proskauer. Time to update?)

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It makes perfect sense for Latham to be in Boston, a city known for its strengths in the private-equity and technology sectors. And Latham is already everywhere else in the U.S. and around the world, with 2,000 lawyers over 30 offices — so why not Boston?

A Latham spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment on (1) reports of a new Boston office and (2) what the firm plans to do with respect to spring bonuses. If you’ve heard anything on either subject, please feel free to let us know, by email or by text (646-820-8477).

New national law player gains foothold [Boston Business Journal (subscription) via Am Law Daily]

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