Cross border deals are what Venable LLP’s latest hire does best.

This week, the Baltimore-based law firm hired Christian Moretti for its international corporate and capital markets team in New York. The Venice-native arrives from Greenberg Traurig LLP where his career took off as an Italian deal professional.

“Because of my background – and my accent – historically I’ve been assigned to anything with a territorial element to it,” Moretti told Mergers & Acquisitions. And he doesn’t seem to mind.

One of the reason he was drawn to Venable, he said, was because "it has a very strong foreign practice which requires collaboration with lawyers in other jurisdictions.”

Up to this point, Moretti has maintained client relationships with many companies looking to tap his ability to handle M&A on an international level. Consider his work with X-ray imaging company Bracco Diagnostics Inc and Italcementi Group, a building materials manufacturer.

For Bracco, Moretti served as the company’s interim general counsel in 2008 and 2009. In addition, he handled legal matters for the Princeton, N.J.-based firm on numerous acquisitions over the past 10 years.

Then there’s Italcementi. Moretti was the lead attorney for the Bergamo, Italy-based company on three middle market deals in 2002, 2006 and 2007. Last year, he assisted in the planning and development of a new manufacturing facility for Italcementi in Nazareth, Pa.

Moretti touts experience in a variety of sectors including technology, fashion, telecommunications, entertainment, real estate and health care. Aside from M&A, he also counsels clients on matters concerning foreign corporate governance, and represents the Italian government and the Italian Ministry of Finance in U.S. regulatory proceedings.

In addition, Moretti currently serves as President of the Columbia Law School Association. He is the first Columbia University graduate, not originally from the U.S., to hold this position.

Outside of the law office, he co-founded the Venetian Community of New York and the Friends of the Italian Cultural Institute of New York. He received his LL.M from Columbia in 2001. Before that, he attended the University of Padua where he earned his Masters in International Studies in 2000, followed by a Juris Doctor.

Career moves