New
MoFo
Alumni
Anna-Lisa Vanzo joined Interactive Brokers (Family Office) as Associate General Counsel in September 2023. Prior to this role, Anna-Lisa was a Litigation associate at MoFo from 2021 to 2023 in the New York office.
Will Baker joined the United States District Court for the Southern District of California as a Judicial Law Clerk in December 2023. At MoFo, Will was a Litigation associate from 2022 to 2023 in the San Diego office.
Wendy Chow joined WeightWatchers as Vice President of Legal and Head of Health Care & Privacy Officer in 2024. At MoFo, Wendy was counsel from 2022 to 2024 in the San Francisco office.
Richard Lijian Ji joined Novo Nordisk as Senior Legal Counsel in November 2023. At MoFo, Richard was an associate from 2019 to 2023 in the Beijing office.
Samuel Goldstein joined the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as Counsel to the General Counsel in August 2023. At MoFo, Samuel was a Litigation associate from 2021 to 2023 in the Washington, D.C. office.
Quinn Walker joined the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit as a Judicial Clerk in September 2023. At MoFo, Quinn was an IP Litigation associate from 2022 to 2023 in the Washington, D.C. office.
Jack Li joined Amazon Web Services (AWS) as Corporate Counsel in March 2024. At MoFo, Jack was a Litigation associate from 2021 to 2024 in the Washington, D.C. office.
Caroline Middleton joined Pentair as Senior Counsel in November 2023. At MoFo, Caroline was a Litigation associate from 2022 to 2023 in the Washington, D.C. office.
Rachel Ross joined Consumer Bankers Associations as Vice President, Senior Regulatory Counsel, and Associate General Counsel. At MoFo, Rachel was an associate from 2021 to 2023 in the Washington, D.C. office.
Meredith Stradley joined Globus Medical as Patent Counsel in March 2024. At MoFo, Meredith was an associate from 2017 to 2024 in the Washington, D.C. office.
Shane Wilson joined Trader Joe’s as Real Estate Counsel in March 2024. At MoFo, Shane was an associate from 2023 to 2024 in the Los Angeles office.
Olivia Wada joined Kia America as Corporate Counsel in August 2023. At MoFo, Olivia was an associate from 2021 to 2023 in the Los Angeles office.
Monica Cai joined Adobe as Legal Counsel in November 2023. She works as a product counsel supporting Adobe Express. At MoFo, Monica was an associate in the Technology Transactions Group from 2021 to 2023 in the San Francisco office.
Wendy Chu joined Harvard Law School as a Clinical Instructor in January 2024. At MoFo, Wendy was a Technology Transactions associate from 2019 to 2023 in the New York office.
Laura Stewart joined Coalition as UK Head of Claims and Cyber Specialist in January 2024. At MoFo, Laura was a Privacy and Cybersecurity associate from 2022 to 2024 in the London office.
Chris Han joined Apple as IP Litigation Counsel in February 2024. At MoFo, Chris was a Litigation associate from 2019 to 2024 in the Palo Alto office.
Sam Lee joined Meta Reality Labs as Counsel in March 2024. At MoFo, Sam was a Technology Transactions associate from 2021 to 2024 in the San Francisco office.
Charles Tso joined the U.S. District Courts as a Law Clerk in August 2023. At MoFo, Charles was an associate from 2022 to 2023 in the New York office.
Matthaeus Martino-Weinhardt joined Epic Games as Senior Counsel in March 2024. At MoFo, Matthaeus was a Litigation associate from 2023 to 2024 in the San Francisco office.
Fahd Patel joined the United States Patent and Trademark Office as an Associate Solicitor in January 2024. At MoFo, Fahd was a Litigation associate from 2013 to 2018 and of counsel from 2019 to 2024 in the Washington, D.C. office.
Thomas Webb joined Affiliated Managers Group as Senior Associate and Counsel in October 2023. At MoFo, Thomas was an associate from 2021 to 2023 in the Washington, D.C. office.
New alumni as of March 2024
the Move
Alumni on
Sarah Barr joined Lightpath as Senior Corporate Counsel in October 2023. At MoFo, Sarah was an associate from 2018 to 2022 in the Denver office.
Mary Anne Becking joined Canva as Head of Corporate Legal in February 2024. At MoFo, Mary Anne was an associate from 1999 to 2006 in the Palo Alto office.
Genevieve Burch joined The Wine Group as Senior Counsel, IP & Privacy in July 2023. At MoFo, Genevieve was an associate from 2001 to 2005 in the San Francisco office.
Robert Carlon joined Flex-Tek Group as Chief Financial Officer in January 2024. At MoFo, Robert was an associate from 2014 to 2016 in the Singapore office.
Ryan Farha joined Alpine Investors as Principal, Investment Counsel in February 2024. At MoFo, Ryan was an associate from 2018 to 2020 in the New York and San Francisco offices.
Celeste Ferber joined Mercury as Deputy General Counsel, Corporate in March 2024. At MoFo, Celeste was an attorney from 2006 to 2014 in the Palo Alto office.
Julia Huang joined Palo Alto Networks as Senior Corporate Counsel, M&A and Corporate in December 2023. At MoFo, Julia was an associate from 2018 to 2022 in the San Francisco office.
Kevin Kwon joined Bristol Myers Squibb as Associate General Counsel in January 2024. At MoFo, Kevin was an associate from 2013 to 2021 in the San Diego office.
Amy Lawrence joined SuperAwesome as Chief Privacy Officer and Head of Legal in January 2024. At MoFo, Amy was an associate from 2016 to 2018 in the Los Angeles office.
Jackie Li joined Autodesk as Corporate Counsel, Product in November 2023. At MoFo, Jackie was an associate from 2019 to 2022 in the San Francisco office.
Brittani Ojogho-Fields was hired as Corporate Counsel, US Scripted TV Development at Amazon MGM Studios in March 2024, where she will now oversee legal support for the studio’s development of its US Comedy and Limited Series slates. At MoFo, Brittani was an associate from 2019 to 2021 in the San Francisco office.
Anthony Parenti joined Moonlight Bio as Vice President, Legal in November 2023. At MoFo, Anthony was a law clerk from 2017 to 2019 and an associate from 2019 to 2020 in the San Francisco office.
Miki Someya joined Gilead Sciences as Senior Manager Legal Affairs in March 2024. At MoFo, Miki was an associate from 2019 to 2021 in the Tokyo office.
Sarah Tierney Niyogi joined Recall Capital as a Partner in July 2023. At MoFo, Sarah was an associate from 2008 to 2012 in the San Francisco office.
Accomplishments
Alumni
David Alban was promoted to VP & Chief Counsel, IP & Innovation at Xylem in September 2023. At MoFo, David was a Litigation associate from 2005 to 2008 in the Palo Alto office.
Eleanor Anthony was promoted to Senior Corporate Counsel, Product at Snowflake in February 2024. At MoFo, Eleanor was an associate from 2020 to 2022 in the Palo Alto office.
Margot Benedict was promoted to Counselor to the Attorney General at U.S. Department of Justice in October 2023. At MoFo, Margot was an associate from 2017 to 2021 in the Washington, D.C. office.
Lauren Bennett was promoted to Senior Counsel, Global Affairs Legal in October 2023. At MoFo, Lauren was an associate from 2017 to 2019 in the San Francisco office.
Cynthia Lopez Beverage was promoted to Vice President, Legal (Strategic Partnerships and Global Procurement Transactions) at Visa in March 2024. At MoFo, Cynthia was of counsel from 2007 to 2011 in the Washington, D.C. office.
Jovanna Bubar was promoted to Senior Product and Privacy Counsel at Samsara in February 2024. At MoFo, Jovanna was an associate from 2019 to 2022 in the Los Angeles office.
Neal Burstyn was promoted to Product Counsel at MongoDB in October 2023. At MoFo, Neal was an associate from 2018 to 2022 in the New York office.
Mikaela Ediger joined the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii as a Judicial Law Clerk. At MoFo, Mikaela was an associate from 2018 to 2022 in the Tokyo office.
Stephanie Fong was promoted to Vice President, Legal Counsel, Corporate Governance, SEC & Employment at Dexcom in March 2024. At MoFo, Stephanie was an associate from 2005 to 2016 in the San Diego and Palo Alto offices.
Zachary Fuchs joined the U.S. Courts of Appeals as a Judicial Law Clerk in September 2023. At MoFo, Zachary was an associate from 2021 to 2022 in the Washington, D.C. office.
Irving Gomez was promoted to VP, Deputy General Counsel, & Corporate Secretary at PagerDuty in March 2024. At MoFo, Irving was a Corporate associate from 2000 to 2005 in the San Francisco office.
Marisa Gondrez was promoted to Director of Operations, NY and Legal Counsel in October 2023. At MoFo, Marisa was an associate from 2005 to 2011 in the New York office.
Kimberly Gosling moved into a new role at the University of San Diego School of Law as Professor of Practice in January 2024. At MoFo, Kimberly was a Litigation associate from 2006 to 2007 and 2008 to 2018 in the San Diego office.
Jason Hall was promoted to Chief People & Legal Office at SunVest Solar in September 2023. At MoFo, Jason was a Litigation associate from 2009 to 2015 in the San Francisco office.
Min Heo was promoted to Managing Director, Legal Counsel at LiquidX in March 2024. At MoFo, Min was an associate from 2017 to 2020 in the New York office.
Don Hunt was promoted to Executive Vice President & General Counsel at The Hartford in March 2024. At MoFo, Don was an associate from 1999 to 2004 in the San Francisco office.
Alexandra Laks was promoted to Senior Managing Counsel at Cruise in April 2024. At MoFo, Alexandra was an associate from 2013 to 2020 in the San Francisco office.
Erin Lupfer was promoted to Senior Appellate Court Attorney at the California Court of Appeal, Fourth District, Division One in October 2023. At MoFo, Erin was a Litigation associate from 2018 to 2023 in the San Diego office.
Masayo Nobe was promoted to VP of Legal at Mozilla Corporation in September 2023. At MoFo, Masayo was an associate from 2007 to 2015 in the Tokyo and San Francisco offices.
Eric Ow was promoted to Director & Associate General Counsel – Alexa, Photos, & Smart Home at Amazon Lab126 in September 2023. At MoFo, Eric was an associate from 2007 to 2013 in the San Francisco office.
Tom Randall was promoted to Managing Counsel, Commercial at Figma in September 2023. At MoFo, Tom was an associate from 2017 to 2019 in the Virginia office.
Rachel Rice was promoted to Associate General Counsel, IP at Nkarta in January 2024. At MoFo, Rachel was an associate from 2018 to 2022 in the San Diego office.
PRO BONO SPOTLIGHT
Mat
dos Santos
Co-executive Director
and General Counsel for
Our Children's Trust
Fighting for the Rights of Many
There are countless reasons why people choose to pursue law as a profession, ranging from intellectual stimulation to the potential of a lucrative career. For Mat dos Santos, they saw the law as a pathway to make a difference by entering the nonprofit legal world.
As graduation from Cornell Law School neared, dos Santos saw two possible career journeys: The first was to jump into the legal department of a nonprofit and learn by doing. The second was to get some experience with a large firm first before following their passion with a nonprofit. They chose the latter.
“I interviewed with a couple of firms, but Morrison Foerster stood out as a place where I could really learn and contribute,” they said. “I worked for a summer in the San Francisco office with some incredible partners who helped me grow, including Ruth Borenstein, Dorothy Fernandez, Stuart Plunkett, Rachel Krevans, and Philip Besirof, as well as some amazing associates like Parisa Jorjani. I still litigate cases based on what I learned from them.”
Currently, dos Santos serves as co-executive director and general counsel for Eugene, Oregon-based Our Children’s Trust, a leading advocacy organization that fights climate change by representing young people in global legal efforts to ensure a healthy atmosphere and stable climate. It’s a position where dos Santos feels they’re making a daily impact, and they credit their MoFo experience for the jumpstart.
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It was a case that was super influential for me in my early years as an attorney because it showed me how to effectively litigate high-profile, high-impact cases. You have to come up with compelling demonstratives and develop a powerful narrative story for the jury.
A Focus on Helping Others
Dos Santos was also able to log more than 2,500 hours of pro bono work during their eight years at MoFo, including a case related to the detention of prisoners in Guantanamo Bay and another that involved transgender prisoner rights in Idaho, which they recall being particularly groundbreaking.
That case centered around an incarcerated trans woman, Jennifer Spencer, who had changed her name and lived on the outside as a woman. However, the Idaho Department of Corrections placed her in a men’s prison. She pleaded with the Department’s medical staff for estrogen therapy to treat her gender dysphoria, but was refused 75 times.
This led to a subsequent suicide attempt and an episode where she castrated herself in her cell. In 2004, Spencer filed suit against the Department, claiming that it violated her constitutional rights by failing to properly diagnose her and provide adequate treatment. After winning in federal district court, a
settlement was reached, and the case is credited with leading to gender-affirming treatment for the incarcerated.
“It was an incredibly formative experience for me. I worked on several pro bono projects, but this case showed me the impact of large firms working together with organizations for the good of the community.”
They also worked on some of MoFo’s traditional cases, including one they feel has been a major influence on their work today. In re JDS Uniphase was a $26 billion securities case involving a major fiber optic cable supplier, and dos Santos was part of the MoFo team defending the company’s executives. Working under partner Jordan Eth on the case, dos Santos was charged with helping to provide an argument for the jury verdict form.
“It was a case that was super influential for me in my early years as an attorney because it showed me how to effectively litigate high-profile, high-impact cases. You have to come up with compelling demonstratives and develop a powerful narrative story for the jury.”
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It’s profoundly troubling that we’re facing this massive climate crisis as a nation and world, and we’re not acting for our children and grandchildren.
Finding Their Way in the World
Mat’s career has always been on a steady trajectory toward public service. Born in Virginia, their father moved the family to Portugal when Mat was three years old to take a position with the U.S. embassy in Lisbon. Their parents hoped to expose them to the family’s Portuguese roots. The family then moved to Gulfport, Mississippi, when dos Santos was 11, which they describe as a significant culture shock.
“I was an effeminate kid who didn’t speak English well, and it was difficult to adjust. I didn’t fit in,” they said. “After growing up in Europe with these images of the U.S. in movies and TV, Gulfport was disappointing. I wasn’t ready for the more challenging aspects of America like racism and wealth disparity.”
The family moved to San Diego when dos Santos was in high school, and they experienced another jolt. “San Diego wasn’t like moving to New York or San Francisco, but coming from Mississippi, it felt like a cosmopolitan city, and I thrived there.”
After studying biology at UC Irvine, dos Santos took an interest in the environment. They worked on environmental impact reports and surveys as a biologist at an environmental consulting firm, and consequently Mat began to think about a career in environmental law.
“I thought that was the direction I was headed, but in law school I fell in love with the idea of the power of constitutional law and litigation,” they said. “And I got very involved in different legal communities, like the International Law Journal and Lambda Legal.”
Supporting Children's Rights for a Healthy Climate
After leaving MoFo, dos Santos worked for Jazz Pharmaceuticals, then joined the ACLU of Oregon as the state legal director in 2015. Looking for their next challenge a few years later, a mutual friend introduced them to Julia Olson, founder of Our Children’s Trust, who was searching for a managing attorney for the organization.
“I was coming from this very intense period at the ACLU, which was battling the Trump administration every day, and I felt I needed a break,” they said. “After meeting with Julia, I saw that we shared a vision where the courts could be used to protect the constitutional rights of children in regard to the climate.”
Our Children’s Trust has received a great deal of media attention for its pioneering legal actions, including Juliana v. United States, which asserts that children’s constitutional rights to life, liberty, and property have been violated by the government’s actions around climate change. They have also been involved in numerous similar cases around the world in which children sue governments for their role in furthering the climate crisis.
“It’s profoundly troubling that we’re facing this massive climate crisis as a nation and world, and we’re not acting for our children and grandchildren,” said dos Santos. “I initially told Julia I’d help her out for six months then I’ll take some time off. But six months passed, and Julia said she’d love for me to stay, and I agreed. This is the place for me.”
When they look back over their career, dos Santos advises newer associates at firms like MoFo to take advantage of opportunities when they present themselves. “Don’t be afraid to take big swings,” they said. “If, like me, you’re interested in the nonprofit world, know that there’s tremendous support for pro bono work at Morrison Foerster. Don’t hesitate to bring a case to the pro bono committee where a worthy cause could receive top-notch legal resources they never would have been able to afford otherwise.”
Looking ahead, dos Santos’s biggest professional goal is for Our Children’s Trust to succeed in its mission to achieve universal recognition of fundamental constitutional rights for a safe, livable climate. They like to write, and they’re hoping to write more about the young people at the heart of their cases and the trauma they’ve experienced due to the changing climate. “I'd love to write a manual about how to be a trauma-informed lawyer that other nonprofits could use that would be available to other organizations for free,” they said.
Dos Santos is also interested in teaching some of the concepts and strategies they’ve learned. “I’ve received so much from more experienced attorneys over the years, and I feel it’s important to give back to the legal community.”
Outside of their work, dos Santos enjoys time with their partner, Clay, their dogs, family, and the outdoors. “Clay and I love to hike and backpack. We’ve been lucky enough to backpack along the Continental Divide, the Pacific Crest Trail, and Denali National Park. We want to experience getting away from the world for a while and appreciate the natural beauty of the world we’re fighting for.”
Learn more about
Our Children's Trust
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New MoFo
Partners
New York
New York
Denver
New York
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Denver
New York
Tokyo
New York
Denver
San Francisco
Oksana Lashko is a New York-based partner in the Business Restructuring and Insolvency Group. Oksana brings to MoFo 15 years of corporate restructuring and bankruptcy experience, representing debtors, creditors, official and ad hoc committees, and other significant parties-in-interest in a broad range of matters.
Oksana joins MoFo from another leading global firm, where she was a member of its Restructuring and Finance group and built a successful creditors’ committee practice. Oksana focuses her varied practice representing secured and unsecured creditors, including lenders and bondholders, and official and ad hoc committees in connection with both out-of-court restructurings and bankruptcy cases; buyers and sellers in distressed M&A transactions; various constituents with respect to complex litigation matters; and various constituents, on the company and creditor side, with respect to liability management transactions and all other aspects of corporate restructurings.
Elizabeth Sipes is a Denver-based partner in the Private Funds Group. Elizabeth brings to MoFo more than 20 years of experience representing and advising private investment funds, investment advisers, and institutional investors.
Elizabeth joins MoFo from another leading international firm, where she spent the last six years and served most recently as a firmwide chair of its Private Investment Funds group. She advises sponsors on all aspects of fund formation and launch. Her work includes drafting and negotiating a spectrum of documentation ranging from term sheets, partnership agreements, side letters, and subscription agreements, to structuring general partner and upper-tier arrangements including carry programs and other economic sharing programs. She also represents institutional investors, including corporate venture capital programs, funds-of-funds, and family offices, assisting them with their alternative investments across various asset classes, including private equity, venture capital, hedge funds, and real estate.
Rhys Bortignon is a New York-based partner in the Finance Group. Rhys brings to MoFo more than 15 years of extensive knowledge and experience in derivatives and structured products in the United States, UK, EU, and Australia.
Rhys joins MoFo from another leading global law firm, where he was a member of its Capital Markets practice and Global Derivatives group. His practice focuses on over-the-counter derivatives, structured derivatives, and structured finance. With a focus on practical and commercial solutions, Rhys provides counsel to a diverse range of international and U.S. clients, from both the buy-side and the sell-side, including corporates, investment banks, commercial banks, private equity, funds, investment managers, and sovereigns. He offers strategic guidance to his clients from both a transactional and a regulatory perspective and navigates complex cross-border issues, providing counsel to clients operating globally.
Stephen DeCosse is a Tokyo-based partner in the Corporate Group. Stephen was previously a corporate partner in MoFo’s Tokyo office from 2001 to 2006.
Stephen’s practice focuses on M&A transactions and joint ventures across a broad range of industries, including technology, food and agriculture, energy, and transportation. He has extensive experience advising both Japanese corporates on outbound matters and international private equity firms on inbound matters.
Chuck Cotter is a Denver-based partner in the Emerging Companies and Venture Capital Group. Chuck and his colleague and partner, Finity Jernigan, have built a full-service emerging company practice focused primarily on consumer products, with emphasis on the food and beverage, beauty, personal care, and fashion sectors, as well as on agtech and food tech transactions. Together, they have represented growing companies, funds, and strategic investors that invest in those companies, from early stages through to exit. Specifically, they help early- and growth-stage companies raise capital, negotiate key agreements, manage investor and board dynamics, and achieve successful exits, and they assist funds and other investors to grow their portfolios.
In his current practice, Chuck advises companies and funds at all stages of growth, from startups to ready-to-exit companies, helping them successfully raise capital and achieve successful exits. Chuck also regularly advises consumer products investment funds in investment rounds.
Doug Mannal is a New York-based partner in the Business Restructuring and Insolvency Group. Doug brings to MoFo more than 20 years of experience spanning all aspects of restructuring, with a particular focus on representing creditors, including official committees of unsecured creditors, as well as ad hoc groups of funds in distressed situations—both in and out of court.
Doug joins MoFo from another leading global law firm, where he was a member of its Financial Restructuring group in New York and focused his practice on financial restructuring, representing a diverse range of clients in complex chapter 11 bankruptcy cases, out-of-court restructurings, and other distressed situations. Doug’s clients include ad hoc creditor groups, creditors’ committees, and major secured and unsecured creditors, as well as distressed borrowers.
Kaylee Cox Bankston is a Washington, D.C.-based partner in the Privacy and Data Security Group. Kaylee specializes in complex cybersecurity matters, advising clients on various cyber issues, including cybersecurity investigations and incident response preparedness, corporate governance and risk management, public disclosures and strategic communications, regulatory investigations, litigation, and development of corporate security programs.
Kaylee joins MoFo from another leading global law firm, where she helped spearhead and develop its cybersecurity practice. She advises clients across a wide range of industries on cybersecurity risk management and on compliance with U.S. state and federal and international data protection laws and regulations. Kaylee has substantial experience leading clients in investigations of sophisticated cyberattacks and representing clients in cybersecurity and privacy matters before U.S. state and federal and international regulators.
Finity Jernigan is a Denver-based partner in the Emerging Companies and Venture Capital Group. Finity and her colleague and partner, Chuck Cotter, have built a full-service emerging company practice focused primarily on consumer products, with emphasis on the food and beverage, beauty, personal care, and fashion sectors, as well as on agtech and food tech transactions. Together, they have represented growing companies, funds, and strategic
investors that invest in those companies, from early stages through to exit. Specifically, they help early- and growth-stage companies raise capital, negotiate key agreements, manage investor and board dynamics, and achieve successful exits, and they assist funds and other investors to grow their portfolios.
In her day-to-day practice, Finity is a go-to advisor for emerging growth companies and venture capital and private equity funds in the consumer products industry, including food, beverage, personal care, beauty, skincare, cosmetics, and other natural products, helping them to successfully raise capital, elevate acquisitions and divestitures, and manage various corporate governance matters along the way.
Val Dahiya is a Washington, D.C.-based partner in the Capital Markets Group. Val brings to MoFo nearly two decades of extensive experience across securities and financial services regulation and compliance of broker-dealers, clearing agencies, securities exchanges, and transfer agents, in both private practice and prominent government agency roles. Val joins MoFo from another leading law firm, where she most recently served as managing partner of its Washington, D.C., office and as firmwide Securities Trading and Markets practice chair. Val’s significant government agency experience includes a combined 13 years of service at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).
Val advises clients at the intersection of financial regulation and technological innovation, including on complex compliance, regulatory, and transactional matters arising under SEC and FINRA jurisdiction.
Boris Segalis is a New York-based partner in the Privacy and Data Security Group. Boris regularly advises clients on the development and implementation of cutting-edge, data-driven products and services, compliance with global privacy and cybersecurity requirements, and U.S. and foreign privacy and cybersecurity regulatory investigations.
Boris joins MoFo from another leading global law firm, where he helped lead and build its current Privacy and Data Security practice. He works with clients across a broad range of industries, with a focus on the tech and fintech sectors. Boris advises on strategic privacy and cybersecurity aspects of customer engagement and corporate transactions, including in the
context of venture, private equity, public M&A, and bankruptcy. He also regularly defends companies in federal, state, and foreign privacy and cybersecurity investigations.
Tammy Davies is a New York-based partner in the Finance Group. Tammy brings to MoFo deep experience representing alternative lenders and investors in complex credit arrangements.
Tammy joins MoFo from another leading global firm, where she was a member of its Alternative Lender and Private Credit and Special Situations groups. Tammy’s practice focuses on alternative lending, including financings with a junior capital component or multiple tranches of debt. Her experience encompasses a wide range of financing facilities, including mezzanine debt, second-lien loans, and bifurcated unitranche facilities, in the context of both U.S. and cross-border strategic and sponsor-backed leveraged buyouts, recapitalizations, opportunistic credits, and debt restructurings. Tammy advises clients across a broad array of industries, including technology, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, retail, media, gaming, manufacturing, and financial services.
Mike Vernace is a San Francisco-based partner in the Finance and Private Equity Groups. Mike brings to MoFo more than 15 years of experience representing private equity funds and their portfolio companies in complex U.S. and cross-border financings.
Mike joins MoFo from another leading international firm, where he was a partner in its Banking and Credit department. His practice focuses on supporting sponsor-borrowers, along with additional lender-side representations and borrower-side bankruptcy remote financings. He regularly advises clients through syndicated finance and other commercial lending transactions, including acquisition, leveraged, investment-grade, asset-based, corporate, receivables, net asset value, and hybrid financings. He also represents leading leveraged buyout sponsors and their portfolio companies in connection with a variety of recapitalizations and refinancings.
Summit
In-House Counsel
for Women
The MoFo Summit for Women In-House Counsel was held in February 2024 in Brooklyn, New York. Over 200 women leaders in the legal industry joined MoFo for a day filled with substantive panels and breakouts, professional development sessions, networking opportunities, and an inspirational keynote discussion, delivered by Jill Ellis, renowned soccer coach and two-time FIFA Women’s World Cup champion.
Celebrating Five Years
of MoFo Boston
This year marks the fifth anniversary of Morrison Foerster’s Boston office. Since opening in February 2019, MoFo Boston has cultivated its own unique identity in Boston centered on excellence in life sciences, technology, and financial sectors, among others, while celebrating the exceptional culture and values the firm is known for globally. Through its commitment to providing exceptional client service through teamwork, and fostering the advancement and empowerment of its professionals through a collaboration of ideas, celebration of diverse perspectives, and mutual respect, the Boston
team has made a significant impact that extends well beyond legal work in the local business market.
David Ephraim, Boston managing partner, commented, “We are delighted to celebrate five years of MoFo in Boston, and proud of the people we work with in Boston and beyond to expand MoFo’s reputation for exceptional client service and community engagement.”