Local group of leading corporate partners brings substantial experience in advising emerging companies, strategic buyers, private equity and venture funds and investment banks in the technology, clean technology and life sciences industries

Boston, March 23, 2011…Latham & Watkins LLP1 announced today that it has opened a new office in Boston, adding six new partners and one counsel with extensive experience in the Boston market. These attorneys represent a broad array of public and private companies in the technology, clean technology and life sciences industries. Latham’s newest office, located in the John Hancock Tower, will offer clients advice on mergers and acquisitions and capital markets and other financing transactions2 including: leveraged recapitalizations, management buyouts, public and private mergers and acquisitions, growth equity investments, early and late stage private equity investments and securities offerings.

Latham & Watkins Chairman and Managing Partner Robert M. Dell said: “We’re delighted to be opening our newest office in Boston, a market that is rich in public and private companies focused on evolving technologies and the venture capital firms and investment banks that fuel and support their growth. Boston is home to one of the most dynamic private equity markets in the United States, and we see significant opportunities in Boston to expand our global private equity practice. Latham’s experience in helping emerging companies grow and thrive as well as our global reach and substantial depth in private equity, capital markets and mergers and acquisitions are perfectly complemented and enhanced by this group of Boston-based attorneys who have joined us.”

The group includes:

· Partners John Chory, Peter Handrinos, Susan Mazur and Phil Rossetti, who offer substantial experience working with emerging companies, venture funds and investment banks, and whose practices, collectively, cover the broad range of needs of emerging companies, including: initial and late-stage venture financings and other financing transactions; mergers and acquisitions; capital markets; and general company representation. Chory and Mazur join Latham from the Waltham office of WilmerHale. Rossetti and Handrinos join Latham from the Boston office of WilmerHale.

· Private equity Partner Hans Brigham and counsel Julie Scallen, who join Latham from Bingham McCutchen’s Boston office. Both are principally engaged in M&A and growth equity and venture investing for private equity and venture funds, as well as for strategic buyers.

· Private equity partner Alex Temel, joining Latham from Proskauer Rose's Boston office, who offers substantial experience advising clients in connection with leveraged recapitalizations, management buyouts, mergers and acquisitions, early and late stage private equity investments and secondary transactions.

[Biographical details provided in Notes to Editors.]

Patrick Pohlen, Global Co-Chair of Latham & Watkins’ Emerging Companies Practice Group and partner in the firm’s Silicon Valley office, said: “Latham & Watkins has developed a leading emerging companies practice by combining a global platform with a network of attorneys equipped to support a company’s full life cycle, from raw startup to Fortune 100 company. Our emerging companies group provides services to the technology, life sciences and cleantech industries. We have a strong presence in the technology markets of Silicon Valley and Southern California and are now thrilled to be opening an office in Boston with these experienced attorneys who will complement and extend our practice and add depth in the region for our clients.”

Phil Rossetti, who serves as the Office Managing Partner for the Boston office, said: “The region’s long history of innovation is a large part of what attracted me to practice in Boston many years ago and I’m pleased to be part of Latham’s entry into this important market. The firm’s clients will be well-served by the extensive experience of the attorneys in our new Boston office and by Latham’s outstanding global experience in life sciences, clean technology and information technology.”

Alex Temel, who serves as the Chair of the Corporate Department for Latham’s Boston office, said: “I am looking forward to working with my new colleagues to build a strong private equity, growth equity and mergers and acquisitions practice representing fund clients, investment banks, strategic buyers and portfolio companies in all aspects of investments, acquisitions and dispositions. It will be a significant advantage for our clients to work with a Boston-based team complemented by global resources who know the clients’ businesses and have the depth of talent to serve the clients no matter the issue or market. ”

About Latham & Watkins

Latham & Watkins is a global law firm with approximately 2,000 attorneys in 31 offices, including Abu Dhabi, Barcelona, Beijing, Boston, Brussels, Chicago, Doha, Dubai, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Hong Kong, Houston, London, Los Angeles, Madrid, Milan, Moscow, Munich, New Jersey, New York, Orange County, Paris, Riyadh, Rome, San Diego, San Francisco, Shanghai, Silicon Valley, Singapore, Tokyo and Washington, D.C. For more information on Latham & Watkins, please visit the Web site at www.lw.com.

Notes to Editors

1 Latham & Watkins operates as a limited liability partnership worldwide with affiliated limited liability partnerships conducting the practice in the United Kingdom, France and Italy and affiliated partnerships conducting the practice in Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore. Latham & Watkins practices in Saudi Arabia in association with the Law Office of Mohammed Al-Sheikh.

2 Latham & Watkins is a U.S. market leader in IPOs and M&A activity. Since 2000, Latham is the nation’s top IPO counsel, completing 207 IPOs totaling more than $41 billion. In 2010, there were 168 completed US IPOs; Latham was involved in 30 of them or nearly 18 percent, the most among all law firms and almost evenly split between issuer side and underwriter side. In 2010, Latham’s global M&A practice worked on more than 340 announced deals totaling more than US $265 billion in deal value. In M&A activity, Latham ranked third by announced deal value in the U.S. (Mergermarket) and fifth by announced deal value globally (Bloomberg).

Biographical details

Johan (“Hans”) V. Brigham: Mr. Brigham, who was raised in Chestnut Hill, has practiced in the Boston area for two decades. His practice is focused on providing a broad range of transaction-based services for private equity, growth equity and venture firms, as well as strategic acquirers and sellers. In addition to straight-forward mergers and acquisition, these transactions include leveraged buy-outs, management-led buy-outs, “take private” transactions, public company and public/private mergers, equity/debt recapitalizations, growth equity and venture capital investing.

JD, University of Michigan Law School, 1991

BA, Yale College, 1988

John H. Chory: Mr. Chory has lived and worked in the Boston area since law school. His practice focuses on the representation of early-stage and venture-backed technology and life sciences companies. Mr. Chory advises both private and public companies in the areas of initial- through late stage venture capital financings, public offerings of securities, mergers and acquisitions, technology licensing and securities law. Mr. Chory also advises many entrepreneurs in early-stage company formation and strategy.

JD, Harvard Law School, 1988

MBA, Golden Gate University, Washington University, 1984

BS, United States Military Academy, 1980

Peter N. Handrinos: Mr. Handrinos practices corporate and securities law, with an emphasis on mergers and acquisitions, capital markets and venture capital transactions for life sciences and technology companies. Mr. Handrinos has advised both public and private companies in connection with a broad range of matters, including IPOs, follow-on offerings, PIPEs, registered direct offerings, strategic investments, 144A offerings, cash and stock mergers, tender offers and going-private transactions. He has counseled numerous start-up companies and venture capital firms in venture capital financings. Mr. Handrinos also regularly represents investment banks in connection with capital markets transactions. A significant portion of his practice involves general corporate work for ongoing clients on matters such as SEC compliance, securities and disclosure issues and corporate governance matters.

JD, New York University School of Law

MBA, Carnegie Mellon University

BS, Carnegie Mellon University

Susan L. Mazur: Ms. Mazur was born and raised in the Boston area. She represents technology and life sciences companies and advises companies and entrepreneurs in the areas of formation and governance issues, equity and compensation, early and late-stage venture capital financings, public offerings and mergers and acquisitions.

JD, New York University School of Law, 1999

AB, Bowdoin College, 1996, summa cum laude

Philip P. Rossetti: Mr. Rossetti practices corporate and securities law, with an emphasis on emerging companies, venture capital financings, mergers and acquisitions and public offerings. Mr. Rossetti has served as counsel for private and publicly traded clients in a broad range of technology, life sciences and other industry sectors. He regularly advises early stage and venture-backed companies, particularly in the technology sector, providing counsel in formational and governance issues, protection of technology, early stage and venture financings, and equity and employment matters. Mr. Rossetti also serves as counsel for a number of venture capital firms in connection with their portfolio investments. He has served as counsel in many initial and follow-on public offerings, on behalf of issuers and underwriters

JD, Syracuse University College of Law, 1981; Editor-in-Chief, Syracuse Law Review

BA, University of Rochester, 1978

Julie A. Scallen: Ms. Scallen’s practice is focused on mergers and acquisitions and private equity transactions. Ms. Scallen represents public and private companies and private equity funds in acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, dispositions, private equity and venture capital financings, strategic alliances, joint ventures, and licensing transactions.

JD, New York University School of Law, 1991; Editor, New York University Law Review

BA, Wellesley College, 1988; cum laude

Alexander B. Temel: Mr. Temel has a transactional practice focusing on advising private equity clients in connection with leveraged recapitalizations, management buyouts, public and private mergers and acquisitions, early and late stage private equity investments and secondary transactions. He also provides ongoing corporate advice to a number of privately held companies. Mr. Temel regularly represents clients in transactions in the software, oil and gas, financial services, business and consumer services, healthcare and media industries.

JD, Washington University School of Law, 1996; Editor, Washington University Journal of Urban & Contemporary Law

MBA, John M. Olin School of Business, Washington University, 1993

BA, Cornell University, 1991

Contacts

Robert. M. Dell, Chairman and Managing Partner, +1.415.395.8050

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