King & Spalding has opened an office in Northern Virginia as it seeks to expand its footprint in the DC, Maryland and Virginia region to support clients in the technology, aerospace, defence and government services sectors.

The office, which is located in the Washington DC suburb of Tysons Corner, is King & Spalding’s 22nd globally and will complement the 250-lawyer Washington DC practice on the other side of the Potomac river. The area is home to the headquarters of international companies including Intelsat and Booz Allen Hamilton.

Robert Hays Jr., chairman of King & Spalding, said: “Serving technology and ADG companies, sponsors, and other investors makes Northern Virginia a logical and important location for the firm. Given both our investment in the corporate practice and the growth in the national security arena, our Tysons Corner office will extend our reach into serving the tech sector across the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia region and globally.”

The Northern Virginia office will be led by managing partner Charles Katz and house a 25-lawyer corporate and M&A team that includes Lawrence Yanowitch and Tom Knox. The pair joined from Morrison & Foerster in October last year where they were global co-chairs of the firm’s M&A and corporate practices respectively, and who have been working together in the region for more than two decades.

Knox, who will co-chair the firm’s global technology industry practice, added: “Clients value our insight into their issues and appreciate that we are fully committed to serving the Mid-Atlantic business community. Leveraging King & Spalding’s industry-leading financing, national security, international trade and regulatory practices furthers our ability to counsel clients during this period of uncertainty and opportunity.”

Another ex-Morrison & Foerster partner Rick Vacura arrived at King & Spalding in February to chair the firm’s government contracts practice. He will be joined by partner Steve Cave, who was previously at McKinsey & Company, and tax expert John Harper, who was also previously at Morrison & Foerster.

Yanowitch said: “King & Spalding’s expanding global platform has provided outstanding transaction support to the clients we serve from the Northern Virginia office. We continue to find creative solutions to achieve client objectives in a challenging market environment.”