Shartsis Friese Names Neil Koren Managing Partner
San Francisco, November 1, 2022 – Shartsis Friese LLP is pleased to announce that Neil Koren will become Managing Partner of the firm effective January 1, 2023. Founding Partner Art Shartsis will step down from the Managing Partner role after 47 years at the position, but will continue with the firm as Senior Counsel.
Koren, who joined the firm in 1999, is a senior partner in the firm’s Investment Adviser practice, which is one of the most prominent law firm hedge fund groups in the world. He represents separate account managers and managers of private funds that employ many different investment strategies, including public equity, private equity, venture capital, real estate, and other strategies. He received his J.D., magna cum laude, from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, and a B.A. from the University of Michigan.
“It’s an incredible honor and deeply humbling to be named to this position by my partners,” said Koren. “The firm has never been stronger ‐ we have exceptional lawyers and diverse, elite practice groups. Art is leaving a culture of excellence, openness, and transparency that will serve as the foundation for continued success for years to come.”
“It’s hard to put into words the gratitude I feel towards the people of this firm past and present who have come together over the past almost 50 years to make this firm what it is today,” said Shartsis. “Neil has been a strong leader of the firm for years. He brings a deep commitment to
sustaining the strong culture and commitment to excellence that has characterized our firm. Neil has the management and interpersonal skills to lead the firm and carry on our tradition of transparent and inclusive management.”
Shartsis continued, “I am so proud that we have been able to stay independent and relatively small – the strength of our people and elite practices has made it easy to ‘just say no’ over the years to the constant offers to merge with larger firms. Partners have come to us from larger
firms because they are free to grow their practices here and fulfill their professional goals in a culture that values independence and personal initiative, while emphasizing respect and support for all.”
“Art has been an amazing leader, who played a key role in gathering a strong group of independent, entrepreneurial lawyers and creating a firm model featuring a transparent compensation system and a collegial culture that has thrived for a long time,” concluded Koren. “I’ll be relying on my partners to help me carry things forward in the same spirit and with the same intentionality in the years to come.”
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About Shartsis Friese
Founded in San Francisco in 1975, Shartsis Friese LLP has more than 65 lawyers. We designed our firm to provide premium quality legal work, but with more personal service, lower billing rates, and more efficient staffing than larger firms. Over the past 47 years we have carefully assembled top legal talent to create elite practice groups best suited to serving dynamic companies and sophisticated individuals. Our extremely low turnover creates continuity and institutional knowledge for our clients’ benefit.
We have achieved excellent results for our clients in major local, national, and international litigation; we provide world‐renowned representation of investment managers and investment funds; we handle real estate transactions around the United States for many of the most dynamic companies in the country; we handle a broad range of tax matters including state and federal tax disputes; we represent high net worth families in managing their personal wealth and estates; and we counsel a wide variety of companies and individuals in business, securities, and intellectual property transactions. For more information visit www.sflaw.com.