This roundup features Womble Carlyle, Bracewell, Dorsey & Whitney, Ice Miller, Kacvinsky Daisak Bluni, Morrison & Foerster, O’Melveny, Pillsbury and TMark Conseils. Read more news here

 

Bond Dickinson and Womble Carlyle in ‘alliance’
UK law firm Bond Dickinson and US law firm Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice announced that they have entered into a “transatlantic strategic alliance”. The agreement, which was signed in London on June 15, will see both firms share best practices and opportunities. Betty Temple, chair and chief executive of Womble Carlyle, said: “The alliance will increase the already established synergies between our two firms and serve as a catalyst to grow our global skillset and opportunities.” Bond Dickinson is not currently ranked in IP STARS.

Bracewell
Bracewell recruited Douglas W Rommelmann from Andrews Kurth Kenyon as IP partner in its Houston office. Rommelmann, who has a background in engineering, specialises in patent and trade mark protection work. He represents IP owners in several technology fields before the USPTO.

Dorsey & Whitney
Dorsey & Whitney recruited Erin C Kolter as of counsel in its IP litigation group in Seattle. She handles patent work before the courts and USPTO, representing companies in sectors such as medical devices and electronics. Kolter’s technical background is in mechanical engineering, and she was previously a partner in Kirkland & Ellis’ Los Angeles office.

Ice Miller
Ice Miller has hired Frederick Tecce as managing partner to lead the IP practice in its new office in Philadelphia. Tecce has an engineering background and is experienced in dealing with contentious patent matters. The firm also welcomed patent practitioners Aaron Ettelman, as partner, and Bryon Wasserman, who joined as of counsel. Ettelman’s IP practice focuses on the chemicals while Wasserman specialises in electronics and IT. All three IP practitioners were previously with Panitch Schwarze Belisario & Nadel.

Kacvinsky Daisak Bluni (KDB)
Patent lawyer Dennis M Carleton joined IP boutique KDB as counsel. Carleton specialises in patent protection in the fields of software and mechanical engineering. He was previously partner at Fox Rothschild and before that he was a software engineer at Digital Equipment Corporation. KDB is not currently ranked in IP STARS but its senior principal Scott T Bluni is an IP star.

Morrison & Foerster
Morrison & Foerster hired a six-lawyer team from Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati: partners Stefani E Shanberg and Jennifer J Schmidt, of counsel Robin L. Brewer, and associates Eugene Marder, Madeleine E Greene and Michael J Guo. The team is experienced in handling patent disputes, especially on behalf of high-tech companies, before the courts and USPTO.

O’Melveny
Scott Pink has joined the firm’s Silicon Valley office as senior counsel. Pink advises entertainment and TMT companies on soft IP and related matters. He has corporate experience in the media sector. O’Melveny is not currently ranked in IP STARS.

Pillsbury
Pillsbury hired Howard Wisnia and James Conley as IP partners in its San Diego office. Both IP litigators were previously with Mintz Levin in San Diego, where they litigated patents in a number of sectors including medical device. Conley also handles patent prosecution work.

TMark Conseils relocates
TMark Conseils has announced that it will be relocating to a new office on June 26. The new office address will be 9 avenue Percier, 75008 Paris, France. In its circular the firm said its telephone and fax numbers will not change. It added: “If you have sent any air mail correspondence to our former address please rest assured that it will reach us with no problem or delay because we have signed a temporary air mail correspondence re-routing contract.”