MINNEAPOLIS (JUNE 21, 2005)– In a significant development aimed at continuing to strengthen Dorsey & Whitney’s Europe-based capabilities, one of the firm’s top advocates will transfer from Minneapolis to London as partner-in-charge. Paul Klaas will assume the leadership role from John Byrne, who is retiring from full-time law practice.
Klaas leads Dorsey’s global Trial Group, is co-chair of the firm’s International Arbitration and Litigation Practice, and is a member of the firm’s Management Committee. He currently is based in the firm’s largest office in Minneapolis. In London, Klaas will oversee a Dorsey office that has grown to 40 lawyers, including nine partners. Dorsey is recognized in the UK for intellectual property advice and litigation, counseling high tech and biotech businesses, cross-border mergers and acquisitions, and ground-breaking tax litigation. UK-based The Lawyer recently nominated Dorsey tax litigators in London as a “Litigation Team of the Year.”
Dorsey Managing Partner Pete Hendrixson called Klaas’ appointment an aggressive, strategic investment that will ensure the office continues to achieve the firm’s high expectations in Europe. “We’re moving one of our most productive, most influential partners to London,” said Hendrixson. “The office is central to our ability to provide the services of a genuinely international firm.”
Hendrixson credited Byrne with forming a London presence that is the centerpiece of Dorsey’s European strategy. “John energetically accepted a challenging assignment when he joined Dorsey seven years ago. For us, he has been an outstanding and charismatic leader. The stature and breadth of the office today is evidence that he succeeded at establishing Dorsey & Whitney as a broadly capable London firm serving European and domestic clients.”
Although Byrne will concentrate on his own business interests in the future, he will continue working with the firm’s existing clients and assisting with ongoing Dorsey UK and European initiatives, including continued expansion of the trial and arbitration practices, growing the capital markets practice, and enabling European clients to take full advantage of the firm’s global resources.
Klaas began his legal career with Dorsey, joining the firm in 1977 and achieving partner in 1983. He has served as lead counsel in numerous intellectual property, commercial, and technology lawsuits and arbitrations. Klaas studied English literature as an undergraduate at University College of the University of London, receiving an A.B. degree, with honors, in English literature and economics from Dartmouth College in the United States. He was awarded a J.D. degree, with honors, by the Harvard Law School. Klaas is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers (regarded by many as the US equivalent of a QC), a member of the International panel and the Commercial panel of the American Arbitration Association, a member of the International Bar Association, and a member of the North American Users’ Council of the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA).
The Dorsey London office anchors the firm’s European practice group, providing legal services to international and domestic clients of all sizes, including technology-focused companies, private equity firms and global investments banks. Specialized areas of expertise include litigation, tax, corporate finance, cross-border mergers and acquisitions, strategic alliances, real estate, intellectual property, joint ventures, and employment.