Why Former Government Attorneys Are Choosing MoFo

Law360 Pulse published an article highlighting Morrison Foerster as the law firm attracting former government attorneys from both sides of the aisle due to the firm’s “government ethos,” collaborative nature, and overall culture. Many of MoFo’s recent hires boast prior government experience, with most joining the Washington, D.C. office, coming directly from government roles or other major law firms.

MoFo’s commitment to investing in its former government attorney’s is what attracted most of them to the firm in the first place, with partners telling Law360 about the “the success of their predecessors at the firm and its ability to help partners develop clients despite coming in with ethical or legal restrictions on the work they do.”

The new hires have taken leadership roles in key practice areas, including Congressional Investigations, White Collar Defense, Crisis Management, National Security, and Financial Services, reflecting the firm's response to evolving regulatory and enforcement trends. Kimberly Hamm and Carlos Felipe Uriarte, both former government attorneys and current co-chairs of the Congressional Investigations group, emphasized a cross-disciplinary approach to overlapping investigations and relying on their government experience to understand the “priorities of different administrations [and] different congressional majorities” that gives them a leg-up on client work.

The article also highlighted the firm’s strong East Coast presence, despite being a West Coast firm. MoFo’s strong presence in D.C. and New York “can be attributed to emerging needs of West Coast clients in Washington as they face increasingly complex regulatory issues, according to partners.” Chuck Duross, co-chair of the FCPA + Global Anti-Corruption practice, spoke to how MoFo strikes a perfect balance between the two coasts beyond its physical presence, stating, “At MoFo, they take the work seriously, but not themselves. We have East Coast experience and seriousness in terms of the government and investigations work we do, but there's a California cool vibe to the place.”

Read the full article.