A former federal district chief judge has joined McCarter & English LLP’s Newark office as a partner, the law firm announced Friday.
Jose Linares, former chief judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, will lead the Newark-based firm’s Alternative Dispute Resolution practice starting Wednesday, it said in a news release.
“We are honored and excited to welcome Judge Linares to McCarter & English,” Chairman Michael P. Kelly said in a prepared statement. “The legal caliber demonstrated throughout his impressive career — whether handling historic pharmaceutical settlements or presiding over major bankruptcies, class actions, multidistrict litigations and securities fraud cases — will truly benefit our clients across several industries.”
Linares, who was first nominated to the bench by President George W. Bush in 2002, served as the district’s chief judge from 2017 to 2019. He was the first Hispanic federal chief judge in New Jersey and the first Cuban-born federal chief judge in the U.S.
“It is a privilege to direct my passion for practicing law into something new and begin this next chapter with McCarter & English,” he said in a statement. “Leading the Alternative Dispute Resolution practice is an exciting opportunity to bring my background resolving increasingly complex disputes together with McCarter’s incredibly skilled and respected lawyers who specialize in this area.”
