Cadwalader Hires Litigation Co-Chair

Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft announced on Monday that it has hired Jason M. Halper, the co-chair of the financial services litigation practice at Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe.

Halper, who works in Manhattan, will co-chair Cadwalader’s global litigation group with Washington, D.C. partner Ken Wainstein, the firm said in a statement.

The addition replenishes the firm’s ranks in litigation after it saw Martin Seidel, the former co-chair of its corporate litigation practice, join Willkie Farr & Gallagher last month.

In March, another co-chair of its litigation practice, Louis Solomon, joined Greenberg Traurig along with three other partners.

“Returning to Cadwalader at an exciting time of growth for the firm was an easy decision,” said Halper, in a statement.

“I have great confidence in the firm’s strategic plan to focus on its core clients, and in the management team to further the success of the litigation practice and the firm as a whole.”

Halper rejoins Cadwalader after working at the New York law firm from 2000 to 2014, at which point he joined Orrick.

Halper specializes in financial services and securities litigation. He is representing Chesapeake Energy Corp in a securities class action, GE Capital in a financial dispute with Nebraska Investment Finance Authority, among other matters, according to Bloomberg Law.

Patrick Quinn, the firm’s managing partner, said Halper was “well-loved” and “respected” during his tenure with Cadwalader.

The hire comes as the firm appears to be making a push to add litigators. Outside of Halper, the firm announced the addition of Steven Baker, the former co-head of the dispute resolution practice from Bird & Bird, who will join in London “in coming months.” Baker’s move was reported last month. And, Joseph Facciponti, a former federal prosecutor, joined Cadwalader in New York earlier this month, the firm said.

An Orrick spokeswoman wished Halper well in a statement.

The news comes after Cadwalader rejiggered its firm strategy to focus on its core clients: financial institutions, large-cap corporations and funds, Quinn announced in a Big Law Business interview last month. As part of the initiative, the firm is closing its Hong Kong and Beijing offices by year-end.

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