Financial services law firm Murphy & McGonigle announces today it has continued its recent momentum with the opening of an office in Chicago, its second new office this year. The firm has made significant strides in gaining market share across the U.S. since its founding in 2010, with an ever-growing lineup of financial industry lawyers and a unique law firm platform.
Harris L. Kay, a Chicago-based veteran financial services lawyer, will serve as managing partner of the Chicago office, which is located at 300 North LaSalle Street.
“Chicago is a highly strategic market for us, as it is the commodities, futures and derivatives trading center as well as an emerging Fintech hub,” said James A. Murphy, chairman of Murphy & McGonigle. “Harris, with whom many of us have previously worked, is the perfect person to spearhead our presence in the market. We already have numerous existing client relationships in Chicago, and several of our lawyers previously served in senior roles in financial services companies and with regulators in Chicago.”
Mr. Kay joins Murphy & McGonigle from the Chicago office of a national law firm, where he served a variety of clients in securities and commodities, regulatory and litigation matters. Mr. Kay counsels futures commission merchants, including brokers, broker-dealers, investment advisers, commodity pool operators and commodity trading advisers in regulatory inquiries, investigations and enforcement proceedings before the CFTC, SEC, FINRA, and NFA. He is past chair of the Financial & Investment Services Committee of the Chicago Bar Association, and he is a frequent speaker on various topics related to the securities and futures industries.
“I am delighted to join a firm that is so committed to the financial services and regulatory sectors, and to build out a Chicago presence that will further strengthen our growing Commodities, Futures & Derivatives practice,” said Mr. Kay, who had worked alongside James Murphy and Tom McGonigle at a prior firm. “It is an honor to rejoin so many old friends and talented lawyers. Murphy & McGonigle is definitely a law firm on the move, and I am quite optimistic that we will attract some of the top talent in Chicago. Most importantly, our clients will all benefit from this world-class platform.”
Murphy & McGonigle currently includes 17 former SEC lawyers, many of whom held senior positions in the Trading & Markets Division and in Enforcement. The firm also counts four former CFTC lawyers and a former Chief Counsel of FINRA among its partners.
Earlier this summer, Murphy & McGonigle opened an office in San Francisco to serve its growing West Coast client base in financial services, fintech, digital assets, and blockchain enabled businesses. “Our firm’s footprint now includes all the key markets for the U.S. financial services sector,” said Mr. Murphy. “We look forward to growing our regulatory and high-stakes litigation practices in Chicago under Harris’s leadership.” The firm also operates offices in New York City, Washington, D.C., San Francisco and Richmond, Virginia.
