London, 4 October 2004 LAWFUEL – Best law, attorney, legal, law firm, finance law news– Leading Italian private equity and acquisition finance specialist Alberto Morano is to join White & Case in Italy, along with a 20-strong team of Italian lawyers from the boutique firm he founded in 1990, Studio Legale Morano e Associati.
Commenting on Morano’s arrival, White & Case Managing Partner Duane Wall said: “Having a strong presence in Italy has always been considered highly important for the development of White & Case globally, and is an essential component of our vision to offer a combination of global reach and the ability to advise on US, English and domestic legal issues. The arrival of Alberto Morano and his team is the first of a number of strategic hires we are planning to make in Italy, at both partner and associate level, in order to ensure we meet this goal. We’re delighted to have such a high calibre team on board.”
Morano will become a partner of White & Case LLP, with four lawyers from his team, Gianpiero Basso, Federico Cavazza, Massimo Chiaia and Daniele Zanni, becoming local partners of Studio Legale Associato a White & Case. Morano, who was in-house counsel at Citibank prior to founding Studio Legale Morano e Associati, is a recognised specialist in private equity and acquisition finance, both of which are key global practice areas for the Firm. His team also brings expertise in: M&A; commercial property; general corporate and commercial work; and commercial litigation.
As such, not only does the arrival of this team enhance significantly White & Case’s overall capabilities in Italy, but it also provides a clear strategic fit with the Firm as a whole, adding to existing European centres of excellence in private equity and acquisition finance in London, Paris and in Germany. The client base of Morano and his team also parallels White & Case’s in that the majority of its clients are both international and institutional, aligning precisely with the Firm’s focus on complex, multi-jurisdictional, predominantly transactional work.
“Joining White & Case is a huge opportunity for both myself and the team,” commented Alberto Morano. “The potential to work on the highest quality mandates and help the Firm realise its vision of becoming one of the world’s pre-eminent law firms was an extremely attractive proposition.”
White & Case’s current presence in the Italian market numbers 24 lawyers in Rome and Milan.
About White & Case
White & Case is a leading global law firm with nearly 1,800 lawyers in 38 offices in 25 countries. Global Counsel consistently ranks White & Case among the top global law firms. White & Case has also been named Best US Law Firm in London, Eastern Europe Law Firm of the Year and Eastern Europe Corporate/M&A Firm of the Year by leading legal benchmark publications. http://www.whitecase.com
White & Case in Italy has 24 lawyers in Rome and Milan. As of October 1, 2004 the Firm will have 45 lawyers in Rome, Milan and Turin. White & Case in Italy advises on a broad range of areas including corporate; M&A; bank finance; tax; securitisation; antitrust/competition law; administrative law; and project finance.
