Updated 4:29 p.m.
Maybe Jerold Oshinsky just doesn't like seeing his name on a firm's letterhead? Just 10 months after he teamed with Scott Gilbert to launch a Southern California office for their firm Gilbert Oshinsky, Oshinsky has jumped to Jenner & Block.
Prior to his time with Gilbert, Oshinsky had been a name partner at Dickstein Shapiro Morin & Oshinsky, now known as Dickstein Shapiro.
Oshinsky, who represents policyholders in various industries, said he left Gilbert Oshinsky to join a firm with a bigger national presence, The National Law Journal reported yesterday.
"Scott and I are good friends and will continue to be good friends," he said. But the opportunity to work at Jenner & Block, which opened its first California office in April, was too great, he said. Oshinsky, who has worked in Gilbert’s Santa Barbara, Calif. office since October, starts at Jenner & Block’s Los Angeles office on Aug. 24.
In March, Gilbert Oshinsky doubled its California presence with the hire of another Los Angeles attorney, Vered Yakovee, a sole practitioner in Marina del Rey, Calif. But Yakovee left Gilbert Oshinsky, where she was of counsel, earlier this month.
"I was the only lawyer in that firm in California after Vered decided to leave," Oshinsky said.
With the departure of Oshinsky, Gilbert Oshinsky will now be simply known as Gilbert LLP. Prior to Oshinsky’s joining, the firm had gone by Gilbert Randolph until Oshinsky bumped Jerome Randolph off the letterhead.
Update: In a letter to clients today, Gilbert says that Oshinsky's departure, which he says was amicable, was driven in part by the distance between the firm's California and Washington offices.
"As you know, Jerry and I go way back; indeed, we have three decades of history together, most of it making history at different law firms," Gilbert says in his letter. "Here, notwithstanding our mutual best efforts, the physical distance between Jerry's office on the West Coast and our DC headquarters has proven to be too significant a practical obstacle to Jerry's effective integration into the firm, on both professional and cultural levels."
Gilbert adds that he does not expect Oshinsky's leaving to have "a material impact on [the firm's] practice."
Here is Gilbert's letter:
August 20, 2009
Dear Clients and Colleagues:
I am writing to share some news with you. As indicated in the linked press release, Jerry Oshinsky will be leaving the firm to join the Los Angeles office of Jenner & Block. Going forward, our firm name will be Gilbert LLP, and we will continue to provide services to all of our clients across the country from our headquarters in Washington, DC.
As you know, Jerry and I go way back; indeed, we have three decades of history together, most of it making history at different law firms. Here, notwithstanding our mutual best efforts, the physical distance between Jerry's office on the West Coast and our DC headquarters has proven to be too significant a practical obstacle to Jerry's effective integration into the firm, on both professional and cultural levels.
Given Jerry's relatively short tenure here, his departure will not have a material impact on our practice. Gilbert LLP continues to diversify its practice and to grow. We still are the preeminent policyholder boutique in the country on complex insurance issues, including those involving mass tort, food liability, environmental liability, financial management, d&o coverage, first party property, professional liability and other claims-made and CGL coverage. We also continue to broaden our plaintiff-oriented complex litigation practice. Among other matters, we currently are handling the pursuit of mortgage fraud claims on behalf of a major financial institution, a trade-secret misappropriation claim against international companies on behalf of a U.S.-based corporation, and construction defect claims against numerous defendants on behalf of a major hotel developer.
In order to continue to serve our clients appropriately, we have been engaged in a careful and selective attorney hiring program. We already have added an extremely talented of-counsel and mid-level associate, and this fall we will be joined by our returning insurance litigation partner Barry Buchman and three other terrific lawyers, coming to us from a major law firm, a federal appellate clerkship and law school, respectively.
Although Jerry and we are disappointed that we our long-distance relationship didn't work effectively, we have a lot to be excited about. Gilbert LLP will continue to strive to maintain its reputation for responsiveness, initiative and creativity, while concentrating on obtaining for our clients as quickly as possible what they come here for: results.
With best regards,
Scott
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