February 28, 2024 (San Diego and Palo Alto, CA) – Procopio Partners Dennis Doucette and Mindy Morton will assume positions on Procopio’s Management Committee effective March 1, having been elected by the partnership. They replace long-serving Partners Marie Burke Kenny and Craig Ramseyer. Dennis is based in Procopio’s Del Mar Heights office. Mindy becomes Procopio’s first Management Committee member to be based outside of San Diego; she is in the firm’s Silicon Valley office.

Both Dennis and Mindy are active leaders in the firm. Dennis has long led the firm’s Business & Technology team; Partner John Cleary will now assume that role. Mindy, an intellectual property litigator, leads the firm’s Health Care practice and the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Committee. Partner Tara Narayanan will assume leadership of the DEI Committee.

“We’re fortunate that two outstanding leaders have agreed to serve the firm on its Management Committee,” said Procopio Managing Partner John D. Alessio. “Procopio’s partners have seen firsthand the leadership Dennis and Mindy have demonstrated in propelling the firm’s growth and success. Both will play a critical role as we continue to focus our efforts on providing superior client service while ensuring a positive and supportive workplace for our attorneys and employees.”

In his legal practice, Dennis helps companies get formed, funded and sold. He focuses on buyers, sellers and investors in mergers, stock and asset purchases, management buyouts, reorganizations and related transactions. Dennis has extensive experience with formations, corporate stock issuances, recapitalizations and reorganizations, stock restriction agreements, officers and directors advice, equity incentives/compensation, securities compliance, higher education law, and corporate governance. He has participated in more than 500 corporate finance transactions, including corporate, securities, mergers and acquisitions and venture financing. Dennis is recognized by Best Lawyers® in Corporate Compliance Law, Corporate Law, and Securities/Capital Markets Law, and by Super Lawyers® in Mergers & Acquisitions Law. He is also is Vice-Chair of the USD School of Law Board of Visitors and the Chief Financial Officer, General Counsel and Board Member of Design Institute of San Diego.

Mindy focuses her practice on high-stakes litigation in the areas of healthcare, trade secrets, technology and internet law. She represents healthcare providers throughout California in civil lawsuits and judicial review hearings. Mindy helps clients resolve disputes involving trade secret, patent, trademark, copyright, computer fraud and other contentious issues. She also litigates cutting-edge cases at the intersection of technology and free speech issues, defending internet companies against defamation, copyright, trademark and related claims on First Amendment, Communications Decency Act (CDA) Section 230, Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) and US SPEECH Act grounds. Mindy defends internet clients accused of violating CIPA and other privacy-related claims. She has been recognized by Super Lawyers® for nearly a decade.

Marie Burke Kenny first joined Management Committee in 2017, and will now resume her leadership of the firm’s Labor & Employment practice, replacing Partner Wendy Tucker. She represents employers in wage and hour class actions and litigation involving wrongful termination, discrimination, harassment, retaliation and unfair competition claims. Based in our Del Mar Heights office, Marie is recognized by Best Lawyers® for Employment Law-Management, Labor Law-Management and Litigation-Labor and Employment, and by Super Lawyers® for Business Litigation: Defense.

Craig Ramseyer was a longtime member of Management Committee, first joining in 2009. Previously the leader of Procopio’s Construction Law team, he counsels clients on general business litigation, as well as construction law and litigation. Located in our Del Mar Heights office, his practice specializes in partnership disputes, alter ego liability and contractual disputes. Craig is recognized for construction law and litigation by Chambers and Partners®, Best Lawyers® and Super Lawyers®. He will remain serving as Procopio’s General Counsel.

John Cleary will replace Dennis as leader of the firm’s Business & Technology team, which is composed of corporate attorneys in the Emerging Growth & Venture Capital, Capital Markets and Securities, and Mergers & Acquisitions and Strategic Joint Ventures practices. John previously served as leader of the team from 2014-2018, and he served on the Firm’s Management Committee from 2018 to 2022. Based in our Del Mar Heights office, John represents a broad range of public and private clients on mergers and acquisitions, as well as on public and private securities transactions, franchise formation and compliance, and general corporate matters. He also represents private equity and other investment firms on matters from structure and formation, to SEC compliance and transactions.

Tara Narayanan will replace Mindy as the leader of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. She counsels clients in establishing, operating and maintaining residential, commercial, and mixed-use common interest real estate developments. Tara has represented developers, builders, owners, and title insurance companies in both state and federal jurisdictions. She is based in our Silicon Valley office.

Remaining on Management Committee are Managing Partner John D. Alessio, who began his third term in that role on January 1; Partners Enrique Hernandez-Pulido, S. Todd Neal, and Xiaofan “Frank” Yang, PhD; and Chief Operating Officer James G. Perkins, PhD.