Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP is pleased to announce that Steven H. Scheinman has joined the firm as a partner in the Energy and Environmental Practice Group in New York. Mr. Scheinman most recently served as executive vice president, general counsel and chief compliance officer of Louis Dreyfus Highbridge Energy LLC (LDHE) where he was responsible for all legal, regulatory and compliance matters for the energy trading firm. Prior to LDHE, Mr. Scheinman was a corporate partner in the New York office of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP.
Mr. Scheinman has more than 25 years experience advising on a broad spectrum of corporate, transactional and restructuring matters across industry sectors, in recent years practicing primarily in the energy sector. After negotiating the joint venture and subsequent spin-off establishing LDHE, he served as general counsel advising on the firm’s commodity trading of physical and financial derivatives, operation and ownership of midstream energy infrastructure assets, and financing and management of commodity-based investment funds.
“We are thrilled Steve has joined us. His experience both in-house and as an outside adviser will bring a valuable and unique perspective to our clients,” said Sutherland Managing Partner Mark D. Wasserman. “We are confident his leadership abilities and entrepreneurial spirit will benefit our clients, our energy and corporate practices, and the growth of our New York office.”
“Our energy practice has been at the forefront of energy trading, regulation and compliance, and the addition of Steve in New York further demonstrates our commitment to providing premier legal services to our energy trading clients,” said Energy and Environmental Practice Group Leader Herbert J. Short, Jr. “Having worked with Steve as a client while he was with LDHE, we are excited that he has agreed to spearhead our energy practice in New York.”
“My experience as a client of the firm was the leading factor in my decision to join Sutherland and return to private practice,” said Mr. Scheinman. “I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to join this great team of people and further their commitment to client service.”
Mr. Scheinman earned a bachelor’s degree from Cornell University and then a J.D., with distinction, from New York University School of Law.
The addition of Mr. Scheinman comes just weeks after the commodities trading group from Hunton & Williams LLP, including Partners David T. McIndoe and R. Michael Sweeney, Jr., Associates Meghan R. Gruebner and Alexander S. Holtan, and Commodities Regulatory Analyst Katie P. Hoard, joined Sutherland’s energy trading practice in Washington, D.C.
Sutherland’s Energy and Environmental Practice Group has one of the foremost energy trading practices in the country, with more than 20 lawyers representing leading independent trading firms, oil and gas companies, and six of the top 10 investment banks in all aspects of energy trading; and serving as the leading voice of the energy industry in the post-Dodd-Frank regulation of energy commodities and derivatives.
