Large Firms
Jun. 15, 2002
Denver Firm Will Open An Office in San Francisco
SAN FRANCISCO - Holme Roberts & Owen, a 200-attorney firm based in Denver, has announced plans to open a San Francisco outpost. Kenneth Lund, Holme Roberts' managing partner, said Thursday the firm was following its largest clients to the Bay Area.
Kenneth Lund, Holme Roberts' managing partner, said Thursday the firm was following its largest clients to the Bay Area.
One such client, United Bank, was acquired by Wells Fargo. Another, the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad, merged with Southern Pacific Transportation Co., and was then acquired by Union Pacific, with headquarters in San Francisco, Lund said.
Holme Roberts will focus on commercial litigation for older industry and emerging growth technology companies, according to Joshua Floum, who left Emeryville's Legal Strategies group to chair Holme Roberts' California litigation practice.
Besides its home-state offices in Denver, Boulder and Colorado Springs, Holme Roberts maintains outposts in Salt Lake City and London. The San Francisco office will open in two to three weeks with from six to 10 lawyers. It plans to grow over the next two years to between 30 and 35 attorneys, Floum said.
Holme Roberts' decision to open an office in San Francisco comes amid similar decisions by other firms.
Last month, Minneapolis-based Dorsey & Whitney acquired San Francisco's Flehr Hohbach Test Albritton & Herbert to serve the Bay Area's biotechnology companies.
Also in May, McCutchen, Doyle, Brown & Enersen, one of San Francisco's oldest and most respected law firms, merged with Bingham Dana, a corporate and litigation firm from Boston.
More recently, London-based Clifford Chance Rogers & Wells said it will open four California offices, with regional headquarters in San Francisco.
Norman Clark, a principal with legal consulting firm Altman Weil, said the influx of firms into the Bay Area reflects a trend toward geographic expansion.
Holme Roberts is "a regional firm trying to build a global reach for their clients," Clark said. "The idea behind it is to put yourself where your clients need legal services" - and to expand in order to gain expertise in additional practice areas, he added.
Holme Roberts' London office serves Denver-based telecommunication, mining and mineral companies that have expanded into European markets. Lund said the firm's London high-tech practice groups will fit well with its San Francisco high-tech clients.
Holme & Roberts' rates will be more moderate than those of its East Coast or European competitors, Floum said.
"Coming from a Rocky Mountain center is different than coming from New York costs and New York mentalities," Floum said.
Joel Rosenblatt
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