The logo of law firm Ropes & Gray LLP is seen outside of their office in Washington, D.C., U.S., August 31, 2020. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly
(Reuters) – A former senior health privacy counsel at Apple Inc has rejoined her old firm, Ropes & Gray, after a more-than-two-year stint at the tech giant.
Leslie Thornton is now counsel in Ropes & Gray’s health care practice, based in its San Francisco office. The move marks a return for Thornton, who joined Ropes & Gray as an associate after graduating from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law in 2012.
“She brings the combination of law firm and in-house perspectives to health care, digital health, biomedical research, and technology clients,” said Ropes & Gray partner Timothy McCrystal, co-chair of the firm’s health care practice. “We are thrilled to welcome her back to the team.”
Ropes & Gray has counted Apple as a client, representing the company in patent infringement actions.
In addition to her J.D., Thorton has a Ph.D. in public health from Johns Hopkins University. She joined Apple in 2019 and supported its health research initiatives. That included working with engineering and business teams to devise privacy solutions for products and services.
Thornton is the latest addition to Ropes & Gray’s health care practice, which has welcomed two California-based lawyers so far in 2021. Partner Torrey McClary and counsel Ranee Adipat came on board from King & Spalding.
“No health care practice matches its depth of industry expertise,” Thorton said in statement on her move to Ropes & Gray.
Health care, life sciences and data privacy have proven to be bright spots for law firms amid the pandemic, with client demand fueling hires in transactional and regulatory practices.
