Bird & Bird is to open its first US office in San Francisco, relocating two European partners to launch the offering in 2018.
The firm has said that the focus of the office is to provide non-US legal advice to the firm’s incumbent clients in the region, as well as to partner with US law firms.
The San Francisco office will focus on international disputes, intellectual property, data privacy, HR, restructuring and projects.
Milan-based co-head of international corporate group Stefano Silvestri and London IP partner Nick Aries will relocate to San Francisco to launch the new office.
Technology and communications partner Roger Bickerstaff and head of international HR services Ian Hunter will travel frequently to the region to support the launch of the new office.
Bird & Bird CEO David Kerr said: “US companies are being hit with major international changes such as GDPR, the trade secrets directive and the digital single market reforms from Europe, and we’re also seeing technology drive their transactional activity more and more.
“This on-the-ground presence enables us to offer a heightened level of support to clients as they tackle these challenges head on.
“We’re looking forward to immersing ourselves in the local community in downtown San Francisco and being able to work much more closely with the companies driving innovation in the region.”
Kerr added: “Providing innovative client service is a crucial component of Bird & Bird’s offering.We approach the key issues that US in-house attorneys face with tech-driven solutions that maximise efficiency.”
Bird & Bird enjoyed a strong financial year in 2016/17, recording a 10.7 per cent boost in revenue from £273.8m to £303.2m.
The firm highlighted double-digit revenue growth in corporate, IP and employment in the last year, which was boosted by the firm’s new tech-focused strategy. “I think we’ve been pushing the strategic messages a lot more strongly, Kerr said at the time. “Clients are responding warmly to that.”
