Cooley Godward Kronish
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Cooley Godward Kronish LLP ("Cooley") is a nationally-recognized law firm that represents innovative entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, and emerging growth companies in all major technology fields. The 550 attorney firm is headquartered in Silicon Valley's Palo Alto with offices in other major technology hubs around the country, including New York, San Francisco, San Diego, Broomfield, Colorado (near Boulder/Denver), Reston, Virginia (in northern Virginia) and Washington, D.C.
Cooley's roots run deep in the history of Silicon Valley and the technology industry. In 1959, the firm formed Draper, Gaither and Anderson, the first institutional venture capital limited partnership in the nation. Cooley also established its prominence in the field of information technology in the 1950s when it formed Raychem and National Semiconductor (one of the original chip companies that gave "Silicon Valley" its name). In the 1980s, Cooley took both Genentech and Amgen public, positioning the firm as a leader in the emerging biotechnology sector. One of iconic firms of the high tech boom, Cooley represented over 230 companies in public offerings during the 1990s, raising more than $25 billion.
Today Cooley combines a leading technology transactional practice handling venture capital, public securities, mergers & acquisitions and licensing work with expertise in intellectual property and complex litigation. The firm is particularly strong in the representation of emerging companies, ranking #2 nationally in company-side IPOs from 2000 through 2005 (IPO Vital Signs). Cooley's clients include, among others, the following technology mainstays:
- Adobe Systems
- Agilent Technologies
- Applied Materials
- Cisco Systems
- eBay
- Gateway, Inc.
- McAfee
- NVIDIA Corporation
- QUALCOMM
- Quest Software
- Siebel Systems (acquired by Oracle Corporation)
- TiVo
In addition, Cooley has the premier life science practice in the country, with more life science VC deals since 2002 (Venture Capital Analyst) and life science IPOs since 2002 (IPO Vital Signs) than any other law firm. The firm has represented nearly 30 percent of the companies on the NASDAQ Biotechnology and BioCentury 100 Indices and more than half of the companies on the AMEX Biotech Index.
Cooley is often ranked among the top law firms for attorney satisfaction and pro bono work. The firm is ranked #5 on the Vault's Best 20 Firms to Work For list.
Like all Silicon Valley-based law firms, Cooley was hit hard by the bursting of the Internet bubble and had to institute multiple reductions in force. While Cooley survived the downturn (unlike competitor Brobeck, Phleger & Harrison), the firm was for a time hindered in size and reputation by the lay-offs. That said, Cooley's turnaround seemed complete when the firm was named to The American Lawyer's 2005 “A List,” the publication’s annual ranking of “the best of the best” among the nation's top law firms.
On October 1, 2006, Cooley Godward LLP merged with New York law firm Kronish Lieb Weiner & Hellman LLP, a 110-lawyer litigation boutique focused on bankruptcy, tax, and complex commercial litigation to create the new Cooley Godward Kronish LLP.
