FisherBroyles Adds Another Faegre Drinker Partner

By James Boyle
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Law360 (March 24, 2021, 4:13 PM EDT) --
Christopher W. Boyle
FisherBroyles LLP, a law firm using an exclusively virtual business model, has recruited another partner from Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP.

Christopher Boyle is the seventh attorney to join FisherBroyles LLP from Faegre Drinker in the past two months. Boyle joins the Philadelphia office as a partner in its environmental, health and safety group. FisherBroyles' attorneys all work virtually, a strategy that reduces overhead and increases revenue. The approach is attracting more lawyers to the firm, according to managing partner Michael Pierson.

"We have a superior platform when it comes to compensation," Pierson told Law360 Pulse on Wednesday. "We are well positioned to attract partners at the highest levels of the profession who want to earn substantially more. It doesn't make sense to practice in other models where the overhead costs are so large."

Boyle declined to comment and directed reporters to speak with Pierson.

Boyle previously served as chair of Faegre Drinker's environment and energy practice group. His practice includes evaluating environmental liabilities for corporate, real estate and financing transactions, and performing environmental due diligence.

Boyle is the latest lawyer to be drawn to FisherBroyles' platform, which includes hundreds of attorneys in 23 regions in the U.S. and London. In February, six attorneys from Faegre Drinker also joined FisherBroyles, with three partners going to the firms' Chicago office.

Pierson said Boyle "has a ton of experience with regulatory counseling and crisis management. He is a fabulous addition to the environmental practice."

Before receiving his law degree from Villanova University School of Law in 1991, Boyle was a civil engineer with more than 10 years' experience in construction, engineering and contract administration for civil engineering projects. Boyle is licensed to practice law in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and he is a member of the American Society for Testing and Materials Committee E-50 on Environmental Assessments.

Pierson told Law360 Pulse that the coronavirus pandemic had been a major factor in making FisherBroyles one of the top 10 hiring firms in the United States in 2020. That momentum has continued into the first quarter of 2021.

"We are experiencing aggressive growth because of the COVID-19 pandemic," Pierson said. "Everyone is working remotely, and the notion of remote work has been demystified. They are much more comfortable with the idea."

--Editing by Peter Rozovsky.

Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated the number of Faegre Drinker partners joining FisherBroyles. The error has been corrected.

For a reprint of this article, please contact reprints@law360.com.

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