NEW YORK, July 11, 2005 – LAWFUEL – The Law News Network – Greenberg Traurig, LLP announced last week it has established a strategic alliance with the nearly 300-lawyer London-based firm, Olswang, significantly strengthening its platform in the U.K. and Europe. The move follows similar announcements earlier this year with Studio Santa Maria covering Milan and Rome and with Hayabusa Kokusai Law Offices in Tokyo. Taken together, Greenberg Traurig’s own offices and its international alliances represent a major move forward in the development of its global coverage.
In the most recent move, Greenberg Traurig aligns itself and its 1,400 lawyers with a well-regarded U.K. firm whose culture and practice areas well complement its own. Among the areas in which the firms are especially active are media, film, entertainment, communications, real estate, corporate, litigation and intellectual property. Together, they will be leaders in these key industries worldwide.
“By aligning with Olswang, we will be able to offer clients on both sides of the Atlantic a major platform in terms of size and resources, with a focus and understanding of core industries that are important to them,” said Cesar Alvarez, President and Chief Executive Officer of Greenberg Traurig. “This follows our strategy of adding lawyers and resources for our clients without unnecessary risk to our firm culture.”
“We’ve observed the results of others who’ve typically used the mega-merger or multi-mega-merger format to face the challenges of the highly competitive legal markets of the U.S. and the U.K., starting from one side or the other; but we have always followed our own instincts and found our own unique opportunities,” said Richard A. Rosenbaum, the Managing Shareholder of Greenberg’s 280-lawyer New York office and a National Operating Shareholder, whose role includes the firm’s international development. “Just as we carefully built in New York and elsewhere, in London we patiently waited for the unique situation and structure we’ve found in Olswang, where we identified real cultural consistency and business synergy.”
“In Olswang,” Mr. Rosenbaum said, “We found a partner strikingly similar to Greenberg Traurig itself: a fast-growing, collaborative firm with business-oriented and empowered lawyers who focus on many of the same key industries as we do.”
Olswang was recently recognized as a top employer in England in The Sunday Times 100 Best Companies to Work for 2005, and is the highest London law firm in that survey.
Mark Devereux, Olswang senior partner comments, “The alliance will enable both firms to retain the individuality they both value, but in view of the striking similarities between the firms in terms of both culture and business focus we are confident that this alliance will deliver real value to all clients.”
Jonathan Goldstein, Chief Executive of Olswang comments, “Throughout the course of discussions we found in each other like minded business partners and look forward to the new international opportunities that we are confident will arise.”
Greenberg Traurig was designated again last year as the fastest growing firm in the U.S. It now employs approximately 1,400 lawyers and governmental professionals overall, including more than 1,300 in the United States (the 4th largest U.S.-lawyer team), and maintains 31 locations overall, including 24 locations in the United States. As a result, the firm provides the broadest U.S. legal platform while also engineering a growing network of key locations around the globe. Greenberg Traurig’s recent strategic expansion in the United States included new offices in Houston, Texas and Las Vegas, Nevada.
About Greenberg Traurig, LLP
Greenberg Traurig LLP is an international, full-service law firm with approximately 1,400 attorneys and governmental professionals in 31 locations in the United States, Europe and Asia, including strategic alliances with Olswang in London, England and Brussels, Belgium; Studio Santa Maria in Milan and Rome, Italy; and Hayabusa Kokusai Law Offices in Tokyo, Japan. The firm is ranked No. 8 as reported in The National Law Journal’s listing of the largest law firms in the U.S. Greenberg Traurig locations: Albany, NY; Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Atlanta, GA; Boca Raton, FL; Boston, MA; Brussels, Belgium; Chicago, IL; Dallas, TX; Denver, CO; Fort Lauderdale, FL; Houston, TX; Las Vegas, NV; London, England; Los Angeles, CA; Miami, FL; Milan, Italy; Morristown, NJ; New York, NY; Orange
County, CA; Orlando, FL; Philadelphia, PA; Phoenix, AZ; Rome, Italy; Silicon Valley, CA; Tallahassee,
FL; Tokyo, Japan; Tysons Corner, VA; Washington, D.C.; West Palm Beach, FL; Wilmington, DE; and Zurich, Switzerland. For additional information, please visit the firm’s Web site at www.gtlaw.com.
About Olswang
Olswang is one of Europe’s leading law firms and is recognized as a leading U.K. employer ranked 40th in The Sunday Times Best Companies to Work For 2005. A full service firm, Olswang advises on a range of areas including commercial dispute resolution, corporate, employment, judicial review and intellectual property. Staff in these areas form multidisciplinary teams servicing the firm’s various market sectors that include music, film, telecommunications, IT, e-commerce, betting & gaming and property.
At Olswang, many of our 79 partners are recognized in the industry as ‘leading lawyers’ in their fields while the firm overall has a list of industry firsts that’s growing all the time. Established in 1981, we’ve grown to a team of more than 450 with offices in London, the Thames Valley and Brussels.
We are inquisitive and entrepreneurial in every area of the law and have an unparalleled understanding of the key strategic and commercial issues driving clients in these sectors. Like-minded companies seek us out because they want to work with lawyers who think like business people and deliver innovative commercial solutions enabling them to achieve their own business goals.
