Manatt continues Chicago hiring with McDermott partner

(Reuters) - Manatt, Phelps & Phillips said on Thursday it has picked up a veteran health care and litigation partner in Chicago, marking the firm's third partner hire in the Windy City in the past two months.

Megan Thibert-Ind joins Los Angeles-founded Manatt from McDermott Will & Emery. Her work focuses on helping health care stakeholders handle business controversies, contractual and regulatory disputes and challenges following acquisitions, Manatt said in announcing her hire.

Donna Wilson, the firm's CEO and managing partner, in a statement touted Thibert-Ind's "business-centric mindset and ability to deftly handle sophisticated litigation matters."

Wilson also said Manatt's Chicago office is "rapidly growing." The firm hired former Consumer Financial Protection Bureau official Bryan Schneider in Chicago in August, and Stephen Libowsky, who previously led Dentons' U.S. antitrust practice, joined last month.

The firm launched in Chicago in 2016 and moved into a bigger office space in 2018, according to its website. Manatt has 12 lawyers and 11 consultants in the city, according to a firm representative.

Manatt has increasingly branded itself as a professional services firm that integrates legal and consulting offerings.

Manatt is far from the only law firm to eye the Chicago market. Cooley, Murphy & McGonigle, Venable and Dickinson Wright are among the firms that have opened new offices there in the past year.

Major law firms have also recently recruited more lawyers such as Thibert-Ind, which serves health care clients, as demand remains high.

Thibert-Ind practiced for 15 years at McDermott before making the move to Manatt, according to her LinkedIn page.

"We thank Megan for her contributions to McDermott and look forward to continued friendship and collaboration,” a McDermott representative said.

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