Cooley Elects 12 New Partners

• Will be a 300-strong global partnership in 2016

Palo Alto – December 1, 2015 – Twelve lawyers have been elected to Cooley's partnership, effective January 1, 2016. The eight men and four women are based in six of Cooley's offices across the United States. Cooley will begin 2016 with nearly 300 partners located in 12 offices throughout the US and in the UK and China.

"Our new partners will make significant contributions to Cooley's clients," said Joe Conroy, Cooley's CEO. "I'm proud of the caliber of these next generation leaders."

Peter Adams (San Diego) – Adams is a member of Cooley's litigation department. His practice focuses on corporate governance and shareholder litigation, including the defense of securities class actions, derivative suits and M&A litigation. Adams also represents clients in connection with SEC investigations and civil enforcement actions, as well as internal corporate investigations. He earned his JD in 2004 and his MA in economics in 2005 from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law and BA, with honors, in economics and mathematical methods in the social sciences from Northwestern University in 1994.

Ryan Blair (San Diego) – Blair is a member of Cooley's litigation department. His practice focuses on corporate governance and shareholder litigation, including the defense of securities class actions, derivative suits and M&A litigation. He also represents clients in connection with SEC investigations and civil enforcement actions, as well as internal corporate investigations. Blair earned his JD from the University of California, Los Angeles School of Law in 2006 where he was elected into the Order of the Coif. He earned his BA in psychology from Stanford University.

Adam Chase (Washington, DC) – Chase is a member of Cooley's technology transactions group. His practice focuses on preparing and negotiating agreements for companies in the technology, sports and entertainment industries. He also provides counsel to technology, communications, media and sports clients on a variety of strategic and operational matters. Chase earned his JD in 1999 from the University of Virginia School of Law and his BA, cum laude, with distinction in all subjects, from Cornell University in 1996. 

Karen Deschaine (San Diego) – Deschaine is a member of Cooley's business department. Her practice encompasses a wide range of business and corporate matters, including general representation of public and private companies, private financings, public offerings and M&A. She earned a JD with a specialization in business law from the University of California, Los Angeles School of Law in 2007, where she was the editor in chief of the UCLA Women's Law Journal. Deschaine earned her MBA from Auburn University and BA in Economics from the United States Military Academy at West Point.

Eamonn Gardner (San Diego) – Gardner is a member of Cooley's Litigation department. His practice focuses on representing clients in patent litigation matters, as well as providing strategic patent counseling and support for patent licensing and transactional matters. Gardner has experience with a broad range of technology areas, including wireless communications, semiconductor device design and fabrication, medical devices, and life sciences. He earned his JD from Harvard Law School in 2006 and his BS in engineering from the Colorado School of Mines in 2003 where he graduated first in his class.

Todd Gluth (San Diego) – Gluth is a member of Cooley's tax practice. He advises clients on domestic and cross-border tax and structuring aspects of complex business transactions and investment vehicles. He also represents clients in federal and state tax controversies. Early in his legal career, Gluth clerked for Judge William A. Fletcher of the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and Justice John Paul Stevens of the US Supreme Court. Gluth earned his LLM in taxation from New York University School of Law, his JD from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law, where he was elected into the Order of the Coif and received the Thelen Marrin Prize for Academic Achievement, and his AB in English, magna cum laude, from Princeton University where he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa. 

Brian Leaf (Reston) – Leaf is a member of Cooley's public companies and capital markets practice groups. He practices corporate and securities law, with an emphasis on representing technology and life sciences companies and the investors and investment bankers involved with those companies. Leaf advises clients in connection with public offerings, SEC reporting and Sarbanes-Oxley compliance, corporate governance, mergers and acquisitions and venture capital and other private financings. He earned his JD, with distinction, from Stanford Law School in 2001 where he was an executive editor of the Stanford Law Review. He graduated magna cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania in 1995, receiving a BS in accounting from the Wharton School and a BA in history from the College of Arts and Sciences.

Matthew Pavao (Boston) – Dr. Pavao is a member of Cooley's patent counseling and prosecution practice. His practice involves worldwide patent acquisition and strategic counseling in the life sciences industry, with a particular focus on advising therapeutic, diagnostic and emerging biotechnology companies. His practice also involves advising clients with regard to freedom to operate opinions, invalidity and non-infringement opinions, oppositions, interferences and re-examination proceedings. Dr. Pavao has extensive experience with intellectual property due diligence in relation to potential investments, acquisitions, and partnering opportunities. He earned his JD, magna cum laude, from Suffolk University Law School, his PhD in biochemistry and his MA in medical sciences from Boston University School of Medicine, and his BS, cum laude, in biology and zoology from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.

Michelle Garcia Schulman (Reston) – Schulman is a member of Cooley's real estate group. Her practice focuses on real estate financings, dispositions, acquisitions and the leasing of commercial property including office, industrial, retail and raw land. Schulman has represented borrowers in billions of dollars of real estate financings. She has also represented both institutional and individual landlords and tenants involved in major lease transactions and corporate headquarters projects. Schulman received her JD from George Washington University Law School in 1999 and her BA in international affairs from James Madison University in 1991.

Tali Sealman (Palo Alto) – Sealman is a member of Cooley's business department and co-head of Cooley's Israel group. Her practice encompasses a wide range of business and corporate matters, with an emphasis on M&A and the representation of high-growth tech and life science companies. Sealman earned her LLM (as a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar) from Columbia Law School. Prior to becoming a lawyer, she served in the Intelligence Department of the Israeli Defense Force. Sealman received her LLB, magna cum laude, from Tel Aviv University Law Faculty.

Seth Van Aalten (New York) – Van Aalten is a member of Cooley's corporate restructuring & bankruptcy practice group. His practice focuses on the transactional and litigation aspects of Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization and liquidation. He frequently represents creditors' committees and debtors in Chapter 11 cases, as well as purchasers of assets, parties to executory contracts and real property leases and unsecured creditors. Van Aalten received his JD from Boston University School of Law in 2003 and his BA, cum laude, from Binghamton University in 2000.

Summer Wynn (San Diego) – Wynn is a member of Cooley's litigation department. Her practice encompasses a wide range of complex commercial litigation, including high-stakes environmental and land use litigation, employment litigation, and class actions and includes litigating cases through trial and on appeal. Wynn also has broad experience counseling clients pre-litigation and negotiating resolutions of disputes. She received her JD, cum laude, from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law in 2005 and her BA, magna cum laude, from the University of California, San Diego in 2001.

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