The Editor interviews Gayle Rosenstein Klein , Principal in the New York Office of McKool Smith, PC , a national commercial litigation and intellectual property law firm with offices in Dallas, Austin, Marshall, New York and Washington, DC. Ms. Klein is an experienced courtroom lawyer who regularly handles litigation involving non-compete agreements and trade secret claims in state and federal courts throughout the United States.
Editor: You recently joined the New York office of McKool Smith after working as a commercial litigator at a top 10 international, full-service firm. What made you decide to go with a boutique that only recently entered the New York market?
Klein: I married a practice group leader at my former firm, and wanted to continue to develop my practice without any appearance that my successes were the result of my marriage. Having begun my career in Dallas, I was familiar with McKool Smith and knew the firm had excellent trial lawyers with the same high-caliber practice that I enjoyed at my former firm. I'm also excited about the flexibility we have as a boutique litigation firm. I now have more opportunity to do plaintiff's work, offer creative fee arrangements, and take on matters where I would have had a conflict at my former firm. A lot of people know McKool Smith as patent litigation experts, but the firm started as a commercial litigation firm, and it has top-notch commercial litigators. Our growth in New York reflects a firmwide effort to fill what we believe is a growing client need.
Editor: Why do you think that there is a growing client need for boutique litigators in New York?
Klein: As the economy continues on its bumpy ride, we are experiencing a rise in commercial disputes, particularly those between companies where sophisticated deals have gone sour, as well as litigation over non-competes, trade secrets, and confidential information. On any given day, I spend time dealing with issues relating to either employee raiding or some other alleged misappropriation of trade secrets. These are important issues for blue-chip clients, but the fact is that many large firms can't accept these cases because of conflicts.
