Law Firm News

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Nutter McClennen & Fish LLP

George Xixis appointed to EcoVision 2007 Board of Advisors
George Xixis, partner in the firm’s Life Sciences practice, served as a member of the board for EcoVision 2007, an April 17-19 conference that took place during the week of Earth Day in Washington D.C. The mission of EcoVision 2007 was to develop an unprecedented forum for thought leaders from the scientific, research and business communities, as well as opinion leaders from government institutions and academia, to showcase the future of environmental innovation. The conference defined a new path forward for the implementation of environmental and energy technologies.

During the conference, George chaired “Next Steps in Creating a Global Information Infrastructure,” a panel discussion on requirements and policy implementation for emerging technologies, which covered patents, trade secrets and licensing, green finance, information infrastructure and more.

04-19-2007

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Nutter McClennen & Fish LLP

Allison Burroughs speaks at BBA seminar on Health Care Fraud
Allison Burroughs, partner in the firm’s Government Investigations and White Collar Defense practice, participated as a panelist during an April 19 Boston Bar Association seminar on Health Care Fraud. Her panel covered the investigation and prosecution processes involved in representing individuals in health care fraud matters. This event was sponsored by the Criminal and Health Law Sections of the BBA.

04-19-2007

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Nixon Peabody LLP

Nixon Peabody Becomes Benefactor of Berkeley Center for Law & Technology; Law Firm Teams with Top-Ranked Law School on IP Law and Policy Education
The Berkeley Center for Law & Technology welcomes our new alliance with Nixon Peabody,” said Robert Barr, executive director, BCLT. “We’re thrilled at the firm’s support and endorsement. This is a law firm that understands ‘innovation’ and the importance of providing forums for staying current on the most pressing intellectual property and technology issues.”

Richard D. Rochford, chair of the intellectual property (IP) practice at Nixon Peabody, said, “This strategic alliance further advances Nixon Peabody’s vision of leadership in intellectual property nationally and in key incubator markets such as Silicon Valley.” He added, “Our alliance provides clients and friends of the firm with additional access to ground-breaking programs on legal advancements in the areas of IP and technology, networking opportunities with law and technology innovators, and other programs that help bridge together law, business, and policy in the ever-dynamic world of technology and intellectual property.” Nixon Peabody’s IP practice is nationally ranked for its work in IP litigation, as well as for the number of patents and trademarks prosecuted. In the past two months, the firm also opened offices in Silicon Valley and Chicago with highly renowned intellectual property attorneys.

Nixon Peabody’s new relationship with BCLT gives clients of the law firm further access to law and technology panel programs and educational discussions. It also allows Nixon Peabody to develop specialized programming in conjunction with BCLT. The center serves as an academic and industry resource for lawyers, industry groups and other affected parties that deal with policy and legal issues in high technology developments.

Below are a few examples of programs that Nixon Peabody and the BCLT are collaborating on:

* Annual BCLT/Berkeley Technology Law Journal Symposium: Copyright, DRM Technologies and Consumer Protection Conference – In conjunction with IViR (the Institute for Information Law at the University of Amsterdam), BCLT hosted this symposium at Boalt Hall, Berkeley, CA. Distinguished members of academia, industry and government raised the level of discourse on Digital Rights Management (DRM) law, technology and policy, and their ramifications on consumer rights. Marc Kaufman, a partner in Nixon Peabody’s Washington, DC, office whose practice focuses on intellectual property strategies and transactions, moderated the Private Sector Initiatives panel for this symposium.
* The IP Summit: Silicon Valley at the Fairmont, San Jose, CA – Nixon Peabody, Berkeley Center for Law & Technology, and IPotential co-sponsored the first annual IP Summit, which was attended by in-house counsel and focused on the IP management and litigation issues faced by Silicon Valley technology innovators.

04-19-2007

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Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP

Top Mexican Retailer Controladora Comercial Mexicana Completes Three Billion Pesos "EuroPeso" Note Offering
Mexican retailer Controladora Comercial Mexicana, S.A.B. de C.V. (“CCM”) has issued three billion pesos ($271 million) of securities in a “EuroPeso” twenty year high yield notes offering. Proceeds from the offering will fund store expansion and refinance higher cost short-term debt. The international law firm Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP, led by partners Michael L. Fitzgerald and Taisa Markus, represented lead manager Merrill Lynch in structuring and closing the offering.

Mr. Fitzgerald noted, “This is only the third offering of this sort in Mexico involving this increasingly popular financing structure. The “europeso” structure allows Mexican companies to borrow in pesos, which matches the currency they earn their income in, but allows U.S. investors to be paid in dollars. It avoids the expense of a currency hedge while still appealing to U.S. investors.”

Mr. Fitzgerald and Ms. Markus were supported by Milbank associates Pedro Reyes, Armando Valdes and international attorney Jorge Oria. New York-based partner Bruce Kayle provided tax advice and was assisted by associate Benjamin Suhr.

About the Offering
CCM is one of the largest Mexican general commercial and food retailers. It is a direct competitor of Walmex (Wal-Mart de Mexico). The note was issued in europeso format and the offering amount was increased at pricing by almost one-third and was more than two times oversubscribed. Merrill Lynch was the lead manager with Credit Suisse co-manager of the issue. The proceeds of the offering will be used to finance the company’s plans to open additional stores as well as to refinance existing higher cost short-term debt.

About Controladora Comercial Mexicana, S.A.B. de C.V.
One of the largest Mexican retailers, Controladora Comercial Mexicana, S.A.B. de C.V. (“CCM”) operates a total of 205 stores, the majority of which are located in the Mexico City metropolitan area and in Mexico’s Central region. CCM operates seven store formats: service-oriented Comercial Mexicana; hypermarket Mega; value-priced supermarkets Bodega and Alprecio; value-priced neighborhood supermarket Sumesa; 50 percent of Costco, under a joint venture with Costco Wholesale Corp.; and upscale supermarket City Market. In addition, CCM operates a chain of 67 family-style restaurants. The company trades on the Mexican stock exchange [COMEUBC.MX].

Milbank’s Latin America Practice Group:
Milbank’s Latin America Practice Group has played a prominent role in some of the region’s most innovative and complex transactions, including securities offerings, M & A, project financings and restructurings. Milbank’s Latin America Practice Group is renowned for its leadership in sophisticated cross-border transactions and combines both the transactional and regulatory expertise necessary to successfully negotiate and close innovative securities offerings and other transactions across a wide range of industries.

Milbank’s Latin America Practice Group has been involved in a number of “first of its kind” transactions in Latin America. Recent notable engagements in the past several months include:

* $217 Million Grupo Simec Offering: Milbank represented the underwriter Citigroup Global Markets in North American steel maker Grupo Simec’s concurrent offering of shares in Mexico and ADSs in global markets. This is the first SEC registered equity offering out of Mexico in 2007.

* $6 billion CVRD Pre-Export Financing: Milbank represented metals & mining company Companhia Vale do Rio Doce (“CVRD”) and CVRD International in a $6 billion pre-export financing. The financing, unprecedented in size, underscored the market strength of CVRD and the successful strategy of positioning the company as a global borrower.

* $1 billion Vitro High Yield Offering: Milbank represented Mexican glass manufacturer Vitro, S.A.B. de C.V. in a $1 billion high-yield offering, the largest Latin American high yield offering ever. The proceeds of the offering were used to complete the company’s restructuring.

* $650 million Satmex Restructuring: Milbank represented the creditors’ committee in the complex cross-border restructuring by Satélites Mexicanos, S.A. de C.V. (“Satmex”), one of Mexico’s leading satellite service providers. The innovative, comprehensive restructuring process took several years to complete due to its cross-border nature (Mexican company with U.S. debt and equity holders), equity structure (23% owned by the Mexican Government) and a reliance on concessions from the Mexican Government and Mexican regulators for the continued operation of its business. Satmex was named 2006 “Restructuring Deal of the Year” by Latin Finance Magazine.

* $200 Million IUSA Offering: Milbank represented Industrias Unidas, S.A. de C.V. (“IUSA”), one of the largest conglomerates in Mexico, in its inaugural U.S. high-yield securities offering.

* $600 Million Banorte Offering: Milbank represented Banco Mercantile del Norte S.A. (“Banorte”), the largest non-foreign owned bank in Mexico, in its issuance of $600 million of “Tier I” and “Tier II” capital securities in the international capital markets. The offering marks the largest capital securities offering ever by a Mexican bank.

04-19-2007

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Mayer Brown LLP

Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP advises London Metal Exchange lifting of OFT ban
The Office of Fair Trading ("OFT") has finally and unconditionally closed its case against the London Metal Exchange ("LME"), the world's premier non-ferrous metals market. Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP successfully advised the LME, after a complaint to the OFT of predatory pricing and margin squeezing by the Spectron Group plc.

The LME intended to extend the opening hours of its Electronic Trading Platform ("ETP"), LME Select, with effect from 1 March 2006, so that its members could trade electronically during Asian trading hours. Following a complaint from the Spectron Group plc, the OFT imposed, on 27 February 2006, its first ever Interim Measures Direction (IMD), to prevent the LME from extending its electronic trading activities to capture Asian trading times. The LME appealed the IMD to the Competition Appeals Tribunal ("CAT"). Just over two weeks after the appeal was lodged, the OFT decided to withdraw the IMD unconditionally and in its entirety. The LME applied to the CAT for costs against the OFT in respect of the actions the LME had been required to bring against the OFT in order to get the IMD lifted. The LME succeeded in securing a costs order against the OFT.

After nearly 4 years of investigating the LME and discussions with the LME regarding closure of the case the OFT has finally decided to close the entirety of its investigation unconditionally and in full.

The Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw team advising LME was led by EU & Competition partner Frances Murphy supported by Gillian Sproul and Ilaria Filippi.

04-19-2007

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King & Spalding

Ten King & Spalding Attorneys Recognized as "Texas Rising Stars"
Ten lawyers in King & Spalding's Houston office have been named "Texas Rising Stars" for 2007. Texas Rising Stars are described as "outstanding lawyers who have demonstrated superior professional potential". The polling, research and selection of Texas Rising Stars is performed under the auspices of Law & Politics, a legal industry publisher. Only 2.5 percent of Texas lawyers are chosen for this recognition, with only lawyers age 40 and under or who have been practicing 10 years or less eligible for inclusion.

The King & Spalding lawyers on this year's list and their respective areas of practice are:

* Christie L. Cardon - Civil Litigation Defense
* Charles C. Correll, Jr. - Civil Litigation Defense
* Wade M. Coriell - International
* John P. Crespo - International
* Andrew S. Hicks - General Litigation
* Jill McWhirter - Intellectual Property
* William R. Parish, Jr. - Mergers & Acquisitions
* C. Brannon Robertson - Civil Litigation Defense
* Alissa B. Rubin - Business Litigation
* Robin A. Schober - General Litigation

04-19-2007

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King & Spalding

Lloyd Hand, Former Top Aide to LBJ, and Dan Donovan, Top U.S. Senate Investigative Counsel, Join King & Spalding’s Government Advocacy Practice
King & Spalding, a leading international law firm, announced today that Lloyd Hand, U.S. Chief of Protocol under President Lyndon Baines Johnson, and Dan Donovan, U.S. Senate Committee on Finance Senior Investigative Counsel, have joined King & Spalding’s Washington, D.C., Government Advocacy and Public Policy practice group. Hand and Donovan join a growing practice group which includes former senators Dan Coats and Connie Mack, as well as George Crawford, former Chief of Staff to Nancy Pelosi.

"We are extremely pleased to have Ambassador Hand join the King & Spalding government affairs team," said J. Sedwick (Wick) Sollers, managing partner of King & Spalding’s Washington office. "Lloyd is one of the most respected senior statesman in Washington. As one of this town’s ‘wise-men,’ Lloyd’s extraordinary understanding of this city and his history in legislative affairs are rare, making the expertise he provides invaluable."

Hand’s long history in government includes serving as an assistant to then-Senate Majority Leader Lyndon Johnson. When Johnson became President, Hand served as assistant to the president and was appointed to the post of U.S. Chief of Protocol with the rank of ambassador.

Hand joins King & Spalding as senior counsel, having represented a variety of clients – from major defense contractors and Fortune 500 companies looking to enter foreign markets, to foreign governments and financial services organizations – before the Executive Branch, including White House and Cabinet officials, and before the Congress, including a number of committees such as the Commerce, Judiciary, Financial Services and Defense Committees.

In addition to having previously served on the Chief of Naval Operations Executive Panel and as a member of the Senior Advisory Group to the U.S. European Command, Hand currently sits on a number of international security advisory boards. He is currently a member and serves on the Executive Council on Diplomacy, the Council on Foreign Relations, the Council of American Ambassadors; and the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ Washington Roundtable as Vice Chairman.

Dan Donovan joins King & Spalding as counsel after serving as Senior Investigative Counsel to U.S. Senator Charles Grassley, Chairman of the Committee on Finance, from 2003 to 2007, where he directed investigations of pharmaceutical, medical device, and other healthcare companies on a broad range of regulatory compliance issues, including matters of drug and device safety, drug pricing, and fraud, waste and abuse in Medicare and Medicaid and other federal government programs.

Before joining the Committee on Finance, Donovan served as Chief Investigative Counsel to U.S. Senator Christopher "Kit" Bond, Chairman of the Committee on Small Business, from 1999 to 2003, where he managed oversight investigations and hearings regarding consumer fraud and protection issues, including the quality of care in the nursing home industry. During 1997, Donovan served as Staff Assistant to U.S Senator Fred Thompson, Chairman of the Committee on Governmental Affairs, on the special investigation in connection with the 1996 federal election campaigns.

At King & Spalding, Donovan will work with Ted Hester, Eleanor Hill and Tom Spulak representing clients being investigated by congressional committees, as well as on other compliance and enforcement actions by federal and state healthcare enforcement and regulatory agencies.

"Having managed congressional investigations and oversight hearings in the U.S. Senate for eight years, Dan is already assisting clients who are dealing with the unique challenges posed by government inquiries," said Sollers. "He makes our strong congressional investigations team even stronger."

King & Spalding’s Washington, D.C., office has more than 150 attorneys and non-lawyer professionals, including government relations specialists, trade consultants and policy advisors. These lawyers and professionals practice in a broad range of areas including antitrust, class action and mass tort litigation, commercial disputes, corporate finance, corporate governance, environmental, FDA/healthcare, government relations, government investigations, international trade, mergers and acquisitions and tax, among others.

04-19-2007

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