Combined firm offers expanded California presence and pre-eminent insurance coverage practice
PHILADELPHIA, January 1 - Duane Morris LLP announced today the completion of its merger with the former Hancock Rothert & Bunshoft LLP, based in San Francisco. The merger strengthens Duane Morris' California presence and offers clients the resources of one of the most prominent insurance coverage practices in the country.
With the addition of 64 Hancock lawyers, Duane Morris now has more than 600 lawyers in 19 offices; 120 of those lawyers are in California. The firm is projected to generate revenue approaching $350 million in 2006. The merger also enhances Duane Morris' depth of practice, with more than 100 lawyers involved in insurance coverage work.
Former Hancock chair Philip Matthews and former Hancock partner Ray Wong have been appointed to Duane Morris' partners board. In addition, former Hancock partner William Casey has been named head of the firm's Insurance and Reinsurance Practice Group.
"In addition to an excellent insurance coverage practice, Hancock brings outstanding litigators with a strong presence in such areas as commercial litigation, technology, professional liability, construction, appellate practice, healthcare and product liability," said Sheldon M. Bonovitz, Chairman of Duane Morris. "The merger allows us the opportunity to offer a full range of legal services to Hancock's client base in areas other than litigation and also provides Duane Morris with the ability to offer more broad-based litigation services to its clients in California."
"The combined firm provides Hancock with deeper bench strength and a national platform as well as an ability to serve and develop its insurance and reinsurance clients in Europe, Bermuda and the United States," added Bonovitz, noting that Duane Morris's full-service London U.K. office has an existing business development presence.
The merger also gives Duane Morris a Los Angeles office, led by Russell Roten, formerly a partner at Coudert Brothers. Four additional Coudert attorneys joined Roten last year. The addition of Roten's group along with Hancock's insurance capabilities provides a great opportunity to better serve insurers facing complex bankruptcy issues involving such matters as asbestos. Duane Morris intends to expand the Los Angeles office, focusing in the areas of commercial litigation and intellectual property. Duane Morris also will continue to expand the Las Vegas office, opened by Hancock in 2005. The firm will maintain Hancock's office in Lake Tahoe, California.
Said Matthews, "The merger allows us to better serve our clients as a true full service, national law firm. Both Duane Morris' entrepreneurial culture and business-savvy approach to client service make it the perfect match for our practice and our clients."
"We thought long and hard about the best partner to achieve our clients' goals and our own," Matthews added. "There is no firm better suited to us than Duane Morris."
Former Hancock attorneys represent U.S. and international companies in a wide range of litigation and transactional areas. Renowned for its work in insurance counseling and defending insurers and reinsurers in complex insurance coverage actions and arbitrations, Hancock has been consistently ranked as the premier insurance firm in California, according to Chambers USA. Hancock attorneys have long represented Underwriters at Lloyd's, London, as well as other London, European, United States and Bermudian insurance and reinsurance companies, some of which are existing Duane Morris clients. The firm is considered to have one of the top insurance coverage and professional liability practices in the country.
For more information about the merger, please contact Joshua Peck at 215.979.7300.
About Duane Morris
Duane Morris LLP, among the 100 largest law firms in the United States, is a full-service firm of more than 600 lawyers. In addition to legal services, Duane Morris has independent affiliates employing approximately 100 professionals engaged in other disciplines. With offices in major markets, and as part of an international network of independent law firms, Duane Morris represents clients across the nation and around the world.