Dentons intellectual property leader takes 15-lawyer team to BCLP

By David Thomas

(Reuters) - Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner on Tuesday said it has picked up a 15-lawyer team from Dentons, including the founder and leader of its global intellectual property and technology group, Song Jung.

Jung will be global chair of BCLP's patent practice. He will work from the firm's Washington, D.C., office with the incoming IP group, which includes partners Mark Kresloff, Bumrae Cho, Yong Choi, Tyler Goodwyn and Bruce Vance.

Jung said all of his clients are coming with him to the firm, including LG Corp, a longtime client.

DLA Piper in March hired away a 30-lawyer patent team from Dentons whose past clients have included iPhone maker Apple Inc and home appliances maker Whirlpool Corp.

A Dentons spokesperson said the firm "will soon welcome several high profile new partners to this team as we continue our momentum towards a record year."

Earlier in his career Jung was a key partner in McKenna Long & Aldridge's successful bid to open an office in South Korea after the country agreed to ease restrictions on foreign lawyers. Those restrictions were relaxed as part of the free trade agreements South Korea adopted in 2011 with both the United States and the European Union.

McKenna Long merged with Dentons US in 2015. The firm's chairman, Jeff Haidet, became the chairman of Dentons US following the merger. Haidet left Dentons in May for BCLP.

Jung said he has helped build Dentons' patent teams worldwide, including hiring its first patent lawyer in Europe.

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