Wilson Sonsini Elects 23 New Partners

Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, the premier provider of legal services to technology, life sciences, and growth enterprises worldwide, today announced that the firm has elected 23 new partners from its attorney ranks. The promotions will go into effect on February 1, 2022.

“Our class of partner-elects reflects the vitality of our clients’ businesses, the strength of our firm, and the diversity and talent across our practices and office locations,” said Doug Clark, Wilson Sonsini’s managing partner. “Each member of the 2022 partner-elect class embodies our firm’s values and demonstrates excellence in many ways—including through client service, collaboration, leadership, mentorship, and innovation. We’re very proud of these outstanding professionals and are pleased to welcome them as our newest partners.”

Lance Brady, Corporate. Based in Palo Alto, Brady focuses on representing public and private life sciences and technology companies through all stages of growth. He advises clients on a broad range of transactions and corporate matters, including initial formation and organization, equity and debt financings, mergers and acquisitions, public offerings, spin-outs, corporate governance, SEC compliance, and public company reporting requirements. Brady also has extensive experience representing venture capital and other institutional investors in financing transactions. He received his J.D. from the University of Southern California Law Center.

Laura De Boel, Privacy and Cybersecurity. Based in Brussels, De Boel focuses her practice on all aspects of European data protection law, including data breaches, international data transfers, and online profiling. She has extensive experience advising clients on pan-European data protection compliance across a range of sectors. She also assists clients in their dealings with privacy and data protection authorities, such as the Belgian Data Protection Authority. De Boel received her J.D. from the University of Antwerp (Belgium) and University René Descartes, Paris (France), and an LL.M. from the University of Brussels.

Carlos W. Ellerbe, Corporate. Based in San Francisco, Ellerbe has represented more than 100 technology companies and investors in matters such as entity formation and organization; capital formation (venture capital financings and public offerings); licensing and other technology transactions; and mergers and acquisitions. He has extensive experience advising directors and officers on corporate governance and fiduciary duty matters. Prior to practicing law, Ellerbe, a certified public accountant, worked at KPMG for nearly seven years as a consultant and an auditor. He received his J.D. from The George Washington University Law School.

Shannon E. German, Litigation. Based in Wilmington, Delaware, German focuses on corporate governance litigation and counseling, navigation of corporate fiduciary duties, and representation of companies and their officers and directors in stockholder class actions, derivative suits, and complex commercial litigation in the Delaware Court of Chancery and appellate practice in the Delaware Supreme Court. She also represents clients in complex business disputes in the Delaware Superior Court and securities litigation in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. German received her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center.

James Griffin-Stanco, Corporate. Based in Wilmington, Delaware, Griffin-Stanco maintains a Delaware corporate law and corporate governance practice, providing advice to clients through all stages of a company’s life cycle, including with regard to fiduciary duties, entity formation, venture financings, public offerings, mergers and acquisitions, and statutory requirements. He also represents special committees of boards of directors in mergers, internal investigations and other transactions, and provides corporate advice in the context of litigation and appraisals. Griffin-Stanco received his J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center.

Michelle Yost Hale, Antitrust and Competition. Based in Washington, D.C., Hale represents companies in government antitrust investigations, including mergers and acquisitions and other civil antitrust investigations. She regularly appears before the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the U.S. Department of Justice. Hale also provides antitrust counseling on a wide variety of business conduct, including joint ventures, collaborations, and pricing and distribution. She previously served as a lead attorney in the Mergers IV division of the FTC and as counsel to two directors of the Bureau of Competition. Hale received her J.D. from Howard University School of Law.

Jackie Hamilton, Mergers & Acquisitions. Hamilton has extensive transactional experience, having represented clients in both public and private mergers, stock purchases, asset acquisitions, tender and exchange offers, SPAC transactions, and other strategic corporate transactions. In addition, she has counseled privately and publicly held companies on general corporate governance and disclosure matters. Hamilton is currently working virtually in Pennsylvania and is in the process of being admitted in New York. She will be based in the firm’s New York office, once admitted. Hamilton received her J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Law School.

Ingo Hardt, Patents and Innovations. Based in San Diego, Dr. Hardt focuses on the preparation and prosecution of patent applications in the fields of chemistry, pharmaceuticals, and biotechnology. He also performs patent due diligence in transactional matters. Prior to attending law school, Hardt worked as a drug development chemist for 10 years, primarily at Pfizer, and became a registered patent agent in 2003. He is an author or co-author of 20 peer-reviewed scientific articles and a co-inventor on two issued U.S. patents. Hardt received his J.D. from the University of San Diego School of Law.

Norm Hovijitra, Technology Transactions. Practicing virtually from Hawaii, Dr. Hovijitra advises life sciences companies on legal and business issues associated with the development, manufacture, and commercialization of their products and technologies, including matters relating to intellectual property strategy and patents. His practice focuses on representing private and public companies in complex partnering and licensing arrangements, mergers and acquisitions, spin-outs, research and development arrangements, and manufacturing, supply, and distribution arrangements. He received his J.D. from Stanford Law School.

Remi P. Korenblit, Mergers & Acquisitions. Based in Seattle, Korenblit focuses on mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance, and other related corporate and securities law matters. His transactional experience includes U.S. and cross-border mergers, business combinations, asset and stock purchases, SPAC transactions, divestitures, carve-outs and spin-off transactions, financing transactions, joint ventures, and other strategic transactions for both public and private companies. Korenblit also advises clients on corporate governance matters, shareholder activism, takeover defense, recapitalizations and restructurings, and other special situations. He received his J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School.

Winfield Lau, Corporate. Based in Hong Kong, Lau’s practice focuses on corporate finance, including mergers and acquisitions, initial public offerings, and general corporate regulatory and compliance counseling. He has extensive experience representing corporate clients in China through key stages of development, including pre-IPO financing rounds, initial public offerings, follow-on offerings of equity and debt securities, public takeovers, and privatizations, as well as major mergers and acquisitions. Lau has also worked with major investment banks in dozens of capital markets transactions. He received a B.B.A. in law, LL.B., and Postgraduate Certificate of Laws from the University of Hong Kong.

Clark Y. Lin, Patents and Innovations. Based in Boston, Dr. Lin practices intellectual property law, with an emphasis on patent prosecution, general intellectual property counseling, and intellectual property litigation. He has also been involved in more than 20 life sciences company IPOs. Lin represents clients in the pharmaceutical, life sciences, and biotechnology industries, with a focus on companies developing therapeutics, particularly in the field of immunotherapy. He received his J.D. from the University of Washington School of Law.

Jordan McDonnel, Corporate. Based in Austin, McDonnel’s practice focuses on the representation of technology and other emerging growth companies. He advises companies and boards of directors from incorporation through exit. McDonnel has established a national practice working with emerging companies, and represents several clients with unicorn-level valuations in venture capital financings and other corporate matters. McDonnel received his J.D. from Columbia Law School.

Jennifer McGrew, Technology Transactions. Based in Austin, McGrew specializes in business transactions involving clients in technology-driven and technology-consuming industries, with a focus on corporate transactions, licensing, and counseling. She handles intellectual property issues for domestic and foreign clients, ranging from start-ups to mature private and public companies and investors. Her practice covers a wide range of activities related to the commercialization of technology and the acquisition of intellectual property rights. McGrew received her J.D. from Lewis & Clark Law School.

Scott McKinney, Technology Transactions. Based in Washington, D.C., McKinney represents technology innovators of all sizes in complex transactional matters, including joint development, strategic alliance, joint venture, SaaS, open source licensing, and other commercial arrangements, as well as in corporate transactions such as mergers and acquisitions, IPOs, and financings. He advises companies in a diverse range of emerging industries, including artificial intelligence, blockchain, robotics, autonomous vehicles, machine learning, e-gaming, fintech, and smart contracts. McKinney received his J.D. from Columbia Law School.

Jad Mills, Litigation. Based in Seattle, Mills maintains a practice focused on proceedings before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office under the America Invents Act. He has experience in matters before various federal district courts, the PTAB, the International Trade Commission, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, the California superior courts, and the California Court of Appeals. He has represented clients in a variety of technology-driven industries, including pharmaceuticals, medical devices, semiconductors, and oil and gas. Mills received his J.D. from Harvard Law School.

Julia L. Minitti, Patents and Innovations. Based in Palo Alto, Dr. Minitti counsels clients in the biotechnology, chemical, and pharmaceutical industries on a wide range of intellectual property issues, including patent portfolio development and management, Orange Book listing, patentability, non-infringement, and freedom to operate. She also advises clients in connection with various transactions, such as public offerings, mergers and acquisitions, licenses, and venture financings. Minitti received her J.D. from Santa Clara University School of Law.

Mike Pestana, Corporate. Based in San Francisco, Pestana specializes in representing start-ups and venture capital investors. He advises early- and later-stage private companies throughout all stages of their life cycle on matters including financings and acquisitions. He has led numerous strategic deals, including financings, secondary transactions, tender offers, recapitalizations, and mergers and acquisitions. Pestana received his J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School.

Catherine Riley Tzipori, Corporate. Based in New York, Riley Tzipori specializes in corporate and securities transactions, with a focus on clients in the technology, life sciences, and healthcare sectors. She represents public and private companies in financings, mergers and acquisitions, securities and debt offerings, complex business formations, and other strategic transactions. She also has experience representing leading investment banks and corporate issuers in connection with public offerings. In addition, Riley Tzipori has counseled privately and publicly held companies on general corporate governance and disclosure matters. She received her J.D. from New York University School of Law.

Michael Rosati, Corporate. Based in Palo Alto, Rosati focuses on corporate finance and structured finance transactions, including debt issuances and derivative transactions. He has particular expertise in convertible notes, high-yield notes, equity derivatives, and PIPE transactions. Rosati’s work also includes representing private companies intent on going public or otherwise entering the capital markets. Rosati received his J.D. from Santa Clara University School of Law.

Dylan Savage, Litigation. Based in San Francisco, Savage maintains a broad-based litigation practice that includes commercial disputes, corporate governance, and securities litigation. She has meaningful trial experience and has handled a variety of complex, high-value cases nationwide. Her clients have included companies in the media, advertising, real estate, software, semiconductor, cybersecurity, and automotive industries. Savage received her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center.

Evan Seite, Litigation. Based in Palo Alto, Seite specializes in securities litigation and counseling, complex commercial litigation and arbitration, and government and internal investigations. He frequently represents companies, as well as their officers and directors, in various types of litigation matters, including securities class actions, shareholder derivative suits, complex civil litigation and arbitration matters, and shareholder litigation. Seite received his J.D. from the University of Iowa College of Law.

Amanda Urquiza, Corporate. Based in Palo Alto, Urquiza practices corporate and securities law with a focus on public company representation, corporate governance, and public offerings. She has extensive experience advising clients, including public companies and their boards, on federal securities law compliance and corporate governance matters, with a particular emphasis on technology and life sciences companies. Urquiza received her J.D. from UC Berkeley School of Law.

About Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati
For more than 60 years, Wilson Sonsini’s services and legal disciplines have focused on serving the principal challenges faced by the management and boards of directors of business enterprises. The firm is nationally recognized as a leading provider to growing and established clients seeking legal counsel to complete sophisticated corporate and technology transactions; manage governance and enterprise-scale matters; assist with intellectual property development, protection, and IP-driven transactions; represent them in contested disputes; and/or advise them on antitrust or other regulatory matters. With deep roots in Silicon Valley, Wilson Sonsini has offices in Austin; Beijing; Boston; Brussels; Hong Kong; London; Los Angeles; New York; Palo Alto; San Diego; San Francisco; Seattle; Shanghai; Washington, D.C.; and Wilmington, DE. For more information, please visit www.wsgr.com.