US firm Paul Hastings has hired securities litigator Brad Bondi from Cahill Gordon & Reindel to bolster its white collar defence team, the latest in a recent spate of senior litigation hires for the firm.

Bondi joins as a partner in Washington DC, where he will serve as global co-chair of the firm’s investigations and white collar defence practice. He brings with him more than two decades of litigation and white collar experience, advising companies, financial institutions, boards of directors, audit committees and others on a range of civil and criminal matters related to securities and financial laws, regulatory investigations and corporate disputes.

Frank Lopez, chair of Paul Hastings, said: “Brad is a nationally recognised market leader in investigations and white collar defence. His public and private sector experience augments our team’s ability to advise clients in their most critical disputes and important matters.”

Bondi was at Cahill for eight years, where he led its white collar and government investigations group. Prior to that, he spent just over four years at Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft, where he led the firm’s securities enforcement and investigations practice. He also had a spell in the public sector, serving as counsel to the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s commissioner between 2008 and 2010. Before that, he was a partner at Kirkland & Ellis and an associate at Williams & Connolly. 


He said: “Paul Hastings’ upward trajectory has not gone unnoticed in the industry. I’m excited to be a part of the firm’s long-term strategy and play a role in helping it to grow.”

Bondi is the latest high-profile litigation partner to join Paul Hastings. Last July, the firm hired litigation partner Avi Weitzman from Gibson Dunn & Crutcher to co-chair its complex litigation and arbitration practice group. And last month it hired securities litigator Jennifer Conn, also from Gibson Dunn, to co-chair its securities litigation practice, and disputes partner Garreth Wong from Shearman & Sterling in London to co-chair its international arbitration practice.

A Cahill spokesperson commented: “We thank Brad for his years of service to the firm’s clients and wish him well in his new endeavors.”


Paul Hastings is not the only firm that has been focusing on growing their litigation head count. Last month, Ashurst expanded its London disputes coverage with the hire of banking litigation partner Philip Linton from investment banking giant Goldman Sachs. Also in March, Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani hired a team of 30 lawyers from regional defence litigation firm Marks O’Neill O’Brien Doherty & Kelly.