K&L Gates Expands Power Practice with San Francisco Partner Addition

San Francisco - Global law firm K&L Gates LLP has added Shab Puri as a partner in the power practice. He joins the firm’s San Francisco office from his practice of Puri Law Group. 

Puri advises clients on the development, financing, construction, and operation of renewable energy projects, including negotiating engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC), operation and maintenance (O&M), and equipment supply power purchase agreements (PPA). He also counsels on real estate transactions, acquisitions and dispositions of project entities and assets, and general commercial transactions. Prior to founding Puri Law Group, Puri served as deputy county counsel with the County of Santa Clara; associate general counsel with Solar Trust of America (the United States affiliate of Solar Millennium AG); and senior counsel with Suntech America (the United States affiliate of Suntech Power Holdings Co., Ltd.), where he advised on the development, financing, and construction of utility scale solar plants and handled real estate and procurement transactions.

Steven Sparling, co-leader of K&L Gates’ energy, infrastructure, and natural resources practice area, commented: “We are excited to welcome Shab to the practice. His extensive experience in the power sector and perspectives as a diverse lawyer will be immense assets to our global team.” 

Puri’s arrival follows the addition of power partner Ruta Skučas in the firm’s Washington, D.C., office earlier this year. He is the tenth partner to join K&L Gates’ California offices in the past year, following the earlier arrivals of H. Thomas Anderton in San Francisco; Justin Wales (fintech), Eugene Ryu (labor and employment), Helen Kim (securities and transactional litigation), and Mitchell Kim (litigation) in Los Angeles; and Daniel Glassman (litigation), Rema Awad (corporate), Mincheol Kim (IP), and William Tate (real estate) in Orange County. They are among more than 85 new partners and of counsel who have joined K&L Gates since the beginning of 2020.

“Shab provides a valuable perspective to our clients in San Francisco and across the firm,” said J. Matthew Mangan, managing partner of K&L Gates’ San Francisco office. “As the renewable energy industry matures, and we see increasing interest in distributed energy resources, microgrids, and electric vehicle charging, having Shab’s commercially-minded and in-house experience will provide invaluable support for our clients and broader renewable energy practice group.” 

K&L Gates’ power practice works to guide clients through strategic decisions, policy and regulatory initiatives, commercial transactions, project financing and development, regulatory compliance, tax matters, credit trading, and litigation. As clients are devoting increased attention and resources to alternative and renewable energy sources, the group assists in their efforts to produce, transmit, and distribute energy across the world.