Cooley Godward Kronish Elects 13 New Partners

PALO ALTO, CA -- (MARKET WIRE) -- November 29, 2006 -- Cooley Godward Kronish LLP today announced that it has elected 13 associates to join the Firm's partnership, effective January 1, 2007. The new partners are Maureen P. Alger, Nicole C. Brookshire, Matthew D. Brown, Ethan E. Christensen, Nathan K. Cummings, Paul E. Gross, Jason L. Kent, Kenneth J. Krisko, Mark C. Looney, Brian E. Mitchell, Benjamin D. Pierson, Seth A. Rafkin and Wayne O. Stacy.

"These 13 individuals have made significant contributions to the Firm, our clients and our communities, and it is a privilege to announce their elevation to partnership," said Stephen C. Neal, Chairman and CEO of Cooley Godward Kronish. "Each new partner has developed superior legal skills, a deep commitment to their clients and a collegiality with fellow attorneys and staff -- all important hallmarks of Cooley's partnership -- and we look forward to their continued leadership and success."

Maureen P. Alger is a litigation attorney in the Firm's Palo Alto, CA office. In her role as the Firm's pro bono counsel, Ms. Alger has been responsible for the development and management of the pro bono practice firmwide. Her practice also includes representing pro bono clients in a wide variety of substantive areas including asylum, guardianship, landlord-tenant, civil rights, employment discrimination and general litigation. Ms. Alger received a J.D. from Columbia University School of Law, where she served as an editor for the Columbia Law Review. She received a B.A. degree with high honors from the University of California at Berkeley and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.

Nicole C. Brookshire is a business attorney in the Firm's Palo Alto, CA office. She practices corporate and securities law with an emphasis on the representation of public and private companies in a variety of corporate and securities transactions, including venture capital financings, mergers and acquisitions and public offerings. Ms. Brookshire received a J.D. from Stanford Law School in 1997, graduating with distinction. She received her B.A. in Religious Studies from Carleton College in 1992, magna cum laude and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.

Matthew D. Brown is a litigation attorney in the Firm's San Francisco, CA office. His practice includes complex contract and commercial disputes, intellectual property, Internet-related issues, and white-collar criminal defense. Mr. Brown received a J.D., cum laude, from Harvard Law School in 1998. He received an A.B. in Philosophy from Cornell University, where he graduated with distinction and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.

Ethan E. Christensen is a business attorney in the Firm's San Diego, CA office. His practice includes general business and corporate representation, with particular emphasis on public offerings, emerging and public company representation, venture financing transactions and mergers and acquisitions. Mr. Christensen received a J.D. in 1998 from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law (Boalt Hall), where he served on the staff of the Boalt Technology Law Journal. In 1995, he received a B.S. in electrical and computer engineering from Brigham Young University.

Nathan K. Cummings is a litigation attorney in the Firm's Reston, VA office. His practice focuses on intellectual property litigation, with a particular emphasis on patent litigation. Mr. Cummings earned a J.D., and a post-graduate LL.M. in International and Comparative Law, from Duke University in 1997 magna cum laude. During law school, he was a senior law review editor of Law & Contemporary Problems, and studied international law in Brussels, Belgium. He earned a B.S. in Electrical and Computer Engineering on an honors curriculum from Brigham Young University in 1990 magna cum laude.

Paul E. Gross is a business attorney in the Firm's Broomfield, CO office. His practice focuses on the representation of public and private companies in a variety of corporate and securities transactions including venture capital financings, private placements, mergers and acquisitions and public offerings. His practice also includes the formation and representation of venture capital partnerships. Mr. Gross received a J.D. in 1998 from the University of California, Davis School of Law where he was elected to the Order of the Coif and was a member of the University of California, Davis Law Review. He received a B.S. in 1987 from the United States Naval Academy, where he graduated with merit.

Jason L. Kent is a business attorney in the Firm's San Diego, CA office. His practice focuses on the representation of technology companies, from start-ups to publicly traded corporations, in a wide range of corporate and securities matters. He also has extensive experience representing venture capital funds and investment banking firms. Mr. Kent received his J.D., with distinction, from Stanford Law School in 1998, where he was a member of the Order of the Coif. In 1995 he graduated summa cum laude from Claremont McKenna College, earning his B.A. in Economics and Accounting.

Kenneth J. Krisko is a business attorney in the Firm's Reston, VA office. His practice focuses on the representation of public and private life sciences companies in a broad range of commercial and corporate finance matters. Mr. Krisko received a J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1995, where he was a member of the Virginia Law Review. Mr. Krisko received a B.S. in Aerospace and Ocean Engineering from Virginia Tech in 1987.

Mark C. Looney is a business attorney in the Firm's Reston, VA office. His practice includes representing major developers and national, regional and local companies in all areas of land use, including office, retail, industrial, mixed-use, residential, telecommunications, hotel and large planned community projects. Mr. Looney received his J.D., cum laude, from the George Mason University School of Law and received a Bachelor of Arts degree from James Madison University, with majors in Political Science and Public Administration.

Brian E. Mitchell is a litigation attorney in the Firm's San Francisco, CA office. His practice focuses on intellectual property litigation, with a particular emphasis on patent litigation. Mr. Mitchell graduated cum laude from the University of San Francisco School of Law in 1997. While at the University of San Francisco, he was an editor of the U.S.F. Law Review and the U.S.F. Intellectual Property Law Bulletin. He received his B.S. degree, cum laude, in Chemistry in 1992.

Benjamin D. Pierson is a business attorney in the Firm's New York office. He practices corporate law, with an emphasis on the formation, financing, structuring and general representation of joint ventures which acquire, finance and develop real estate in the United States, the Caribbean and Latin America, and other structured real estate investments, including the representation of promoters, institutional investors, structured lenders and other investors in real estate-related assets. Mr. Pierson received a J.D., magna cum laude, from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1996, where he served as an editor of the Law Review, and a B.A., cum laude, in Government from St. Lawrence University in 1990.

Seth A. Rafkin is a litigation attorney in the Firm's San Diego, CA office. His practice focuses on employment and business litigation. Mr. Rafkin received his J.D. in 1998 from the University of California, Davis School of Law, where he was elected to the Order of the Coif. He earned a B.A. in Political Science from Humboldt State University.

Wayne O. Stacy is a litigation attorney in the Firm's Broomfield, CO office. His practice focuses on patent litigation with particular emphasis on software patent litigation. Mr. Stacy received his law degree, with high honors, from The George Washington University School of Law in Washington, D.C., where he was elected to the Order of the Coif and served on Law Review. He received his B.S. degree, cum laude, in Computer Engineering from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas.

About Cooley Godward Kronish LLP

Cooley Godward Kronish's 580 attorneys have an entrepreneurial spirit and deep, substantive experience and are committed to solving clients' most challenging legal matters. From small companies with big ideas to international enterprises with diverse legal needs, Cooley Godward Kronish has the breadth of legal resources to enable companies of all sizes to seize opportunities in today's global marketplace. The firm represents clients across a broad array of dynamic industry sectors, including technology, life sciences, financial services, retail and energy.

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