Sheppard Mullin Orange County Adds Two Corporate Partners
Stephanie Siegel Brecher has joined the Orange County office of Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP as a partner in the firm's Corporate practice group. Brecher most recently practiced in the Orange County office of Bingham McCutchen.
R. Marshall Tanner has rejoined Sheppard Mullin's Orange County office as a partner, also in the firm's Corporate practice. Tanner returns to the firm after serving for three years as counsel to his church in Brazil.
Brecher has 15 years of experience in corporate transactional law, representing public and private companies, private equity groups, and venture funds in mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, and venture capital financings. She also serves as general counsel to a number of venture-backed and privately held clients and their management and boards of directors, advising them on day-to-day legal matters, corporate governance issues and significant transactions.
Tanner's general corporate practice includes purchase and sale transactions, business startups, debt and equity financing, corporate and business governance, the licensing of intellectual property, and counseling clients in general business, real estate and commercial matters. Tanner acts as principal outside counsel for many regional emerging and middle market companies, and has represented various publicly-traded companies in commercial transactions.
"Stephanie is an excellent fit to our Corporate practice group, given her venture capital, M&A and emerging growth company focus. She is the latest of several recent Corporate partners to join the firm who specialize in these areas. Stephanie's mix of law firm experience and in-house industry knowledge is of great value to clients," said Guy Halgren, chairman of the firm. "We also enthusiastically welcome Marsh back to the firm. Well-known in regional business circles, he will play a significant role in our Orange County Corporate practice."
Last month, Corporate partner Kirt Shuldberg joined Sheppard Mullin's San Diego/Del Mar office. Shuldberg specializes in life sciences deals and venture capital representations. In September, Corporate partners Bob Copeland, Jamie Mercer and Michael Umansky joined Sheppard Mullin in its San Diego offices. The trio, who are split between the Downtown and Del Mar offices, focuses on emerging companies' securities and M&A transactions.
Commented Brecher, "With a strong presence in Orange County and throughout California, Sheppard Mullin provides an excellent platform to grow my practice. The firm is committed to expanding its emerging company industry expertise, which includes a diverse Corporate practice and a strong IP group."
Commented Tanner, "I am thrilled to be back practicing at Sheppard Mullin. The firm has successfully grown in the three years I've been gone, including an additional fifteen attorneys in the Orange County office, new offices in New York, Shanghai and Silicon Valley and the overall expansion of practice areas. I look forward to rejoining my former partners and picking up where I left off."
Prior to private practice, Brecher served in-house as director and senior counsel at Nortel Networks, where she handled numerous acquisitions of private and public companies, dispositions of various Nortel divisions, and international joint ventures. She also acted as lead counsel for Nortel's Corporate Business Development Group, structuring and executing equity and venture investments for the company in the U.S. and abroad. Brecher was also formerly in-house corporate counsel to MCI prior to its acquisition by WorldCom.
Brecher received a J.D. from University of California, Berkeley, Boalt Hall School of Law in 1993, an M.S. from The London School of Economics and Political Science in 1990 and an A.B. from Princeton University in 1989. After graduating from Boalt Hall in 1993, she served as law clerk to the Hon. Richard A. Gadbois, United States District Judge for the Central District of California.
Tanner received a J.D. from University of California, Los Angeles in 1977 and a B.A., magna cum laude, from Brigham Young University in 1970.
Sheppard Mullin has more than 60 attorneys based in its Orange County office. The firm's Corporate practice group includes more than 100 attorneys firmwide.
About Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP
Sheppard Mullin is a full service AmLaw 100 firm with more than 550 attorneys in 11 offices located throughout California and in New York, Washington, D.C. and Shanghai. The firm's California offices are located in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, Santa Barbara, Century City, Orange County, Del Mar Heights and San Diego. Founded in 1927 on the principle that the firm would succeed only if its attorneys delivered prompt, high quality and cost-effective legal services, Sheppard Mullin provides legal counsel to U.S. and international clients. Companies turn to Sheppard Mullin to handle a full range of corporate and technology matters, high stakes litigation and complex financial transactions. In the U.S., the firm's clients include more than half of the Fortune 100 companies.