Wake Up Call: Hochul Taps WilmerHale in Congestion Pricing Fight

Welcome to Bloomberg Law’s Wake Up Call, a daily rundown of the top news for lawyers, law firms, and in-house counsel.

• Gov. Kathy Hochul has hired WilmerHale‘s Boyd Johnson, who is currently representing New York City Mayor Eric Adams in a campaign finance probe, to represent her in lawsuits challenging her suspension of the Manhattan congestion pricing program. New York Attorney General Letitia James previously recused her office from the case due to unspecified conflicts of interest. (amNewYork)
• Seven Peaks Ventures has filed a lawsuit in Oregon against Fenwick & West, claiming that the law firm misrepresented information that led the investor to back a now defunct cryptocurrency startup. Seven Peaks says it wouldn’t have lost its equity in the crypto startup—and may not have invested in the company at all—if the firm hadn’t misled it. (Law.com)
• Dr. Jeffrey Shuren, who led the FDA’s medical device division for 15 years, announced his retirement in July amid criticism from consumer advocates. Critics condemned Shuren for approving devices that caused patient harm and cited his close ties with the medical device industry, including his wife Allison Shuren’s role at Arnold & Porter representing device manufacturers. (The New York Times)

Laterals, Moves, In-house

• Raghav Bajaj joined Latham & Watkins as a partner in the intellectual property litigation practice and litigation and trial department in Austin, Texas. He joins from Haynes and Boone.
• Leen Zaza joined Latham & Watkins as a mergers and acquisitions partner in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. She joins from Khoshaim & Associates.
• James Budinetz and Peter Zarella joined McCarter & English as partners in the business litigation group in Hartford, Conn. They join from McElroy Deutsch.
• Ted Remaklus joined Thompson Hine as a partner in its intellectual property practice in Cincinnati. He joins from Wood Herron & Evans.
• Brian Bloom and Brant Kuehn joined Greenspoon Marder as partners in the litigation and intellectual property groups in New York.
• Eva Mak joined Freshfields as a private capital partner in its Silicon Valley office. She joins from Kirkland & Ellis.