Fenwick has opened an office in Boston with the hire of a prominent three-partner IP team from Cooley.

Alongside Drs Matthew Pavao, Heidi Erlacher and Chen Chen, Fenwick is also adding more than 20 professionals, 14 of whom will be based in Boston. The hires bolster Fenwick’s capabilities in advising life sciences and technology companies – core areas of focus for the firm.

Pavao and Erlacher both joined Cooley in Boston from Mintz Levin in 2014, with Pavao going on to serve as chair of Cooley’s global patent prosecution practice while Erlacher took up the role of partner-in-charge of the Boston office in 2016.

“We are very excited to have found a compelling team to establish our new office in an important market for our technology and life science focus,” said Richard Dickson, Fenwick’s chair. “We’ve been active in this market for a long time and have been waiting to find the right opportunity to deepen our bench and presence.”

The trio bring experience advising clients across the life sciences sector, with a focus on intellectual property strategy and early-stage growth. Fenwick said it had long served clients in the Boston area, including venture capital firm MRL Ventures and life sciences companies such as Devoted Health, Morphic and Stoke Therapeutics.

Erlacher highlighted the firm’s ability to support clients through the full life cycle of development, noting: “Clients in this industry aren’t just developing products; they’re advancing science. That requires a legal partner who understands the context and cadence of R&D, clinical development and funding.”

Stefano Quintini, co-lead of Fenwick’s Life Sciences group, described the new arrivals as a “significant” addition to the practice. “Their combined expertise allows us to guide clients through critical IP decisions, secure stronger patent protection, and develop strategies that turn intellectual property into competitive advantage.”

The Boston office adds to Fenwick’s network in Mountain View, San Francisco and Santa Monica in California; Seattle; New York; Washington DC; and Boston.

This expansion follows Fenwick’s recent closure of its Shanghai office, its only international location.

Fenwick’s move comes amid a broader trend of major law firms establishing a presence in Boston to capitalise on the city’s technology and life sciences sectors in the past year.

UK Magic Circle firm Freshfields opened in the city in February 2025, focusing on private capital, life sciences and emerging companies. The office is led by private equity M&A lawyer Matthew Goulding, who joined from Latham & Watkins.

In the same month, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett added two partners to the office it opened last September: government and internal investigations partner Zachary Hafer joined from Cooley, and private funds partner Yonatan Levy moved across from Ropes & Gray.

Other firms to have set up shop in the city last year included Paul Hastings and Blank Rome.