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Duane Morris' Arrival in Asia |
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Wednesday, 17 January 2007 |
Duane Morris opened a six-attorney office in Singapore. New York partner Eduardo Ramos-Gomez will be the managing partner in Singapore, along with five new partners from various international firms. Ramos-Gomez was the Mexican ambassador to Singapore from 1998 to 2001. The new office, now open after a year of planning, will focus on corporate finance, project finance, energy, cross-border transactions, restructuring, mergers and acquisitions, real estate and telecommunications. Duane Morris also has plans to open two offices in Vietnam (located in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City) in the spring of 2007.
Source: www.law.com |
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Williams Mullen & Maupin Taylor Plan to Merge |
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Tuesday, 16 January 2007 |
Virginia-based Williams Mullen is planning a merger with 53-lawyer North Carolina firm Maupin Taylor. The merger will allow Williams Mullen to expand its regulatory and cross-border transaction work. The new firm will keep the name Williams Mullen, although North Carolina offices will use the name Williams Mullen Maupin Taylor during a transition period. The D.C. and Tysons Corner, Va., offices are not hiring attorneys immediately, but new hires are likely in the next few years.
Source: www.law.com |
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Reed Smith Reports Rising Revenues |
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Tuesday, 16 January 2007 |
Reed Smith had a prosperous 2006 - they reported a 14.4 percent rise in gross revenue, along with an increase in profit per equity partner (PPP). With these financial gains, Reed Smith is poised to become one of the top firms of its size. Contributing to the increased revenues was the firm's decision to focus on more high-end clients and practices in 2006. The planned merger with London's Richards Butler and Chicago-based Sachnoff & Weaver will go into effect this year, also boosting the firm's revenue.
Source: www.nylawyer.com |
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Howrey Gains Three Litigators in NY |
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Thursday, 11 January 2007 |
D.C. firm Howrey has gained three veteran litigation partners in its New York office. Michael F. Armstrong, 74, was most recently a partner at Cooley Godward Kronish's NY office. Paul K. Rooney, 69, who has practiced at his own firm since 1970 also joins the team. William O. Purcell, 65, joins Howrey from the New York office of K&L Gates. Howrey's New York office opened late last year after the acquisition of eight-lawyer litigation boutique Engel McCarney & Kenney. The firm has 600 lawyers worldwide.
Source: www.law.com |
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Thursday, 11 January 2007 |
There have recently been several lateral moves for attorneys in New York. David E. Prager left Sills Cummis Epstein & Gross for Bond, Schoeneck & King. Morrison Cohen gained two partners and a senior counsel. After leaving Morea Schwartz, Aliza F. Herzberg joined Olshan Grundman Frome Rosenzweig & Wolosky as a partner. Also departing from Morea Schwartz, Paul R. McMenamin joined Wiggin and Dana as a partner.
Source: www.nylawyer.com |
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Dreier Opens LA Entertainment Firm |
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Wednesday, 10 January 2007 |
New York firm Dreier Stein & Kahan recently opened a Los Angeles affiliate firm focusing on entertainment law. The 100-lawyer litigation boutique, headed by litigator Marc S. Dreier, has opened several affiliate firms specializing in areas like trusts and estates, labor law and lobbying. For the LA firm, Dreier recruited around 40 lawyers from the litigation and transactional practices of Los Angeles' Alschuler Grossman Stein & Kahan.
Source: www.nylawyer.com |
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Drinker Biddle/Gardner Carton Re-structure |
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Tuesday, 09 January 2007 |
Now that the merger between Drinker Biddle & Reath and Chicago's Gardner Carton & Douglas is complete, the new firm is looking towards a new structure. Specifically, the changes revolve around the department reorganization and the addition of a regional managing partner in Philadelphia. Previously the firm had structured its practices under the two-department umbrella of business and litigation, but with its increased numbers and practice areas, the firm didn't want the practice group leaders all reporting to just one or two senior management officials. Instead of the two departments, the firm now has 14 national practice groups; some of the practice areas have also been moved around to have better cross-selling and client team development opportunities. Drinker Biddle's merger with Gardner Carton gives the firm 640 attorneys in 12 offices across the country.
Source: www.nylawyer.com |
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5 Firms Make Top-100 Employers List |
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Tuesday, 09 January 2007 |
Law firms Alston & Bird, Arnold & Porter, Nixon Peabody, Perkins Coie and Bingham McCutchen are among the best employers according to Fortune magazine's 2007 list of the best 100 employers to work for. The same five were on last year's list, but another from last year was missing this time - Morrison & Foerster, the only California-based firm to make the 2006 list, dropped off the chart. Making the list is cause for celebration for the selected firms because it is so important "from a recruiting and internal point of view" says Bingham's chairman, Jay Zimmerman. To create the top 100 list, the Great Place to Work Institute collects nominations and invites companies to participate. It then narrows down the list and sends out surveys to randomly selected employees. Factors such as compensation, benefits, and diversity are also taken into consideration.
Source: www.law.com |
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Fox Rothschild's New Boutique Acquisitions |
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Monday, 08 January 2007 |
On the first of the month, Fox Rothschild acquired six-attorney Young Moriwaki & Greenfader, which has offices in Manhattan and Tarrytown, Westchester County. The three name attorneys, Donald R. Young, Gary S. Moriwaki and Glenn J. Greenfader, joined the firm as partners along with three associates from their former firm. The new additions' practice deals especially with estate planning and administration, corporate and nonprofit work. Fox Rothschild has another acquisition planned for April; the husband-and-wife duo of Miller Mitchell will join Fox Rothschild's Princeton, N.J., office as partners. Miller and Mitchell focus their practice on counseling businesses on corporate matters, as well as litigation, technology, intellectual property and entertainment issues.
Source: www.law.com |
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No Merger for Dewey and Orrick |
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Monday, 08 January 2007 |
New York's Dewey Ballantine and San Francisco's Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe canceled a merger that would have resulted in a 1,500-lawyer firm. Morton A. Pierce, chairman of Dewey Ballantine, stated that the two firms were not able to overcome differences about a number of key issues, keeping them from completing the merger. Orrick chairman Ralph Baxter did not provide details and emphasized that the merger had never been a done deal. The recent departure of a number of partners from Dewey might have affected the merger discussions, though Pierce denies that as being the cause.
Source: www.nylawyer.com |
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NY Bankruptcy Lawyer Moves to Bingham McCutchen |
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Monday, 08 January 2007 |
Boston-based Bingham McCutchen recruited New York bankruptcy partner, Steven Wilamowsky, from Willkie Farr & Gallagher. Wilamowsky has focused on the representation of purchasers of assets of distressed companies, and has represented bidders and investors in the Chapter 11 bankruptcies of Polaroid, RCN Corp., and FAO Schwarz, among others. Out of Bingham's 850 attorneys worldwide, 100 of them are located in the New York office.
Source: www.nylawyer.com |
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Morgan Lewis Opens in Houston |
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Friday, 05 January 2007 |
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Morgan, Lewis & Bockius opened a Houston office on Jan. 2 with the arrival of five new lawyers from litigation boutique Edwards, Burns & Krider. Brady Edwards, one of the five, commented that the team at Edwards Burns did a lot of products liability and toxic tort work, which was sometimes hard to do at a small firm, so they took the opportunity to move to 1,353-lawyer Morgan Lewis. Morgan Lewis first came to Texas in 2004, when it opened an office in Dallas. The firm was founded in Philadelphia, has 22 offices with the new Houston addition. |
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Thursday, 04 January 2007 |
Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney recently gained three new additions to its Harrisburg, PA office. Led my David Sweet, the three-attorney government relations and public finance group come from the Harrisburg office of Pepper Hamilton and will serve in Buchanan's state government relations practice. Sweet and Donna Kreiser joined the firm as shareholders and Eloise Frazier has joined as counsel.
Source: www.nylawyer.com |
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Gardner Carton Lawyers Join Forces with Steptoe |
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Wednesday, 03 January 2007 |
In Chicago on Monday, nine attorneys from Chicago's Gardner Carton & Douglas opened an office with D.C.'s Steptoe & Johnson. The group of lawyers was headed by Christopher Barber and Stephen O'Donnell, and specializes in litigation work for the financial services, insurance, and reinsurance industries. In total, the new office will likely be home to 15 to 20 lawyers and staff members. The former Gardner attorneys' departure comes after Gardner Carton's announcement this past November of its impending merger with Philadelphia's Drinker Biddle & Reath.
Source: www.law.com |
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Philly Firms Discuss a Merger |
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Tuesday, 02 January 2007 |
High-power Philadelphia firms Block Schorr & Solis-Cohen and Cozen O'Connor have been discussing a merger for about six weeks. Combined, the firm would have over 370 attorneys in Pennsylvania, giving it the most lawyers in the state. 300-lawyer Wolf Block, ranked 147th on the 2005 AmLaw 200 and had gross revenues for 2005 of $145 million. Cozen O'Connor, with 500 attorneys, ranked 99th on the AmLaw 100 with gross revenues of $220.5 million. Cozen is interested in the real estate, tax and structured finance practices that Wolf Block would offer, and Wolf Block chairman, Mark Alderman, has shown interest in Cozen O'Connor's insurance practice.
Source: www.nylawyer.com |
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Friday, 29 December 2006 |
Daniel M. Bagatta, Richard H. Freeman and Jennifer A. McLaughlin were made partners of NY-firm Cullen and Dykman. Mr. Bagatta, a commercial lending attorney, is in the Manhattan office. Mr. Freeman, a trusts and estates attorney, practices in Brooklyn. Ms. McLaughlin, a commercial litigator, works on Long Island.
Source: www.nylawyer.com |
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Ogletree Deakins 2nd PA Acquisition |
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Thursday, 28 December 2006 |
Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak & Stewart is serious about its PA presence, acquiring six-attorney Polito & Smock in Pittsburgh just a day after announcing that it would acquire four-attorney Simon Moran in Philadelphia. Thomas A. Smock, Michael D. Glass, John C. Artz, and Jack Owen III will join the firm as shareholders and Jean M. Simmonds and John H. Riordan Jr. will join as an associate and of counsel, respectively. The Pittsburgh office will open Jan. 1, making for three office openings in one day as the firm has also announced the opening of Cleveland and Philadelphia offices on Jan. 1.
Source: www.law.com |
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Ogletree Deakins Opens Office in Philly |
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Wednesday, 27 December 2006 |
Texas-based Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak & Stewart has recently acquired four-attorney Philadelphia firm Simon Moran. Barry Simon and Christopher J. Moran will serve as shareholders in the firm and will continue in their current office space under the name of Ogletree Deakins. Ogletree Deakins was ranked 173rd on the 2006 Am Law 200 chart and reported $119 million in gross revenues for 2006. The firm represents management in all types of employment-related legal matters. After Jan. 1, it will have 350 lawyers located in 28 offices, including Dallas, Phoenix, Miami and Los Angeles. Besides handling labor and employment law matters, the firm also deals with business immigration, employee benefits, and workplace safety and health law.
Source: www.law.com |
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Tuesday, 26 December 2006 |
Recently there has been a lot of moving for New York lawyers. Herrick Feinstein has gained two to their sports & entertainment practice. Philip A. Haber has joined Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Nicholson Graham as a partner in the finance practice, and George F.A. Parnell left Holland & Knight to be a partner in the corporate and securities group of Schiff Hardin. Paul H. Shur and Peter A. Antonucci have also joined Sills Cummis Epstein & Gross as partners.
Source: www.nylawyer.com |
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Littler Mendelson to Merge with Cleveland Boutique |
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Friday, 22 December 2006 |
San Francisco based firm Littler Mendelson approaches merger agreement with Cleveland boutique Duvin, Cahn & Hutton. Duvin is presently a 47-lawyer labor and employment boutique; the merger with Littler will create a combined firm with 585 lawyers in 39 offices and could become one of the country's 100 top-grossing law firms. In 2005, Littler posted revenues of $199.5 million, making it the 105th top-grossing firm in the country, according to the annual Am Law 200 survey. Mrkonich said the firm expects to post in excess of $225 million in 2006. Littler has grown into a national firm over the years, having added more than 100 lawyers since last year as well as new offices in Kansas City, Orange County and Fayetteville, Ark.
Source: www.law.com |
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