3 Duane Morris Corporate Partners Jump to Sheppard Mullin
A three-lawyer corporate group is jumping ship from Duane Morris to Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton in the San Diego area.
Robert Copeland, James Mercer III and Michael Umansky are joining Sheppard Mullin as partners, according to a law firm press release. They were previously partners in the San Diego office of Duane Morris.
“Bob, Jamie and Michael are top-notch dealmakers and considerably strengthen our corporate presence in the San Diego/Del Mar market. Bob is a stalwart of the San Diego corporate law community, and Jamie and Michael bring an incredible mix of private practice and in-house business experience,” says Guy Halgren, the firm’s chairman. “Their securities, emerging company, venture capital and M&A expertise complement our corporate practice group capabilities, while significantly expanding it.”
The California-based firm has more than 500 lawyers in eight offices there, plus another three in New York, Washington, D.C., and Shanghai.
Duane Morris, which is based in Philadelphia, reportedly has about 650 lawyers in 20 U.S. offices, plus another four in Europe and Asia. Its chairman emeritus, Sheldon Bonovitz, had said in the past that he hoped to break the 1,000-lawyer barrier by 2007 or so.
As discussed in earlier ABAJournal.com posts, Duane Morris has recently laid off staffers in several departments.
