US firm Brown Rudnick has recruited a 34-lawyer intellectual property team from HSF Kramer in Silicon Valley and New York.
The team includes seven partners and will establish Brown Rudnick’s new Silicon Valley office.
US firm Brown Rudnick has recruited a 34-lawyer intellectual property litigation team from HSF Kramer, leaving it with only two lawyers listed in Silicon Valley and no partners based there, according to its directory.
The joining team includes Silicon Valley partners Paul Andre, Lisa Kobialka, James Hannah, Kristopher Kastens and Michael Lee, alongside New York partners Jonathan Caplan and Aaron Frankel.
The hires will also establish Brown Rudnick’s first office in Silicon Valley, expanding a California presence that already includes two offices in Southern California.
The footprint
Rooted in Boston, the firm has primarily operated on the US East Coast but has developed a growing West Coast presence. It also has a London office with about 20 partners.
The firm gained prominence while representing actor Johnny Depp in his high-profile, televised defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard, securing a favourable outcome for Depp in 2022.
Technology push
The team advises on patent, trade secret, copyright and trademark disputes involving industries including life sciences, artificial intelligence, computer security and telecommunications.
Andre and Hannah helped secure a $17 million patent victory for technology company Cyandia against SAP in April.
Members of the incoming team also secured three major plaintiff-side patent verdicts against Palo Alto Networks, Activision Blizzard and Amazon Web Services, worth a combined $205 million.
The raid is among the largest law firm team moves recently. International firm Sheppard Mullin hired a 21-lawyer IP litigation team from Ropes & Gray in 2025 and a further 15-lawyer IP group from Perkins Coie in April ahead of the merger.
What they said
Brown Rudnick chief executive and chairman Vince Guglielmotti said the group’s arrival would strengthen the firm’s technology, life sciences and global litigation practices.
“Their arrival underscores Brown Rudnick’s appeal to top-tier lateral partners who want an entrepreneurial platform where they can make an impact,” he said.
Andre said the team was attracted by Brown Rudnick’s “boutique approach to client service”, entrepreneurial spirit and approach to litigation funding.
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