The Perfect Place for My Practice

Friends:

Today, I joined BakerHostetler to lead its Securities and Governance Litigation Team. 

For the past 20 years of my career, I’ve defended securities and governance litigation full time. It’s the only thing I’m ever going to do for a living. Thankfully, I love it. I love the diverse law that I work with. I love the procedural pace and high thought-to-action ratio it requires. But most of all, I find it highly rewarding to help good people accused of something wrong through frightening litigation. 

Ever since I decided to focus my career on this practice area, I’ve made career moves designed to allow me to better serve directors and officers and shape securities-litigation law and practice in a D&O-friendly way. Most recently, in 2012, I moved my practice from Big Law to Lane Powell, a highly regarded Pacific Northwest firm where I could combine my national experience with regional economics, to create a unique mix of effectiveness and efficiency and, thus, superior value. Clients and their D&O insurers and brokers found my approach refreshing, and I enjoyed my practice very much. I didn’t think I’d move again. And I certainly thought I’d never go back to a large firm.  

So, then, why am I joining BakerHostetler, a 950-lawyer firm with offices around the U.S.? There are several key reasons. 

Although litigation is increasingly national, I’ve found that companies often want a lawyer from the defense firm in the forum city. Baker has strong offices and litigators around the U.S. I will work out of Baker's offices in Seattle and New York City, where the lion's share of securities class actions are filed against companies headquartered around the country.

Securities class actions are quickly changing: there is an increasing number of cases against smaller public companies, and “event-driven” filings now dominate the landscape. 

Thus, a strong securities and governance litigation practice must be:

(1) economically flexible and able to scale to effectively and efficiently handle securities and governance litigation against small and large companies; and

(2) have strong subject-matter practices in the subjects of the events giving rise to litigation. 

BakerHostetler addresses these prerequisites for a strong securities litigation practice going forward and will propel my practice. 

Although large firms are often lumped together as inefficient, Baker’s rates, use of technology, and approach to staffing are refreshingly efficient and thus will allow me to continue to provide superior value. And with 360 litigators around the U.S., Baker can handle any case, no matter how large or where it’s filed.  

Further, Baker’s leading national practices in various areas, including cyber-security and blockchain/cryptocurrency, will allow me to better serve my securities-litigation clients in all types of event-driven litigation.   

And, critically, Baker supports my commitment to re-shaping securities and governance litigation in a way to emphasizes collaboration with D&O insurers and brokers in the defense of litigation--to work collaboratively for the common good of the defendants and reduce friction.  

There’s much, much more to tell you, and I look forward to visiting with you in the coming months.  

Thank you for your support and friendship.

Here is BakerHostetler's press release announcing my arrival.

Here is my Baker bio.

And here is a new video about me and my practice.

Doug