Mountain View, Calif. (September 11, 2014) – Fenwick & West announced today that partners Gordy Davidson and Greg Roussel have been named among the top 100 most influential lawyers in California by the Daily Journal. The legal publication’s annual Top 100 list seeks to honor attorneys “doing the most cutting-edge work” and “who have had an impact on an industry or on the larger society.”
“They get results by the sheer force of their intellect and skill and sometimes just by sheer force,” the Daily Journal notes.
A well-known figure in Silicon Valley, former Fenwick chairman Gordy Davidson continued his streak of high profile acquisitions and venture financings this year, representing longtime clients Responsys in its $1.6 billion acquisition by Oracle and Uber in its $1.2 billion Series D financing, which valued Uber at $18.2 billion, one of the highest valuations ever. With clients ranging from start-ups to Fortune 1000 companies, Davidson has worked on more than 50 public offerings and has represented boards of directors, audit committees and executives in numerous special investigations. Most recently, he represented Calico, the Google-backed life sciences company, in a novel scientific collaboration with AbbVie, a global, research-based biopharmaceutical company.
Davidson has been recognized as among the 100 Most Influential Lawyers in America by The National Law Journal and by Chambers USA and Chambers Global for venture capital, capital markets and tax work. Clients described Davidson to Chambers as "a practical, results-oriented lawyer who gets things done" and "an institution," a "leader," a "major player" and "a huge figure" in the Silicon Valley M&A market. One client said, he's "the single best attorney I've ever met." The Daily Journal published a profile of Davidson in conjunction with his recognition.
Over the past year, corporate partner Greg Roussel has worked on more than 30 acquisitions – more than 10 of which were cross-border – including serial acquisition programs for Facebook and Dropbox, both of which he represents as primary outside M&A counsel. Since 2009, Roussel has represented Facebook in approximately 40 acquisitions – including its $2.3 billion acquisition of Oculus VR this year, and over the past two years, he’s taken Dropbox through 13 announced acquisitions.
He was also recognized on the Daily Journal’s Top 100 list in 2012 and has been featured in Business Insider for his work leading Facebook’s $1 billion acquisition of Instagram: “Meet the Superlawyer who Just Clinched Facebook’s Deal to Buy Instagram.” He’s ranked among the top attorneys in the U.S. by The Legal 500, and in a profile published in conjunction with the Top 100 recognition, the Daily Journal calls him the "go-to M&A lawyer in social media."
About Fenwick & West
Fenwick & West provides comprehensive legal services to ground-breaking technology and life sciences companies at every stage of their lifecycle. We craft innovative, cost-effective and practical solutions for established and emerging companies on issues ranging from venture capital, public offerings, joint ventures, M&A and strategic relationships, to intellectual property, litigation and dispute resolution, taxation, antitrust, and employment and labor law. For more than four decades, Fenwick has helped some of the world's most recognized companies become and remain market leaders.