Gunderson Dettmer

Gunderson Dettmer
Name	Gunderson Dettmer
Headquarters	Menlo Park, California
Founded	1995
Founders	Joshua Gunderson; Bill Dettmer
Practice areas	Corporate, Venture Capital, Intellectual Property, Mergers and Acquisitions, Venture Financings
Num attorneys	300+

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Gunderson Dettmer

Gunderson Dettmer is a US-based corporate law firm specializing in technology and life sciences transactions, known for representing startups, venture capital firms, and growth-stage companies in Silicon Valley and globally. The firm frequently advises clients involved with entities such as Sequoia Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Accel Partners, Kleiner Perkins, and SoftBank Vision Fund on financings, mergers, acquisitions, and public offerings. Gunderson Dettmer's work intersects with institutions including Stanford University, Harvard University, MIT, Y Combinator, and agencies like the Securities and Exchange Commission.

History

Founded in 1995 by partners with roots in Bay Area firms and venture transactions, the firm emerged during the dot-com era alongside firms advising Netscape Communications Corporation, Yahoo!, Google, and Amazon (company). Early engagements connected the firm to venture firms such as Greylock Partners, Benchmark Capital, Bessemer Venture Partners, and DFJ. Throughout the 2000s Gunderson Dettmer expanded as startups linked to Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Dropbox (service), and Airbnb sought specialized counsel, and the firm advised on financings involving Tiger Global Management, Founders Fund, and Union Square Ventures. In the 2010s and 2020s the firm opened international offices responding to growth in regions tied to Shenzhen, Bengaluru, London, and Singapore and engaged on transactions with corporate acquirers such as Microsoft, Apple Inc., Salesforce, Oracle Corporation, and Cisco Systems.

Gunderson Dettmer's core practice areas include venture capital financings, representing investors and founders in rounds alongside firms like Sequoia Capital, Benchmark Capital, and Index Ventures; mergers and acquisitions involving buyers such as Google LLC, Meta Platforms, Amazon (company), and Adobe Inc.; and initial public offerings coordinated with underwriters including Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan Chase, and Credit Suisse. The firm also advises on intellectual property and technology transactions with parties like Qualcomm, Intel Corporation, Nvidia Corporation, and Broadcom Inc.; corporate governance and compliance matters tied to regulatory bodies like the Securities and Exchange Commission and stock exchanges NASDAQ and New York Stock Exchange; and employment and executive compensation work concerning executives from Uber Technologies, Lyft, Inc., Snap Inc., and Palantir Technologies.

Gunderson Dettmer maintains offices in key innovation hubs including Menlo Park near Palo Alto, San Francisco adjacent to Market Street (San Francisco), New York City near Wall Street, Boston proximate to Kendall Square, and Los Angeles within the Silicon Beach ecosystem. Internationally the firm has operated in locations tied to London, Singapore, Bangalore, Beijing, and Shanghai, engaging with local markets connected to SoftBank, Alibaba Group, Tencent Holdings, Baidu, and Berkshire Hathaway affiliates. These offices support cross-border transactions involving acquirers and investors such as Tencent Holdings, Alibaba Group, SoftBank Group, Temasek Holdings, and CDPQ.

Gunderson Dettmer has represented high-profile startups and investors across landmark financings and exits, including work for companies associated with Y Combinator alumni, late-stage financings for companies backed by Sequoia Capital and Andreessen Horowitz, and M&A transactions involving Google LLC acquisitions, Microsoft strategic purchases, and private equity deals led by Silver Lake Partners and KKR. The firm has been counsel in venture financings tied to Stripe (company), Robinhood Markets, Coinbase Global, Inc., Zoom Video Communications, Palantir Technologies, SpaceX, DoorDash, Inc., and Instacart and has advised funds such as Tiger Global Management, Founders Fund, General Catalyst Partners, and Lightspeed Venture Partners.

Gunderson Dettmer has appeared in rankings by publications and organizations including Chambers and Partners, The Legal 500, Vault (company), and American Lawyer lists for venture capital, technology transactions, and emerging companies work. The firm has been cited in coverage by The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Bloomberg, Reuters, and Forbes for its role in venture financings and startup exits, and attorneys have earned individual recognition from panels at Stanford Law School, Harvard Law School, UC Berkeley School of Law, and conferences like TechCrunch Disrupt and RSA Conference.

The firm reports pro bono engagements with nonprofits and public-interest organizations associated with entities such as American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU, Legal Aid Society (New York)-affiliated programs, and community organizations near Silicon Valley and Boston. Gunderson Dettmer has participated in diversity and inclusion efforts, collaborating with groups like National Bar Association, Hispanic National Bar Association, Out & Equal, Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, and university recruiting programs at Stanford University, Harvard University, and UC Berkeley to increase representation among attorneys and leaders.

Category:Law firms based in California