Munck Wilson Mandala Opens Los Angeles Office; Welcomes Gary Hecker and Four Additional Attorneys
Dallas, TX, Jan. 2, 2019 —– Law Firm Munck Wilson Mandala has added five attorneys from an IP law boutique in Los Angeles, California led by Gary Hecker. The addition of Hecker and his team gives MWM close to 40 registered patent attorneys and nearly 70 attorneys in four offices—three in Texas and one located in the heart of “Silicon Beach”—the third largest tech hub in the country.
“We were very impressed with Gary’s track record in IP and entertainment law and saw a great opportunity in Silicon Beach,” said managing partner William A. Munck. “More than 500 tech start-up companies have opened offices in that region and there is a world of opportunity to help clients with their legal needs. MWM will now be in three of the fastest growing technology cities in the U.S.—Dallas, Austin and L.A.”
In 2018, the Dallas Business Journal listed MWM as the second largest patent law firm in North Texas. Established in the late ‘90s, MWM has grown by focusing on legal services needed by technology clients. This focus has paid off as North Texas has grown into a prosperous business location for tech companies and as more companies are looking to bolster their businesses through tech mergers and acquisitions.
With this acquisition, MWM now has a West Coast office and adds entertainment law to its list of legal services. MWM’s other legal practices include corporate, securities, mergers and acquisitions, intellectual property procurement and protection, brand protection, banking and finance, labor and employment, cybersecurity, and complex commercial and business litigation. The firm is known for helping a wide variety of clients from garage start-ups to Fortune 50 technology companies.
“We complement each other,” said Hecker about joining the MWM team. “MWM has built an impressive, technology-focused law firm with outstanding IP, litigation, corporate and employment practice groups. We have built a strong IP and entertainment practice in our core area of Silicon Beach. Combining our law practices gives us outstanding advantages geographically and brings new services that we want to offer to our clients, including many who have business operations in Texas.”
Hecker brings more than 35 years of legal experience in technology and entertainment law. He has represented well-known leaders in both areas, including Steve Jobs, Steven Spielberg, Mark Burnett and Maria Shriver. He testified twice on behalf of Apple Computer, Inc. before the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations for the Committee on Energy and Commerce. In addition to representing many of the nation’s leading technology companies in patent, trademark and copyright law, Hecker has represented celebrities such as Kim Kardashian, Sharon Stone and Ray Liotta in lawsuits related to unlawful use of their likeness and copyright protection. Hecker received his J.D. from the University of San Diego School of Law and worked as an engineer before beginning his legal practice. He founded his firm in the late ‘80s.
The other L.A. attorneys joining MWM include Frank Weyer, James Slominski, Chase Covello, and J.D. Sadighi. Weyer is a registered patent attorney who received his J.D. from the University of California at Berkeley and holds a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology. He completed a joint Ph.D. program between the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution on underwater robotics. Slominski is a registered patent attorney who worked as an engineer with General Dynamics prior to his law career and has a master’s in aerospace engineering from San Diego State University. He received his J.D. from Arizona State University.
Covello has a computer background with a master’s degree in computer science and programming languages from the University of California at Los Angeles. He received his J.D. from Boston University School of Law. Sadighi was born and raised in London, England. He received his J.D. from Pepperdine University School of Law where he also earned an M.B.A. from Pepperdine’s Graziadio School of Business and Management.
Munck Wilson Mandala is a technology-focused law firm with offices in Dallas, Austin and Marshall, Texas, and Los Angeles, California. The firm offers full-service counsel in the areas of intellectual property litigation, complex commercial litigation, intellectual property portfolio development, corporate transactions and securities, and employment law. Munck Wilson Mandala represents clients from start-ups to Fortune 50 companies. Learn more about the firm at http://www.munckwilson.com.
