When Troutman Sanders’ managaing partner Robert W. Webb Jr. took the reins in 1993, the firm only had one office, their Atlanta headquarters. Today, 14 years later, the firm has 11 offices in New York, Washington, Virginia, North Carolina, Hong Kong, and London. Webb has also been working on opening an office in China for the past couple years. His next move is the West Coast; because of a need to have offices in several cities, a merger is a strong possibility.
Source: www.nylawyer.com
New York firm Debevoise & Plimpton reports a profitable 2006. Turnover and profit per partner both rose by about 7 per cent, and the firm’s net profit rose by over 11 per cent. Sources report that the firm’s success could be due to a very strong year in London.
Source: www.thelawyer.com
International firm Chadbourne & Parke have added two partners to their renewable energy practice in LA. Edward Zaelke and Adam Umanoff, who came from the LA office of Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, focus on wind power and other alternative energy sources. Both attorneys are nationally recognized as leaders in alternative energy development. Based in New York, Chadbourne & Parke offers a wide range of legal services including but not limited to securities, project finance, corporate finance, energy, commercial and products liability litigation, special investigations and litigation, intellectual property, antitrust, insurance and reinsurance, environmental, real estate, employment law and ERISA, and government contract matters.
Source: www.lawfuel.com
Five partners from Mayer Brown’s New York office have made a move over to White & Case. All five are experienced in corporate finance, debt finance and high-yield debt offerings. Besides these new arrivals, White & Case has also hired seven new partners over the last three months. As for Mayer, sources within the firm tell us that this will result in some loss of business, but will result in a cultural improvement for those who had to work under the lead partner in the group.
Source: www.thelawyer.com
After 10 years heading Simpson Thacher Bartlett’s London office, managing partner Walter Looney prepares to return to the firm’s New York headquarters. The office’s most senior partner under Looney, Greg Conway, will take over in London. London revenue increased by 10 per cent last year, reaching $52 million. The London offices houses around 50 Simpson Thacher attorneys.
Source: www.thelawyer.com
Bankruptcy lawyers prepare for an increase in business around the end of the year. Though business bankruptcy filings are down by 45 percent and corporate debt default rates remain near all-time lows, a faith in business cycles has caused predictions of an eventual downturn. In preparation, some large firms are recruiting big-name attorneys from other firms. Winston & Strawn recruited four; Kirkland & Ellis acquired a lawyer from rival Weil, Gotshal & Manges in New York; and top NY-firm Paul, Hastings Janofsky & Walker opened its Chicago office with two attorneys from Jones Day.
Source: www.blackenterprise.com
King & Spaulding announced that it will be moving its real estate capital markets practice from Atlanta to New York. Starting with the addition of Andrew H. Charles as partner, the firm plans to expand this practice area to as many as 25 attorneys in NY. Six lawyers from Atlanta are also relocating to NY to join the real estate industry team there. King & Spaulding has over 800 lawyers around the world and was ranked one of the top ten firms representing Fortune 250 companies.
Source: www.marketwire.com
After founding and 22 years of heading Dewey Ballantine’s private equity practice, Sanford Morhouse is stepping down. New York partner Joseph Smith will take over as chair, and Morhouse will continue work in NY as of counsel. The NY private equity practice gained one new partner as a result of recent firmwide promotions; the practice now has five partners who work solely in private equity and one who works in private equity and real estate.
Source: www.thelawyer.com
San Francisco-based Morrison & Foerster acquired two bankruptcy attorneys from the NY office of UK firm Lovells. Gary Lee and Karen Ostad join MoFo’s NY office, where there are already about 160 lawyers. In total, the firm has 1,100 attorneys.
Source: www.nylawyer.com
There has been a lot of activity recently in Southeast U.S. McKenna Long & Aldridge raised its first-year associate salary to $130,000 in Atlanta, where it has 55 attorneys. Kilpatrick Stockton gained a partner from PricewaterhouseCoopers in New York who will out of the firm’s Atlanta and New York offices. Three attorneys have also left Greenburg Traurig for Carlton Field’s intellectual property practice; they joined the firm as of counsel.
Source: www.nylawyer.com
