Milwaukee-based law firm Foley & Lardner has hired a quartet of IP litigation specialists to open in Salt Lake City in Utah, in a move intended to strengthen the firm’s offering in the tech and life sciences sectors.

The new office, Foley’s 25th worldwide, will be led by partner David Wright, who has joined from local IP and complex litigation firm Maschoff Brennan. Joining him in moving over from Maschoff are partner Jared Braithwaite, senior counsel Michael Manookin and special counsel Taylor Wright.   

Jay Rothman, Foley chairman and CEO, described the team as 'top-notch' IP litigators, adding that Salt Lake City is “quickly gaining ground as one of the nation’s foremost tech and startup hubs, with a multitude of tech firms doing business in the city. This is an opportunity for Foley to be at the forefront of the legal market in a vibrant and growing city”.  

Foley's new team counsels clients in industries including health tech, security and software on a range of matters related to complex and IP litigation and brings extensive experience appearing before state and federal courts, including the US Supreme Court and US Federal Circuit Court of Appeals, as well as the International Trade Commission.

“My colleagues and I are excited to join Foley and leverage the firm’s national platform and expansive capabilities to provide better service and meet the legal needs of our clients,” said Wright, adding: “having lived in the Salt Lake City area for my entire life, including graduating from the University of Utah and BYU law school and spending my career up to this point at Utah firms, I’m looking forward to expanding Foley’s local presence, growing the office and stewarding community involvement.”

The Salt Lake City office also is meant to enable the firm to build stronger relationships with the talent pool of lawyers from the region’s well-regarded law schools, including Brigham Young University’s J. Reuben Clark Law School and University of Utah’s S.J. Quinney College of Law.

Chicago-based giant Kirkland & Ellis also announced last month that it was setting up shop in Salt Lake City to strengthen relationships with prominent local law schools, as part of its strategy to recruit top legal talent.

And last November, Dentons announced it was combining with Salt Lake City-based Durham Jones & Pinegar. The deal is part of the firm’s Project Golden Spike – a strategy to build a network of regional US firms that will ultimately cover the entire US.