Israel Desks Under the Spotlight – Pillsbury’s Ari Berman

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In this new weekly section, we profile the driving force behind Israel Desks firms, as we catch up with the prominent leaders of the global law firms with Israel Desks: This week – Ari Berman of Pillsbury’s Israel Practice Group.

You have had an Israel Desk and team for some time, what was the driving force behind that and how does it fit in with the firm’s overall strategy and focus?

I have been working with Israeli clients for more than a decade, starting with Teva Pharmaceuticals (whom I’m proud to represent to this day). On a personal level the driving force is my family’s connection and commitment to Israel. Professionally, Pillsbury is one of the leading U.S. law firms with respect to the technology, life sciences, and energy industries. Our Israel Practice leverages Pillsbury’s deep industry expertise, including our significant Silicon Valley presence and overall geographic footprint. Notably, our large Washington DC office boasts a deep bench of regulatory and public policy lawyers, which provides important value to Israeli companies expanding their commercial operations into the U.S. Overall, our Israel Practice fits naturally within the firm’s overall strategy and focus, building on Pillsbury’s existing strengths.

What are the challenges that you face as you look to expand and grow the Israel Desk? How do you manage them?
Our challenges are comment to those of our peer firms, namely maintaining a physical presence in Israel and continuing to offer competitive fee structures. Due to Pillsbury’s strong start-up practice, we are better able than most to be creatively aggressive in working with emerging companies. It’s in our blood and, unlike many other large U.S. law firms, we can be more nimble in collaborating with Israeli hi-tech companies as they navigate the U.S. legal and regulatory landscape.
What kind of strategies, mindset or understanding are required for the head of Israeli desk?

I believe that it starts with a deep love of and commitment to Israel, including an understanding of Israel’s culture and traditions. Israeli companies are sophisticated in avoiding lawyers who “talk the talk” but don’t “walk the walk” – i.e., Israelis are good judges of character. As Head of our Israel Practice, I naturally work across practice groups – this is a different mindset and skill than my usual work as a litigator. Whether IP lawyers in California, regulatory lawyers in Washington DC, or renewable energy lawyers in NY, I need to ensure that each of them understands the Israeli mentality and our clients’ goals. Fortunately, I’m blessed to be at a firm with a truly collaborative culture, which makes it easy to work as a team – even across multiple geographies and disciplines.

What industries or areas do you look to emphasize and develop in the coming year(s), with regards to your Israel Desk?
Pillsbury is a full-service firm spanning myriad industries. Having said that, we have focused our Israel Practice marketing efforts on leveraging our relatively unique ability to combine top-notch technology (including digital assets and fintech) and renewable energy (including energy transition and decarbonization) practices with a robust Washington DC-based regulatory practice. As the U.S. continues to expand its regulatory footprint, and place additional burdens on emerging companies, it has become essential to partner with a firm such as Pillsbury to navigate these issues – and there aren’t many who can couple industry and subject matter expertise as well as Pillsbury.

Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP

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