JOHN ROESSER has lateraled to Alston & Bird as a member of the securities and litigation practice. The new partner will be based in Alston’s New York office, where he will concentrate his practice on securities and other financial litigation and lead the office’s international arbitration practice. Roesser was last a partner with Winston & Strawn.

Cozen O’Connor has bolstered its real estate, estate planning, and corporate insurance practices with the arrival of six new attorneys, all snatched from Edwards Wildman Palmer. The attorneys will help Cozen launch a new West Palm Beach, Florida, branch, which will be the firm’s second office in the Sunshine State. As reported by sibling publication The Legal Intelligencer, the six new partners are MICHAEL BOTOS, D. SCOTT ELLIOTT, JOHN DAVID DICKENSON, and A. KENNETH LEVINE. Also joining Cozen as partners are SIMEON BRIER, who will work in both Miami and West Palm Beach, and HARVEY FEINTUCH, who will be dividing his time between West Palm Beach and New York.

Intellectual property attorney DAVID ANDERSON, a founding member of the international Video Game Bar Association, has joined the Los Angeles office of Edwards Wildman Palmer as counsel. Most recently, Anderson was the vice president of business and legal affairs at THQ Inc., a video game developer and publisher.

The Atlanta office of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough has lost two attorneys, including the chair of its national fraud and abuse practice, REBEKAH PLOWMAN. Plowman and former litigation partner KRISTEN POLLOCK MCDONALD have both joined Jones Day in Atlanta, where they will be partners in the health care practice, advising clients in fraud and abuse investigations and litigation and regulatory compliance matters.

ANITA SABINE has joined Manatt, Phelps & Phillips from O’Melveny & Myers, where she was a counsel. As a partner in Manatt’s Los Angeles real estate and land use practice, Sabine will be focusing on real estate investment and development work.

Intellectual property litigator ERIC EVAIN has joined the Wilmington office of McCarter & English, where he will work on cases for clients in the chemical and manufacturing industries. Evain, a former corporate research scientist, was most recently a partner at Novak Druce Connolly Bove + Quigg. He joins McCarter & English as a partner.

McGuireWoods has hired former McDermott Will & Emery partner STEPHEN OLDER to work with its corporate and securities team. Older, who joins as a partner in the New York office, represents clients in a wide range of industries including health care, and consumer and financial services.

The current district attorney of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, will be returning to private practice with Nixon Peabody. Starting April 29, GERRY LEONE will be a partner in Nixon Peabody’s government investigation and white-collar defense practice in Boston. Leone was elected district attorney in 2006.

Perkins Coie has welcomed BRIAN KINNEAR in its Denver office. Kinnear, who makes the move from the partnership of Holland & Hart, will be dealing with patent prosecution, counseling, and litigation matters as a partner in the intellectual property practice.

The Anchorage, Alaska, arm of Perkins Coie has added CAMERON LEONARD, who was most recently senior assistant attorney general with the Alaska Department of Law. Leonard, whose practice focuses on the mining and natural resources industries, joins the firm as senior counsel.

JENNIFER COPLAN, a technology transaction lawyer, is the latest addition to Sidley Austin’s New York office. The new partner will be representing public and emerging companies on a wide range of issues including digital media, intellectual property, and information technology matters. Prior to her move, Coplan was a partner with Cooley.

Tax specialist TIMOTHY DEVETSKI has also joined Sidley Austin as a partner in the firm’s tax and tax controversy groups. Devetski will be based in the firm’s Houston office, where he will focus on cases involving the energy sector and capital markets. He was previously a partner at Vinson & Elkins.

As The Am Law Daily reported this week, White & Case is opening a Madrid office with at least two former Latham & Watkins attorneys. JUAN MANUEL DE REMEDIOS—most recently the chair of Latham’s Madrid office—will focus on mergers and acquisitions while serving as the office’s executive partner. Former Latham counsel YOKO TAKAGI specializes in mergers and acquisitions and capital markets and is joining as a partner. Latham associates are expected to follow.

The Churn is compiled from law firm releases and announcements. Moves based on our own reporting will note this. Please send all announcements and news releases to [email protected].