News

Date : 09-05-2006

Law firm strengthens Native American practice

Leading Native American affairs attorney Keith Harper has joined Kilpatrick Stockton, LLP, as a partner in its litigation section in Washington, DC. Harper will head the Native American Affairs Team and concentrate his practice on litigation, real estate development, and finance. Prior to joining the law firm, he worked as staff attorney for the Native American Rights Fund. He is also the former President of the Native American Bar Association of Washington, DC.

Law firms look Far East

Law firms in the Far East are making headlines. A number of law firms are entering the Chinese market. Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton, Kirkland & Ellis, and Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe are also planning to move into China. Moreover, the U.S. is using its influence on the Japanese litigation market as Japan continues to maintain its status as Asia's most sophisticated and largest financial market. On the contrary, Allen & Overy is reviewing the operations of its Tokyo office, and Cleary Gottlieb was recently forced to shut down its underperforming Tokyo office in April of this year.

King & Spalding boosts healthcare practice

King & Spalding has strengthened its healthcare practice by announcing the additions of Beverly H. Lorell and M. Kay Scanlan as senior advisers in its Washington, DC, office. A cardiologist and former professor, Lorell has served as Vice President, Chief Medical Officer, and Chief Technology Officer at Guidant, a company recently acquired by Boston Scientific. Scanlan worked at the office of the General Counsel at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and was a professor of law at the University of Maryland. While Lorell focuses her practice on clinical-trial design for biotech products, Scanlan specializes in reimbursement strategies for the medical industry.

Merger creates Siskind Susser Bland

Memphis-based Siskind Susser and New-York based Eric Bland Law Firm have merged their operations to form a new law firm, Siskind Susser Bland. As a leading immigration law firm, Siskind Susser will share its expertise in the fields of non-immigrant and immigrant visas, citizenship proceedings, visa processing at U.S. embassies abroad, and other compliance issues. Eric Bland enjoys the reputation of representing top modeling agencies and is involved in processing of visa applications for the world's most famous international models. With a combined strength of 18 attorneys and 30 staff members, Siskind Susser Bland will have offices at Memphis, Atlanta, Nashville, and New York.

Goodwin Procter strengthens real estate and pubic finance practices

Continuing expansion of its Los Angeles office, Goodwin Procter, LLP, has hired Douglas A. Praw, a real estate attorney, and Jung W. Han, a public finance lawyer. Prior to joining the firm, Praw was a senior associate in the real estate practice at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, while Han worked in the Los Angeles office of Hawkins Delafield & Wood. A major law firm with 700 attorneys, Goodwin Procter has leading practices in the fields of real estate, corporate, and litigation and focuses on the fields of private equity, financial services, technology companies, and intellectual property.

Global online dispute resolution resource launched by Baker

International law firm Baker & McKenzie has launched an online global dispute resolution information service. This service is without charge and can be accessed by anybody through the Baker & McKenzie website. Included in this site is information on the legal systems in more than 40 countries. The data includes information on the organization of various courts, general information on the legal profession, and specifics on court proceedings, among other things.