20 November 2015 – LawFuel.com – Law Firm News Service – Mayer Brown announced today the promotion of 27 of its lawyers worldwide to partner. The appointments take effect January 1, 2016.
“We are delighted to welcome these outstanding lawyers to the Mayer Brown partnership,” said Chairman Paul Theiss. “They have achieved this significant milestone in their careers through their unwavering commitment to client service, their superb legal skills and business acumen, and their dedication to collegiality and teamwork across our practice areas and geographic boundaries. We are confident that, as partners, they will continue to make significant contributions to serving our clients and to the success of Mayer Brown.”
The new partners are:
Bill Amos, Litigation & Dispute Resolution, Hong Kong
A Hong Kong-based partner in Mayer Brown’s Litigation & Dispute Resolution practice, Mr. Amos specializes in all aspects of commercial dispute resolution, including international trade, banking, shipping, aviation and insurance. He is experienced in shareholder disputes, as well as company and trust litigation. He conducts Hong Kong, London, Singapore and China-based arbitrations. Mr. Amos also advises banks, insurers and trading companies on matters concerning asset finance, trade finance and international sale of goods.
Bruno Triani Belchior, Corporate & Securities, Tauil & Chequer, Rio de Janeiro
Mr. Belchior is a partner in the Corporate & Securities practice at Tauil & Chequer Advogados in association with Mayer Brown in the Rio de Janeiro office. He focuses on advising domestic and foreign oil and gas companies in connection with project developments, mergers and acquisitions and business transactions in Brazil, Latin America and West Africa. Mr. Belchior has extensive experience in dealing with project developments in oil and gas exploration and production, including project financing, private placements and acquisitions and divestitures of oil and gas assets, as well as formation of JVs, bid proceedings, and regulatory and contractual issues involving host government E&P contracts.
Kiel A. Bowen, Banking & Finance, Charlotte
Mr. Bowen is a Charlotte-based partner in Mayer Brown’s Banking & Finance practice, where he focuses on fund finance. He has significant experience representing domestic and international lenders in negotiating and documenting leverage and liquidity credit lines made to multijurisdictional fund vehicles, including private equity, real estate, REIT, infrastructure, debt, energy and hedge funds. He routinely serves as counsel to lenders and lead agents on bilateral and syndicated credit facilities with complex fund collateral structures, including subscription-secured credit facilities, net asset value secured credit facilities, management fee secured credit facilities, REIT credit facilities secured by a underlying pool of mortgaged or unencumbered real property, and fund-of-fund credit facilities secured by a fund’s equity interest in other funds.
Connor Cahalane, Corporate & Securities, London
Mr. Cahalane is a London-based partner in Mayer Brown’s Corporate & Securities practice. He advises international and UK corporate clients and financial institutions on a wide range of corporate and commercial transactions. Mr. Cahalane has particular experience in mergers and acquisitions, public takeovers, equity capital markets and private equity transactions. He also advises on joint ventures, share capital reorganizations, directors’ duties, corporate governance and general company law matters. Mr. Cahalane has a number of sector specializations, including corporate real estate, financial institutions and mining/energy.
Venna Y.W. Cheng, Litigation & Dispute Resolution, Hong Kong
Based in Hong Kong, Ms. Cheng is a partner in Mayer Brown’s Litigation & Dispute Resolution practice. She is also an accredited mediator. Ms. Cheng has extensive experience in litigation, arbitration and mediation of construction disputes and the drafting of consultancy and construction contracts for building and infrastructure projects. She also provides general advice on building, engineering and environmental matters. She acts for government departments, property developers, contractors, insurers and overseas companies.
John A. Cise, Tax Controversy, Chicago
A Tax Controversy partner in Chicago, Mr. Cise’s practice has focused exclusively on tax disputes and transfer pricing matters. He represents taxpayers at all levels of federal tax controversy, including IRS audits, administrative appeals before the IRS Appeals Division, and litigation before the United States Tax Court and the Court of Federal Claims. His experience includes major corporate and partnership cases involving substance-over-form and economic substance issues, I.R.C. § 482 allocations and other transfer pricing issues, valuation disputes, and leasing transactions. In addition, Mr. Cise represents clients with issues involving the deductibility of interest expense in related-party transactions, including debt v. equity characterizations and related sham transaction and economic substance arguments.
Andrew Crotty, Banking & Finance, London
Mr. Crotty is a partner in the Banking & Finance practice of the London office. His practice focuses primarily on the leveraged finance market, in which he has broad experience advising private equity sponsors, corporations, banks and other financial institutions in connection with a wide variety of cross border and domestic financing transactions, acquisitions, restructurings and general banking matters.
Steven D. Garden, Tax Transactions & Consulting, Chicago
Mr. Garden is a partner in the Tax Transactions & Consulting practice in Chicago. He represents clients on a wide range of tax matters, including financial transactions such as asset-backed securitizations, structured finance transactions, tax-exempt bond financings, catastrophe bond issuances and cross-border stock and debt offerings. Mr. Garden also regularly advises clients on mergers, acquisitions, and disposition of businesses and international tax planning, with a focus on international corporate structure planning, offshore insurance company planning and cross-border transactions (including outbound investment and operation in foreign jurisdictions and foreign investment in the United States).
Joseph J. Hable, Corporate & Securities, Chicago
Mr. Hable is a partner in the Corporate & Securities practice. Based in Chicago, he focuses his practice on mergers and acquisitions and general corporate representation, with a focus on cross-border transactions for the firm’s multinational client base, financial institution M&A transactions, and real estate joint ventures. Mr. Hable has represented a wide range of clients, from large, publicly held companies to smaller, privately held businesses, including US and foreign multinational corporations, private equity firms, real estate investment firms, and government contractors. Mr. Hable serves on the Committee of Associates in Chicago, as well as the Recruiting Committee.
Laura R. Hammargren, Litigation & Dispute Resolution, Chicago
Ms. Hammargren is a Chicago-based partner in Mayer Brown’s Litigation & Dispute Resolution practice. She has experience in a wide variety of civil and criminal litigation matters before trial courts, appellate courts, and arbitral tribunals. Ms. Hammargren represents corporations and individuals in internal investigations or who are under investigation by federal and state authorities for securities fraud, health care fraud, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and False Claims Act violations. Her civil practice focuses on complex commercial and regulatory matters, including healthcare, securities, employment, energy, and general contractual disputes. She has also done work and advised clients on federal and state data privacy laws.
Charles-Albert Helleputte, Tax Transactions & Consulting, Brussels
A Brussels-based partner in the Tax Transactions & Consulting practice, Mr. Helleputte focuses his practice on the corporate and tax aspects of restructuring transactions and structured finance arrangements. He also has strong experience in banking and finance law and data protection matters. In the tax area, Mr. Helleputte is active in the fields of corporate income tax (i.e., international tax planning and transfer pricing), indirect taxes and tax policy, and has experience in litigation before the Belgian courts and negotiation of rulings with the tax authorities.
Timothy R. Hicks, Banking & Finance, Charlotte
Based in Charlotte, Mr. Hicks is a partner in Mayer Brown’s Banking & Finance practice, where he concentrates on secured lending with a special focus on fund finance. He has significant experience representing domestic and international lenders in negotiating and documenting credit facilities made to multijurisdictional fund vehicles, including private equity, real estate, REIT, infrastructure, debt and energy funds. He routinely serves as lead on bilateral and syndicated credit facilities with complex fund collateral structures, including subscription-secured credit facilities.
Paul W. Hughes, Litigation & Dispute Resolution, Washington DC
Mr. Hughes, a Litigation & Dispute Resolution partner based in Washington DC, focuses his practice on briefing and arguing cases in appellate courts. Mr. Hughes has argued in the Supreme Court and eight times in the federal appellate courts, including a case before the en banc Ninth Circuit. He is a Visiting Clinical Lecturer in Law at the Yale Law School, where he co-teaches Yale’s Supreme Court Advocacy Clinic. Mr. Hughes has particular experience in intellectual property, banking and securities law, and transnational litigation. His clients include major technology firms, global financial institutions, and industry-leading trade associations.
Jonathan L. Hunt, Tax Controversy, Chicago
A partner in the Tax Controversy practice group of the Chicago office, Mr. Hunt has experience representing corporate, partnership, and individual taxpayers in tax matters under IRS Examination, in IRS Appeals and in cases filed in the U.S. Tax Court and Court of Federal Claims. Primary representations include transfer pricing matters, including audit, administrative appeals, and litigation matters relating to cross-border transfer pricing of tangible and intangible property, as well as advising taxpayers on transfer pricing structures including mergers and acquisitions, research and development cost sharing arrangements, and restructurings. Mr. Hunt also has experience with economic substance issues and income tax accounting issues.
Michael B. Kimberly, Litigation & Dispute Resolution, Washington DC
A Litigation & Dispute Resolution partner based in Washington DC, Mr. Kimberly briefs and argues complex appeals and dispositive motions, with primary focus on the antitrust laws, environmental law, and constitutional law. He has argued nine appeals in courts throughout the country, including before the Second, Sixth, Seventh, and Ninth Circuits and en banc sittings of the Second and Eleventh Circuits. Mr. Kimberly co-directs the Yale Law School Supreme Court Clinic, which regularly represents civil rights, immigrant, and criminal defense litigants before the Supreme Court. He also is an associate member of the Edward Coke Appellate Inn of Court and a regular participant in the Georgetown Supreme Court Institute.
Jason I. Kirschner, Litigation & Dispute Resolution, New York
Mr. Kirschner, a Litigation & Dispute Resolution partner in New York, is an experienced litigator whose practice focuses on complex commercial and bankruptcy litigation before state and federal trial and appellate courts. He has significant experience representing domestic and foreign banks in lender liability, securities fraud, common law fraud, and breach of contract actions, including actions pertaining to the sale of residential mortgage-backed securities, collateralized debt obligations, and other complex financial products. His securities fraud experience includes Sections 10(b), 11, and 12, control person, insider trading, and RICO actions.
Nadav C. Klugman, Banking & Finance, Chicago
Mr. Klugman is a Chicago-based partner in the firm’s Banking & Finance practice. He regularly represents borrowers (including private equity funds, private finance companies and IPPs) and financiers (including commercial banks, official lenders, development banks, other institutional investors and export credit agencies) in connection with a wide range of complex project financings and refinancings and private acquisitions and divestitures of renewable energy assets. Mr. Klugman also frequently represents both lenders and funds in various asset classes and in connection with fund finance facilities.
Kfir B. Levy, Intellectual Property, Washington DC
Mr. Levy is a partner in Mayer Brown’s Washington DC office and a member of the Intellectual Property practice. He focuses his practice on patent litigation, representing clients in Section 337 investigations before the International Trade Commission (ITC) and actions in federal courts, at the trial and appellate levels. Mr. Levy advocated on behalf of clients in matters relating to a wide variety of technologies, including LCD and plasma television panels, pharmaceuticals, network communications and messaging systems, flash and DRAM memory devices, wireless routing systems, aseptic filling machines, and lighting products.
Justin A. McCarty, Litigation & Dispute Resolution, Chicago
Mr. McCarty is a partner in the Litigation & Dispute Resolution practice in Chicago. He has experience representing public and private clients before state and federal courts in matters involving contract disputes, post-closing disputes, business torts, including fraud, negligence, and breach of fiduciary duty, class actions, securities fraud, and antitrust suits. Mr. McCarty also has experience representing major accounting firms before state and federal courts, arbitration panels, and the SEC in cases relating to claims of negligent and fraudulent audit work and federal securities actions brought by third parties.
Richard J. McCormick, Intellectual Property, New York
Mr. McCormick is a New York-based partner in Mayer Brown’s Intellectual Property practice. He has represented innovator pharmaceutical, biotech, and medical device companies in patent infringement and licensing dispute matters, including Hatch-Waxman litigations. Mr. McCormick has also advised clients on FDA regulatory issues implicating the patent laws, prepared patent validity / enforceability and freedom-to-operate opinions, and performed patent due diligence in connection with pre-litigation assessments, IP in-licensing and M&A transactions.
Joseph M. Pennell, Corporate & Securities, Chicago
Mr. Pennell is a Chicago-based partner in Mayer Brown’s Corporate & Securities practice. He focuses his practice on information technology and managed services transactions, including cloud computing, software licensing and implementation, and the outsourcing of finance and accounting services, IT infrastructure services and support, managed network services, and application development and maintenance. Mr. Pennell is the co-chair of the ABA Section of Science and Technology Law’s Cloud Computing Committee, and he was named a “Rising Star” by the ABA’s Section of Science & Technology Law in 2015.
Alexandra Plain, Real Estate, Paris
Ms. Plain is a partner in the Real Estate practice in Paris. She frequently advises foreign investors, including investment funds, in their real estate acquisitions and disposals in France and in Europe. Her practice includes work in connection with the negotiation of joint venture and shareholders agreements. She also has extensive experience in the negotiation of hotel management agreements, technical services agreements, advisory services agreements as well as asset and property management agreements. Ms. Plain is a member of the New York and Paris bar.
Andres G. Romay, Real Estate, Houston
Mr. Romay is a partner in the Houston office of Mayer Brown, where he is a member of the Real Estate practice. His experience in real estate includes the representation of a broad range of clients in connection with the acquisition and sale of real property. In addition, Mr. Romay represents a number of institutional landlords in office-leasing transactions throughout the United States, including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Salt Lake City, Houston, Dallas, and Orlando.
Terry Schiff, Banking & Finance, New York
Based in New York, Mr. Schiff is a partner in Mayer Brown’s Banking & Finance practice and concentrates his practice on United States and international finance transactions. He acts for a broad range of financial institutions, and his experience includes public and private securities offerings, asset sales and structured finance transactions. Mr. Schiff has extensive experience representing issuers and underwriters of securities backed by residential mortgages and open- and closed-end home equity loans in public and private securities offerings.
Donald S. Waack, Financial Services Regulatory & Enforcement, Washington DC
Mr. Waack is a partner in the Financial Services Regulatory & Enforcement practice in Washington DC. He counsels domestic and non-US financial services firms on a broad range of regulatory, transactional and enforcement matters. Mr. Waack advises banks and other regulated financial institutions in several areas, including investment authority issues and activities restrictions. He also advises financial services clients on complex transactional matters, providing strategic advice and regulatory support for mergers and acquisitions and advising private equity clients on investments in the commercial banking sector. Finally, Mr. Waack has experience with sensitive internal investigations and similar matters involving domestic and non-US financial services firms.
Stephanie D. Wagner, Government & Global Trade, Chicago
Ms. Wagner is a partner in the Government & Global Trade practice in Chicago. She practices in the areas of state and local government law, infrastructure development and public finance, representing public and private sector clients in a wide array of transactional, legislative and regulatory matters. Ms. Wagner has extensive experience in complex government transactions, particularly in the infrastructure sector. She advises on path-breaking road, bridge, airport, parking, mass transit, convention center and social infrastructure concession and public-private partnership transactions, serving in different transactions as either government entity counsel, sponsor’s counsel or lenders’ counsel.
Adam C. Wolk, Banking & Finance, New York
Based in New York, Mr. Wolk is a Banking & Finance partner whose practice focuses on leveraged finance. He represents financial institutions and sponsors/borrowers in a variety of domestic and cross-border financing transactions, including syndicated and single-bank secured and unsecured first and second lien financings, asset-based loan facilities, reserve-based facilities, fund financings, cash flow facilities, acquisition financings, restructurings, debtor-in-possession financings, and exit facilities.
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Mayer Brown is a global legal services organization advising clients across the Americas, Asia and Europe. Our presence in the world’s leading markets enables us to offer clients access to local market knowledge combined with global reach. We are noted for our commitment to client service and our ability to assist clients with their most complex and demanding legal and business challenges worldwide. We serve many of the world’s largest companies, including a significant proportion of the Fortune 100, FTSE 100, DAX and Hang Seng Index companies and more than half of the world’s largest banks. We provide legal services in areas such as: banking and finance; corporate and securities; litigation, arbitration, and other dispute resolution; antitrust and competition; US Supreme Court and appellate; employment and benefits; environmental; financial services regulatory and enforcement; government and global trade; intellectual property; real estate; tax; restructuring, bankruptcy and insolvency; and wealth management.
Mayer Brown comprises legal practices that are separate entities (the “Mayer Brown Practices”). The Mayer Brown Practices are: Mayer Brown LLP and Mayer Brown Europe-Brussels LLP, both limited liability partnerships established in Illinois USA; Mayer Brown International LLP, a limited liability partnership incorporated in England and Wales (authorized and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority and registered in England and Wales number OC 303359); Mayer Brown, a SELAS established in France; Mayer Brown Mexico, S.C., a sociedad civil formed under the laws of the State of Durango, Mexico; Mayer Brown JSM, a Hong Kong partnership and its associated legal practices in Asia; and Tauil & Chequer Advogados, a Brazilian law partnership with which Mayer Brown is associated. Mayer Brown Consulting (Singapore) Pte. Ltd and its subsidiary, which are affiliated with Mayer Brown, provide customs and trade advisory and consultancy services, not legal services. “Mayer Brown” and the Mayer Brown logo are the trademarks of the Mayer Brown Practices in their respective jurisdictions.
