Patton Boggs has poached a four-lawyer team from Edwards Wildman & Palmer in New York and Washington, D.C., to launch a public finance practice for the firm.

The new hires are partners ALPHONSO TINDALL JR. in New York and ALETHIA NANCOO in D.C., and of counsel SANI WILLIAMS and DEBORAH HARTMANN HENRY, both in New York. The team, which started at Patton Boggs on Oct. 21, advises on public and project finance matters in the United States and abroad, as well as private fund investment and infrastructure transactions.

Tindall said Tuesday that the practice will complement Patton Boggs’s existing expertise in government relations and legislative work. “We were constantly getting phone calls and had options to do other things,” Tindall says, noting that Patton Boggs first approached them a few months ago. “We were intrigued at the idea of creating this union.”

Patton Boggs’s New York office head, John Nonna, said a mutual friend introduced him to Tindall and they quickly became interested in the group. “We’ve been looking to expand our transactional practice in New York, and this brings in public finance, pension fund investments work that’s compatible with our representation of municipalities and public policy practice.”