Power Circuit

Washington’s legal community has been buzzing about Howrey this week, which continues to hemorrhage lawyers amid reports that the law firm Winston & Strawn—once thought to be a possible merger partner—has extended offers to only 75 percent of Howrey’s partnership.

The latest defection in Howrey’s DC office is patent-litigation partner Jennifer Dzwonczyk, who joined Venable this week. She tells Washingtonian.com that friends at Venable have been trying to get her to join them for years, and the recent turmoil at Howrey finally convinced her to make the move. As for the future of her former firm—which many industry observers say could dissolve—Dzwonczyk says, “I don’t think I should or can speculate. I wish them the best.”

Former legislators are settling into private practice. Former Democratic senator from Indiana Evan Bayh joined McGuireWoods as a partner in the firm’s Washington office. Bayh retired from the Senate last February. And former Michigan Republican representative Peter Hoekstra has joined Dickstein Shapiro as a senior adviser. Because he was running for Michigan governor, Hoekstra did not seek reelection to Congress. He lost the Republican primary last year.

A number of tax partners have changed firms. Baker Hostetler welcomed James Mastracchio from Caplin & Drysdale. At Baker, Mastracchio will cochair the nationwide tax-controversy practice. Craig Sharon, who’s retiring from the Internal Revenue Service, will join Bingham McCutchen Monday. Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton has added Elias Hinckley to its tax group from Venable. Thomas Zehnle jumped from Bryan Cave to Miller & Chevalier, where he belongs to the tax and white-collar-investigations practices.

Ted Segal is the latest example of partners leaving large international firms for smaller firms with the lower hourly rates desired by clients. Segal left DLA Piper, where he practiced for 25 years, to become chair of the mergers-and-acquisitions practice at Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young.

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