Perkins Coie Adds Emerging Companies and Venture Capital Partner Valeska Pederson Hintz to Growing Austin Office

AUSTIN (November 1, 2021)—Perkins Coie is pleased to announce that Valeska Pederson Hintz has joined the firm's Emerging Companies & Venture Capital (ECVC) practice as a partner in its growing Austin office. Valeska has spent most of her legal career in Silicon Valley, advising emerging growth companies, investment banks, and venture capital and private equity firms. Her addition also expands the firm's thriving ECVC practice in Austin.

Valeska's practice focuses on the areas of corporate and securities laws, including venture financings, initial public offerings, tender offers, corporate governance, mergers and acquisitions (M&A) transactions, SPAC transactions, and general corporate representation on behalf of public and late-stage private companies. With a breadth of experience in the technology and biotechnology fields, Valeska is highly attuned to the business and legal challenges that emerging growth companies routinely face. Valeska has worked with companies in a wide array of industries, including software, media and AdTech, biotechnology, semiconductor, blockchain, and social networking.

"Valeska's familiarity with guiding innovative technology companies and entrepreneurs will be highly valuable to our sophisticated clients as they increasingly adopt technology-related platforms and applications," said Troy Foster, co-chair of Perkins Coie's Emerging Companies & Venture Capital practice. "Valeska will deepen the range of legal counsel we can provide to clients in Austin and beyond, and we're excited to welcome her to the team."

In addition to general corporate work, Valeska also provides guidance on evolving blockchain technologies and startups. She provides counsel on non-fungible tokens, token offerings, cryptocurrency regulation and adoption, and risk mitigation strategies in connection with M&A transactions.

"Valeska joins our Austin office as we continue to scale to meet client demand for our legal services—particularly in the tech sector, emerging companies and venture capital sector, and for patent and IP law," said Jose Villarreal, Perkins Coie's Austin office managing partner. "Valeska is committed to her practice and clients and we're thrilled that an attorney of her caliber and background has joined our ECVC practice and expanding Austin office."

Perkins Coie's continued growth in Austin will shortly see the firm moving into a state-of-the-art office space at 405 Colorado Street, a new, trophy-class office building located in the heart of the city's downtown business district.

Valeska joins Perkins Coie from Lowenstein Sandler LLP, where she was a partner in the firm's Silicon Valley office. She also previously practiced at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati and Latham & Watkins LLP. Valeska holds a J.D., cum laude, from Fordham University School of Law, and a bachelor's degree in business administration, cum laude, from The University of Texas at Austin.