Winston & Strawn Adds Silicon Valley Partner from DLA Piper

Winston & Strawn has hired Khoa Do, a former DLA Piper partner, to serve as chair of its Northern California corporate practice, marking a major hire in a competitive market for talent in Silicon Valley.

Do is an M&A lawyer whose transactions target mid-market to large-scale acquisitions. He had been a partner at DLA Piper for the past two years.

Prior to that, he had been a partner at Morrison & Foerster, Jones Day, and Greenberg Traurig. Do was an associate at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati from 1998 to 2004.

In an interview, Do said Winston’s capabilities in intellectual property, tax, labor and employment, and executive compensation would bolster his M&A practice. The firm’s private equity practice also was a draw, and he envisions cross-selling his M&A practice with the Silicon Valley office’s existing IP litigation practice.

For Winston, Do represents a further expansion into California, where the firm has added more than 20 new partners this year. That included the acquisition of 15-lawyer litigation boutique Scheper Kim & Harris and three former Sidley Austin partners who focused on real estate and restructuring.

“It’s definitely a very competitive marketplace for talent in Silicon Valley,” Do said. “For M&A, particularly over the past year as the world locked down and masked up, M&A endured. During the pandemic we saw probably the steepest decline and biggest rebound.”

A number of law firms have eyed expansion in Silicon Valley over the past 18 months, lured by the strength of its client base in technology that sustained the pandemic better than many industries. Major law firms that have opened Northern California offices during that time include include Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer; Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison; and Debevoise & Plimpton.

Winston & Strawn opened its Silicon Valley office in 2013, and it staffs around 20 lawyers, according to the firm’s website.

Do‘s experience “will add considerable value to our client engagements and will be instrumental in our continued ability to best and fully serve our clients in this unique market,” Kathi Vidal, managing partner of Winston’s Silicon Valley office, said in a statement.

Last year, Winston brought in $981.2 million in gross revenue, a 3% decline from 2019, due in part to court closures across the country, according to recently released figures by the American Lawyer. Its profits per equity partner rose 4.6% to $2.42 million.

“Northern California continues to be a significant area of growth for our clients,” Winston Chairman Tom Fitzgerald said in the statement. “We are committed to expanding our teams and capabilities in Silicon Valley and San Francisco to meet that demand.”

Do said he expects the heightened levels of M&A activity to continue, noting “just about every corporate lawyer in Northern California has their plates full.”

“I don’t see this slowing down,” he said. “I talk to my clients, I read what’s going on in the industry, and it seems this activity level will continue. And I certainly hope it does.”