Freshfields has recruited partners from Cooley and Goodwin Procter in Silicon Valley as it continues to build up its West Coast practice.

Joining the Magic Circle UK firm from Cooley is capital markets partner Calise Cheng in a move the firm said reinforces its position as "the premier law firm for tech clients".

The firm has also secured former Uber compensation and benefits counsel Heather Brookfield from Goodwin.

The pair represent Freshfields’ fifth and sixth partner-level lateral hires in California this year, as it seeks to build on the office it launched in 2020.

Cheng joins the UK firm after seven years as a partner at Cooley, having started her career at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich and Rosati.

Her capital markets work has included advising on IPOs and direct listings for Allbirds, Asana, Freshworks, Rubrik, Splunk and Zoom.

US managing partner and US head of capital markets Sarah Solum said: "Calise has led numerous IPOs, direct listings and other transactions for category-defining companies in the technology sector. I have had the opportunity to work across the table from her on numerous fast-paced and complicated deals. I hold her in the highest regard.”

Brookfield’s practice, meanwhile, focuses on the representation of companies in their compensation and employee benefits matters, including advising on M&A, IPOs, and other capital markets transactions. She also advises on the design, drafting, and administration of equity-based compensation programmes.

She joined Goodwin in 2021 from Uber, where she spent nearly two years as a compensation and benefits counsel.

Lori Goodman, co-head of US employee benefits & executive compensation, said her "seniority and depth of experience is a huge asset to our team". She added: “The diversity of her client work and her deep expertise in the complicated laws that govern the practice make her a dynamic addition to our team and the partnership as a whole.”

The duo’s arrival follows a series of hires in Silicon Valley this year. In April, it picked up Covington & Burling M&A partner Danny Kwon, in August private capital partner Eva Mak joined from Kirkland & Ellis, and in September Nicole Cadman, former general counsel at startup accelerator Y Combinator, joined as a corporate partner specialising in advising emerging companies.

Freshfields completed the quartet of hires earlier this month when capital markets specialist Phillip Stoup moved across from Latham & Watkins.

Freshfields, along with Magic Circle rivals A&O Shearman, Clifford Chance, and Linklaters, has been prioritising US growth in recent years.

According to publicly available data tracked by Pirical, its US headcount has increased by 24% in the past 12 months to 338 lawyers and 99 partners.