As home to Thomas Alva Edison and nine time Nobel Prize winner Nokia Bell Labs, New Jersey has a history of attracting top innovators in their fields. So it should come as no surprise that in 2010, DLA Piper opened its Short Hills office to offer sophisticated legal expertise on a global scale to client companies navigating complex business challenges.
DLA Piper started the office with four attorneys committed to working in partnership with the region’s technology and life science entrepreneurs. That alignment served the office, its clients and the larger entrepreneurial ecosystem well. Today, more than 25 lawyers represent a broad cross section of private equity firms and private and publicly-listed companies operating across industry verticals, legal jurisdictions and development stage.
“Contributing to the development of entrepreneur-led startups into larger, commercial enterprises and New Jersey’s ecosystem as a whole has been a unique and exciting role, says Andrew Gilbert, co managing partner of DLA Piper’s Short Hills office, global co-chair of the firm’s Life Sciences sector and a member of its Corporate practice. “I primarily work with companies in the technology, life sciences and healthcare industries, as well as investment firms that serve those sectors.”
With DLA Piper, clients have found a partner not only committed to serving the region’s innovators, but also a firm that is utilizing technology and data to better serve its clients. Earlier this year, DLA Piper was ranked the number one legal advisor for global M&A deal volume by Mergermarket and Thomson Reuters and was ranked among the top five law firms for venture capital work in PitchBook’s annual global league tables report.
While advising on a transaction, Gilbert said he and his colleagues make frequent use of the firm’s extensive collection of data related to past matters handled by its lawyers. “A key advantage we have is our ability to capture historic deal data through our internal systems and deploy it for the benefit of our clients,” Gilbert said. “As we’re negotiating an agreement, we don’t get stuck on a particular issue – we have a lot of precedent to look back at, analyze and act upon. This helps us move through potential obstacles more quickly and results in a cost-effective and efficient result for the client.”
The ability of the firm’s lawyers to collaborate directly with one another – even though they may be located on opposite coasts or continents and in different time zones – is an important advantage, Gilbert said, adding that he frequently works with DLA Piper attorneys in the Silicon Valley, London, Hong Kong, Atlanta, Austin and Washington, DC, markets.
“New Jersey is an especially active market for the fintech and biotech sectors, and players in these areas are dealing with increasingly complex challenges and evolving regulatory environments,” he said. “The scope of our platform, both in terms of geography and our wide range of practice groups that collaborate to work on matters, means we are uniquely suited to offer clients sophisticated but practical legal solutions that are tailored to them.”
DLA Piper‘s Fintech practice advises financial services clients on leveraging technological innovation, protecting their technology and trade secrets and establishing compliance with relevant laws and regulations. Along with fintech, the firm has also launched practices devoted to artificial intelligence, proptech, and blockchain and digital assets. DLA Piper’s Life Sciences sector team combines subject matter experience with considerable knowledge of the sector, including the scientific, medical, regulatory, commercial and enforcement environments facing biopharmaceutical, medical device, research and diagnostics clients.
“We continue to make strides in improving our ability to serve today’s innovators in science, technology, medicine, finance and more, whether they are large, established corporations, startups or investors,” Gilbert said. We know today’s innovation economy will continue to evolve and are excited by the firm’s historic role in growing the ecosystem and future opportunity to accelerate advancements that matter.
