Orrick announced today that Geoff Willard has joined the firm’s Technology Companies Group as a partner in Washington, D.C.  With Geoff’s addition, we have added over a dozen partners to our global Technology Companies team since 2016. He joins Orrick from Cooley.

Geoff is a strategic advisor to technology and other growth companies, helping clients execute a wide-range of corporate transactions from venture capital and growth equity investments to M&A and joint ventures. In addition to his corporate transactional practice, Geoff advises clients on their corporate governance, formation and structuring matters, counsels clients on executive compensation and equity incentive matters, and provides strategic advice on a variety of issues faced by fast-growing enterprises. He also acts for venture capital, growth equity, corporate and strategic investors, as well as private equity sponsors. Geoff’s experience spans the telecoms, software, edtech, fintech, internet, ecommerce, retail, digital media, government services, life sciences, cleantech and manufacturing spaces in markets throughout the U.S. and globally.

“We’re excited to grow our tech capabilities in Washington, D.C., and be part of Orrick’s extraordinary global platform for tech companies,” said Kyle Drefke, Orrick’s Washington, D.C., office leader. “The D.C. tech ecosystem is incredibly vibrant, and we’re thrilled to welcome Geoff and to connect this market with our global practice.”

“Geoff has an exciting portfolio of startup, growth and later-stage company clients and a powerful network of venture capital relationships,” said Amanda Galton, co-leader of Orrick’s global Technology Companies Group with Stephen Venuto. “We’re thrilled to work with him to serve this market.”

“Orrick is a tech leader with a truly global and comprehensive platform and a distinctive one-team approach,” said Geoff. “I’m very excited to help build the firm’s platform in the greater D.C. market and the East Coast.”

Geoff’s arrival follows the additions to Orrick’s global Technology Companies team earlier this year of Ellen Ehrenpreis in Silicon Valley and Ali Ramadan in London. Orrick has more than 150 lawyers dedicated to technology companies in more than 20 markets worldwide.

In Q1 2018, Orrick was the #3 most active venture capital law firm globally  (including #1 for Europe) (PitchBook).