International law firm McDermott Will & Emery LLP today named Ruth Wimer, Esq., CPA, a partner in the Firm’s Employee Benefits, Compensation, Labor & Employment Practice Group, based in the Washington, D.C. office. The addition of Ms. Wimer, who has deep and broad experience in the compensation and benefits area, will increase McDermott’s capabilities in this growing client service area.
Ms. Wimer, who joins from the National Tax practice of Ernst & Young LLP, will focus on matters related to executive compensation and fringe benefits. She will advise clients on the optimum structuring of business owned aircraft, and is a nationally recognized speaker on the new entertainment deduction rules, personal use income inclusion, excise tax, depreciation, SEC requirements, and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) rules. She is also a thought leader in the area of deferred compensation, and recently authored the leading treatise on the international aspects of section 409A and 457A. In addition, Ms. Wimer is an industry leader with respect to the design of compensation programs for financial institutions and hedge funds.
“We are excited to welcome Ruth to the McDermott family, and our growing Employee Benefits Practice Group in Washington, D.C.,” said David E. Rogers, partner and head of McDermott’s Employee Benefits, Compensation, Labor & Employment Practice Group. “Ruth brings a unique combination of business management and a CPA background with broad and deep tax technical experience in a highly specialized area of client need. McDermott continues to add considerable industry experience in the employee benefits market that will help us provide the best counsel and advice possible to our growing global client base.”
Prior to Ernst & Young, Ms. Wimer served as a tax law specialist with the Internal Revenue Service from 1980-1984. She has a J.D. from American University Washington College of Law, and has an LL.M. with emphasis on ERISA, from Georgetown University Law Center. Ms. Wimer is a member of the exclusive tax committee of the National Business Aviation Association, as well as the American Bar Association, and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA).
In 2011, US News–Best Lawyers named McDermott “Law firm of the Year” in the area of Employee Benefits. McDermott lawyers are pioneers in the field of employee benefits. The Firm has been advising clients on a variety of employee benefits and executive compensation matters for more than 70 years. McDermott represents more than 75 Fortune 500 companies and 29 Fortune 100 companies in employee benefits matters on a regular basis. Due to the fact that McDermott’s attorneys are highly specialized and focus their practices in one or two primary practice groups, the Firm can help clients work through complex problems with a level of employee benefits and international proficiency and efficiency not found at most law firms.
