Law Firms Target Clean Technology
Marshall, Gerstein & Borun LLP, an intellectual property law firm, just announced the launch of its Cleantech and Renewables Industry Group. According to the firm, the group integrates nearly 20 attorneys and professionals from multiple practices to meet the legal and business demands of clients involved with technologies aimed at environmental stewardship. “As demand for environmentally responsible products and services continues to grow, so does the need for thoughtful counsel for securing, defending, enforcing and transferring the technologies behind them. We’ve pooled our internal resources into this group, bringing clients the hybrid technical, business and legal know-how for success in this competitive space,” says Jeff Sharp, Managing Partner of Marshall, Gerstein & Borun.
Marshall, Gerstein & Borun is not alone. A growing number of law firms with close ties to the VC community and strong IP practices have jumped onto the green energy bandwagon, building practice groups that target the clean tech sector, reports Law.com. Executive search firm, A.E. Feldman, says right now across the country, the wealth of individuals and institutional investors getting involved in the energy and clean technology sector is enormously high. As the amount of capital invested in green technologies continues to grow, a number of law firms have already begun strengthening their practices in sustainable energy and clean-technology. As a result, A.E. Feldman, says legal jobs are opening up for professionals with expertise in intellectual property (IP), including IP strategic counseling, comprehensive IP due diligence work, as well as patent and trademark acquisition/infringement. Firms are also looking for attorneys with expertise in environmental regulation and compliance, carbon finance and renewable energy.
An increasing number of law firms are eyeing opportunity in green-tech startups - companies that are developing environmentally friendly technology and products ranging from solar panels to energy-efficient fluorescent bulbs to bioengineered molecules that excrete biofuel, reports Law.com. The report states that investment in the sector is expected to reach $8.7 billion by 2009, citing the Cleantech Venture Network.
Law.com quotes Foley & Lardner patent attorney Stephen Maebius as saying, “There’s a lot of money flowing into clean tech, and companies are really aggressively pursuing their IP objectives. In many of these companies, the IP budget is bigger than their corporate budget.”
There is also growing demand for legal advice on environmental law from clients such as developers, venture capitalists, and even state and local agencies seeking good environmental counsel to avoid costly litigation, according to an Environmental Law Forum at the University of Virginia.
McGuireWoods recently announced the firm is launching a new energy policy practice. The energy group will combine the efforts of McGuireWoods and its public policy arm, McGuireWoods Consulting. It will focus on counseling clients in constructing legal, policy, and business strategies in connection with issues such as energy generation, renewable energy, portfolio standards, climate change policy, carbon regulation, and other types of environmental regulation and compliance.
“The need for a strong and sensible national energy policy has never been more apparent,” said McGuireWoods Chairman Richard Cullen. Cullen goes on to say that the Energy Policy Group will tackle the challenges that Americans will face in the next decade as they deal with new laws and policies involving energy.
McGuireWoods says the practice will initially be staffed with 12 to 15 partners and consultants from other practices, such as the environmental, project finance, and energy groups.
Morrison & Foerster, Knobbe Martens, Cooley Godward Kronish, Foley & Lardner, Heller Ehrman, Latham & Watkins, and Morgan, Lewis & Bockius are other firms now catering to companies and venture firms that have moved into the clean-tech sector, according to Law.com.
Right now, A.E. Feldman is one step ahead of the latest developments in renewable energy and green technology. To learn more about these issues or inquire about existing and future job opportunities in this sector, the lines of communication are open. Contact the Mitch Feldman, President of A.E. Feldman, and the firm’s cutting edge energy or legal recruiting teams here.
