North America - United States • M&A/corporate and commercial
Latham & Watkins LLP
The ‘efficient, smart, timely and overall awesome’ team at Latham & Watkins LLP advises emerging companies across their entire lifecycle and is particularly reputed for guiding clients through exit strategies including IPOs, de-SPACs, and M&A. The emerging companies and growth practice is helmed by Benjamin Potter, Brian Patterson, and Haim Zaltzman from Silicon Valley. Potter focuses on sectors including emerging tech, fintech, life sciences, and healthcare, and Patterson, who joined the firm in February 2023 from Gunderson Dettmer LLP, advises emerging growth companies on formation, deal structuring, and financing issues. Stephen Ranere in Boston specializes in early-stage company formations, venture capital financings, and exit strategies, while Alex Voxman in Los Angeles works with a wide variety of high-growth tech companies. John Chory retired from partnership in December 2023.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
‘The team's key differentiating strength is its practical approach to the myriad issues with which start-up lawyers are confronted every day. The team has a deep technical understanding of these issues and is able to leverage their experience and their understanding of the client's business to cut through the noise and enable in-house counsel to resolve the issues that matter efficiently and effectively.’
‘Stephen Ranere strikes a wonderful balance between understanding every issue that can confront a venture-backed start-up company on the one hand and how to practically address those issues on the other hand. Steve proposes and implements practical, efficient approaches.'
- 'Associate Galina Vujovic is the boots-on-the-ground associate who handles the day-to-day business of the company. She essentially functions as a broadly sophisticated in-house counsel for start-up companies. She has a strong working knowledge of securities, corporate, and regulatory issues.’
‘They are efficient, smart, timely and overall awesome.’
‘They are always responsive and always on top of it. They are able to get to the key points that matter and I’m always confident to have them in meetings with my board, with other lawyers representing my investors, etc.’
‘Saad Khanani is hard working and puts his clients first.’
Key clients
- Adept AI
- Clerkie
- D’Amelio Brands
- Form Energy
- Goldman Sachs
- Freight Farms
- KoBold Metals
- Madhive
- Pattern Bioscience
- Perplexity
- Plai Labs
- Nvidia
- Rarefied Atmosphere
- Softbank
- SKIMS
Work highlights
- Advised SKIMS on its $270m Series C financing, raising the company's valuation to over $4bn.
- Advised Perplexity on its $25.6m Series A financing and the subsequent acquisition of Spellwise.
- Advised Form Energy in its $450m Series E financing.
Lawyers
Hall of Fame
The lawyers at the very top of the profession, widely known and respected by peers and clients for their longstanding involvement in market-leading work.
Next Generation Partners
Practice head
The lawyer(s) leading their teams.
Benjamin Potter, Brian Patterson, Haim Zaltzman