Phoenix 

Perkins Coie proudly announces that once again it has been ranked by Chambers & Partners, publishers of Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business, as a top law firm in the United States. Perkins Coie was recognized in the annual directory as a leader, having obtained Band 1 placement in 17 practice areas with top rankings in ten key markets across the country, including Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, District of Columbia, Idaho, Illinois, Oregon, Washington and Wisconsin.

Perkins Coie announced today that it has opened an office in San Diego, California. Four new partners are joining the firm and will serve as the core of the new office. Partner Thane Bauz has joined the firm from Paul Hastings and partners John Schnurer, Brian Wacter and Bing Ai have joined from Fish & Richardson. Bauz and Schnurer will work in the patent litigation group and Ai and Wacter will join the patent prosecution group.

For the eighth consecutive year, Perkins Coie is proud to announce that it has been named to FORTUNE magazine's "The 100 Best Places to Work For."  This year the firm was ranked 75, an improvement over last year's ranking of 82.  

Jessica Berch, a new associate in the Phoenix office, recently published an article entitled "The Need for Enforcement of U.S. Punitive Damages Awards by the European Union" in the Minnesota Journal of International Law.  The article addresses the discrete problem of enforcing U.S. punitive damages awards in the courts of E.U. Member States.  After canvassing the state of the law regarding punitive damages in both the United States and Europe, the article suggests that the two powers do not have particularly divergent views about the propriety of punitive damages awards and urges the two sides to revise the Hague Convention on Choice of Court Agreements to allow for the more liberal enforcement of U.S. judgments containing punitive damages awards.

Perkins Coie Partner Lee Stein was recently quoted in a summary and analysis published by the Bureau of National Affairs on the findings of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on the case United States v. Ruehle. The case revolves around the issue that attorney-client privilege did not shield communications between the former chief financial officer of Broadcom Corp. and outside counsel about the company's backdating of stock options. "…company counsel has to be able to disclose statements made in the course of an investigation in today's environment of cooperation," said Stein.

Historically, FCPA prosecutions targeted corporations; directors and officers have largely been protected from liability. However, this is changing. Prosecutors are increasingly turning their attention to the individuals behind the companies. Perkins Coie Partner Lee Stein was recently quoted on this sea change in a Cross Border article entitled "In the Line of Fire." "When executives see other executives being held personally responsible in a criminal context, it delivers a far more powerful message and can really modify behavior," said Stein.

In response to public pressure for the regulation of political contributions by government contractors—commonly referred to as “pay-to-play”—many jurisdictions have enacted laws, promulgated regulations, or issued executive orders to maintain contracting process integrity and prevent a de facto regime where political contributions are believed to be a necessity in order to obtain government contracts. This summary provides quick overviews of some of the statutes that the various states have enacted that impose restrictions or special reporting requirements on political contributions by government contractors. Each summary discusses the scope of the pay-to-play laws, including which contracts and contractors are covered, and the potential sanctions for violations.