It is with great sadness that we share the news of the passing of our dear friend and retired Orange County partner, Alan Pettis, on November 20. He was 84 years old. Fondly remembered for his contributions to the Orange County office, legacy of mentorship, and devotion to his clients, Alan was a cherished colleague to many across the 11 years he dedicated to the firm. He will be dearly missed.
Alan Pettis, admitted to the bar in 1967, retired from the partnership in May 2005. He was an attorney with the Department of Justice, Antitrust Division, until he joined Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher in 1969. He was managing partner of Gibson's Orange County office when he founded the law firm of Pettis, Tester, Kruse, & Krinsky in 1987. He served as PTKK's managing partner from 1987 to 1993 and joined Latham & Watkins as a partner in 1994. His practice focused primarily on corporate and securities law. He advised clients on structuring and negotiating a variety of transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, public offerings, private placements, contractual and licensing arrangements, joint ventures, partnerships and limited liability companies. He represented clients in diverse industries including among others biotechnology, finance (including private equity and venture capital funds), health care, manufacturing, medical devices and technology.
He has represented a wide variety of companies including Aderis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Allergan Pharmaceuticals; Alteer Corporation; ARC America Corporation; California Computer Products, Inc.; Century 21 Real Estate; Comprehensive Care Corporation; Cowden International; Data Electronics, Inc.; Distributed Logic Corporation; Empire General Corporation; H.F. Ahmanson & Co.; Gateway Communications; Insight Health Services Corp.; In Touch Communications, Inc.; Irvine Ranch Water District; Irvine Savings & Loan Assn.; Logisticare, Inc; Los Alamitos Race Course; Nahama & Weagant Energy Company; National Semiconductor Corporation; Nelson Research & Development Company; Ossur Prosthetics U.S.A.; Quest Software, Inc.; Quiksilver, Inc.; S&R Precision; Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; The Edgewater Funds; Trend Technologies, LLC; Triumph Capital, Inc.; Wedbush; Noble, Cooke, Inc.; and White Weld & Co.