Page 22 - Delaware Lawyer - Winter 2022

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with overall revenue.
In a similar vein, Gregg Galardi, a
bankruptcy practitioner with Ropes & Gray in New York, said that “more firms don’t open Delaware offices be- cause they don’t need to.” Galardi, who started in Skadden’s Delaware office, added that “the Delaware bar has su- perb lawyers in lots of different areas, and firms like the fact that they can pick and choose Delaware counsel based on the client’s needs.”
A few attempts to establish a Dela- ware presence by bringing in a respect- ed former jurist failed to gain a foot- hold. Others maintain modestly staffed offices. For example, Paul, Weiss, Rif- kind, Wharton & Garrison opened in 2009 with former Vice Chancellor Ste- phen Lamb as resident partner and its six-lawyer office now includes former Chancellor Andre Bouchard. Other firms have recruited former jurists to their home offices, such as the affilia- tion of former Chief Justice Leo Strine with Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, or of former Justice Jack Jacobs with Si- dley Austin, neither of which indicated an intent to open in Delaware (Justice Jacobs later left Sidley Austin to return to Young Conaway, where he had prac- ticed before joining the bench).
“The rationale was to strengthen its ability to counsel transactional clients by adding Delaware corporate exper- tise.” Over time, clients “enlisted our Delaware team in the litigation, and its 32 Delaware lawyers are split between an advisory team and a litigation team.” A former Wilson Sonsini partner sits on Delaware’s Supreme Court and another on the Chancery Court.
Several other large national firms built more varied Delaware practices. Reed Smith, for example, has 11 law- yers in Delaware, while K&L Gates hosts nine.
Delaware’s Busy Bankruptcy, Corporate Litigation Dockets Proved Attractive
Far fewer plaintiffs’ derivative and class action firms have opened here. “Plaintiffs firms tend to be far more entrepreneurial and far less institu- tional than defense firms, so the pres- sure to grow geographically isn’t usu- ally there,” said Monhait. Local offices tend to be small, with “a few Delaware lawyers.”
Monhait followed that path. Af- ter retiring from his Delaware firm, he returned to active practice to open a two-lawyer office for Reid Collins & Tsai, a Texas firm specializing in high- stakes business litigation. Chimicles &
founder of the class action giant became the subject of criminal proceedings. Labaton Sucharow has three lawyers in Delaware, while Saxena White has two.
In 2019, the prominent New York firm Bernstein Litowitz Berger & Grossman entered the Delaware mar- ket by hiring former Richards, Layton & Finger President Gregory Varallo. The move underscored the firm’s com- mitment to Delaware as a key forum in which to bring corporate governance disputes. For Varallo, the move from the defense side was an opportunity to “reinvent myself” in the later part of a distinguished career. He noted that af- filiation with a smaller office of a large firm offers junior lawyers enhanced op- portunities to gain greater responsibility in high-profile matters.
Delaware’s historically busy bank- ruptcy docket was another growth engine. It was “the primary driver in the 1990s and the early 2000s,” recalled Tobey Daluz, a partner in the 17-lawyer Delaware office of the Philadelphia firm Ballard Spahr, and the Practice Group Leader for Ballard’s Bankruptcy and Restructuring Group. “Large bankruptcy cases throw off work for a lot of firms, given the number of interested parties.
Affiliation with a smaller office of a large firm offers junior lawyers enhanced opportunities to gain greater responsibility in high-profile matters.
One firm that successfully built a Chancery-centered Delaware presence is Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, which was opened by former Chancellor William Chandler III in 2011 and now includes former Justice Randy Holland. “The firm wasn’t looking to develop a litigation practice,” said Chandler.
Tikellis (now Chimicles Schwartz Kri- ner & Donaldson-Smith) was an early entrant, luring Pamela Tikellis, a well- known plaintiff-side lawyer. The Dela- ware firm Rigrodsky & Long (now Rigrodsky Law) was established in 2006, having seceded from Milberg Weiss Bershad Hynes & Lerach after the
20 DELAWARE LAWYER WINTER 2022
PHOTO BY BUD KEEGAN