16 Lawyers from Nixon Peabody Join LeClairRyan

16  lawyers from Nixon Peabody LLP , a New York-based international law firm, departed from the firm to join the newly-opened office of Virginia-based LeClairRyan in Linden Oaks office park located in Rochester, New York. The 16 lawyers, mostly from Nixon’s intellectual property and patent groups, added to the growing numbers of attorneys who transferred to LeClairRyan over the past few months, a total of 34 lawyers as of today. Some of the lawyers who departed from Nixon Peabody include Michael Goldman, Gunnar Leinberg, Richard McGuirk, Gregory Mascitt and Andrew Zappia, who is now the head of the new LeClairRyan office. The recent losses left Nixon Peabody’s Rochester office with 78 lawyers.

Allison McClain, Nixon Peabody spokeswoman, explained that the firm remained strong despite its series of partner losses in the recent months. “We continue to have a very strong office in Rochester and provide expertise to our clients across the nation and internationally. Our Intellectual Property Department is a nationally ranked top-practice, we have strong capabilities across the firm including in the life sciences area, and we continue to attract top talent in Rochester and nationally. Nixon Peabody is fully committed to growth in our Rochester office, which is home to some of our most important clients and many of our most talented attorneys.”

Meanwhile, LeClairRyan continues to expand and branch out in different cities. The firm now has over 22 offices nationwide, with new offices in Boston, New Haven, Newark, and California. Gary LeClair, cofounder and chairman of the firm, revealed that the firm is planning to expand more this year so they expect to have more laterals in the coming months. “The effort to recruit the Nixon Peabody lawyers came together over a period of months but picked up in late 2010. LeClairRyan was looking to expand its IP bench to complement the firm’s core life sciences and venture capital practices. The firm now increased its geographic reach.”