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Snell & Wilmer, L.L.P.

UTAH MINORITY BAR ASSOCIATION ELECTS KARTHIK NADESAN AS PRESIDENT
Karthik Nadesan has been elected President of the Utah Minority Bar Association (UMBA). Founded in 1991, UMBA strives to promote diversity and address issues that impact people of color, especially within the legal community.

Nadesan, an attorney with the Salt Lake City office of Snell & Wilmer, graduated from the University of Utah College of Law where he was a Leary Scholar. Born in Colombo, Sri Lanka, he came to the United States in 1975, graduated cum laude from Cornell University with a B.A., Biology and Philosophy, and was a graduate student in the Department of Philosophy and the Department of Human Genetics at the University of Utah.

According to Nadesan, under his leadership, the organization plans to create a current complete directory of all minority members of the legal profession who practice in Utah. “While the Utah State Bar includes an optional membership field in its licensing data, they do not have complete directory of minority members,” he said.

Nadesan said the Utah State Bar lists approximately 104 minority attorneys in Utah. The first minority attorney in Utah was Lawrence Marsh, an African-American was admitted to practice law in 1909 and was subsequently disbarred in 1911. Last year, the UMBA recognized Mr. Marsh along with the first 50 minority attorneys to be admitted in Utah. UMBA is also trying to reinstate Mr. Marsh’s bar membership posthumously.

Nadesan said many of the members of the Minority Bar have contributed to bettering society through their service and efforts to create opportunities for others. “Many advocate for the civil rights and legal protections of the indigent and disadvantaged and volunteer their time and energy to various Boards and organizations to provide service to the community.”

He said the Utah Minority Bar Association won the President's Award from the Utah State Bar in July for its dedication and hard work in promoting diversity in the Utah State Bar. More importantly, the Minority Bar received the 2006 Partnership Program Award from the American Bar Association for its efforts to increase diversity in the legal profession. He said the Utah Minority Bar Association was selected over several large state and major metropolitan bars to receive the award, including the California State Bar.

10-30-2006

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Snell & Wilmer, L.L.P.

UTAH ATTORNEYS PETITION U.S. SUPREME COURT TO HEAR ‘CRUEL AND UNUSUAL’ MANDATORY SENTENCE CASE
A petition has been filed with the U.S. Supreme Court by Utah attorneys on behalf of Weldon Angelos who was sentenced to 55 years imprisonment for selling marijuana.

In a rare show of support, an impressive list of 145 legal luminaries, mostly former federal judges and federal prosecutors, signed an amicus brief on Friday backing Angelos’s case. The group includes four former US Attorneys General (Griffin Bell, Benjamin Civiletti, Nicholas Katzenbach, and Janet Reno) and a former director of the FBI (William Sessions).

In 2002, Angelos sold three 8-ounce bags of marijuana, worth a few hundred dollars each, to an informant working with law enforcement. The informant claimed that Angelos had possessed a gun during two of the transactions. Angelos, a first-time offender, was charged in federal court with offenses that triggered mandatory sentences.

According to University of Utah law professor Erik Luna, a criminal justice expert and counsel of record in Angelos’s case, mandatory minimum sentencing has distorted the entire system.

“To put it bluntly,” Luna said, “a first-time, low-level offender is treated as though he were the marijuana equivalent of Al Capone or Manuel Noriega. Yet ironically, not even these ruthless, violent, contraband-running criminals received the draconian sentence that was imposed on Weldon Angelos.” Luna and Jerome Mooney represented Mr. Angelos before the federal court of appeals. Mooney, a respected Utah criminal defense attorney, had represented Angelos at trial.

Former Utah Supreme Court Chief Justice Michael D. Zimmerman, a partner with the law firm of Snell & Wilmer, and Troy Booher, an attorney with the firm, are also on the Angelos appellate team. Zimmerman says the Angelos case ignores the fundamentals of the justice system.

“Mandatory minimum sentencing laws,” Zimmerman says, “which select specific crimes for draconian punishment out of any proportion to the rest of the criminal code, represent a fundamental corruption of the justice system.” Booher adds, “it is unconscionable that the Constitution could be held to provide protection for corporations by way of punitive damages and yet not provide any meaningful limits on draconian jail terms for individuals.”

During its current term, the U.S. Supreme Court will decide whether to accept the petition filed by Luna, Mooney, Zimmerman, and Booher.

10-30-2006

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Ober & Kaler, P.C.

Ober|Kaler Awards $35,000 in Grants to Three Nonprofits
National law firm Ober|Kaler announced the recipients of its Community Grants Program today. The annual program awards $35,000 in grants to three nonprofit community organizations dedicated to improving the lives of at-risk youth in the Baltimore and Washington, DC metro areas. Paul's Place and Project Northstar will each receive a $10,000 Ober|Kaler Community Grant. A special $15,000 will go to the University of Baltimore Educational Foundation. In addition to awarding the grant, employees of the firm will volunteer their time to the Foundation's Truancy Court Program.

The Ober|Kaler Community Grants Program was established in 2003 on the occasion of the firm's 100th anniversary. A committee comprised of the firm's principals, associates, and staff members chose this year's recipients — from among 170 applications — for their specific programs focused on enriching the lives of underprivileged children, improving living standards for lower income families with children, and creating educational opportunities for at-risk youth. The committee based its selection on perceived need, the community served, and the impact the grant would have on the selected organization.

Paul's Place Inc. will receive a $10,000 grant for its After-school Enrichment Program for High School Students. This program focuses on helping at-risk high school students in the Washington Village/Pigtown community to stay in school, succeed academically, and to prepare for employment or education beyond high school.
Project Northstar will receive a $10,000 grant for its Tutoring and Mentoring Expansion Program. This tutoring program serves children who are homeless, living in foster care, public housing, or one of the poor, underserved neighborhoods in the Washington, DC area.
University of Baltimore Educational Foundation will receive a $15,000 grant for its Truancy Court Program. Through therapeutic intervention and prevention, this program reaches at-risk Baltimore City elementary and middle school students who are having difficulties with school attendance. On a given day, approximately 6,000 of the 89,000 the City's public school students are truant.

10-30-2006

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Norris, Mclaughlin & Marcus, P.A.

Attorneys to Discuss Environmental Compliance Issues at NJBIA Seminar
The Somerville law firm Norris McLaughlin & Marcus, P.A. is pleased to announce that Member Edward A. Hogan and Associate Patrick T. Mottola will speak at a seminar entitled “How to Comply with State Environmental Regulations,” sponsored by the New Jersey Business & Industry Association (NJBIA). The half-day seminar will be held at the Forsgate Country Club from 8:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. on Wednesday, November 15, 2006. Hogan will open the program with an overview of environmental compliance issues and Mottola will participate on a panel entitled “Solid and Hazardous Waste.”

If a business fails to comply with New Jersey’s strict environmental regulations or fails to get a needed permit, it could be hit with a costly fine or even require litigation. Learn the basics of environmental compliance in this seminar from the state’s top officials and experts. Attendees will be taught what they need to know to be in compliance and receive an overview of every major permitting area within the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP), including the actions and documents that may be required of them. Speakers will discuss key telephone numbers, contacts and internet links to help attendees quickly acquire the information they need. Business owners with little or no knowledge about permitting are encouraged to attend this seminar.

The cost for this seminar is $109 for NJBIA members and $139 for non-members. For more information or to register, contact Alex Hollywood at 609-393-7707, ext. 262, ahollywood@njbia.org, or visit www.njbia.org.

Founded in 1910 by a group of manufacturers who wanted to share ideas about workplace safety and who wanted to have a say in government policies affecting their business, NJBIA is an employer association providing information, services and advocacy for its member companies in order to build a more prosperous New Jersey, with more than 23,000 member companies in all industries and in every region of the State. Members include manufacturers, service providers, retailers, wholesalers, builders and engineers, among others. As a group, NJBIA members employ more than one million people – approximately one-third of the State's private-sector workforce. NJBIA is widely regarded as the most credible and effective advocate for business in the State.

As co-chair of the Norris McLaughlin & Marcus Environmental Law Group, Hogan devotes his practice to environmental law and litigation, counseling manufacturers, commercial and industrial landlords and highly-regulated service businesses in all aspects of environmental law and litigation. He has written and co-authored numerous articles and alerts on the subject of environmental law. He has also presented seminars and presentations on the subject since 1983.

Hogan is or has served as Chairman of the Environmental Law Section of the New Jersey State Bar Association, the New Jersey OSHA & Business Communication Alliance, the Technical Regulations Advisory Coalition, and the Environmental Committees of the Commerce and Industry Association of New Jersey, the Ironbound Business Association, and the New Jersey Business and Industry Association.

A resident of Somerset County, Hogan earned his J.D. from Georgetown University, his M.F.S. from Yale University School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and his B.S. from Saint Peter’s College.

A resident of Franklin Township, Warren County, Mottola focuses his practice on environmental compliance, regulation and litigation. He regularly serves clients on environmental issues including ISRA compliance, site remediation and Brownfields redevelopment projects, underground storage tank laws, and permitting, including air, water, waste and wetlands. Mottola has served in litigation and enforcement matters relating to wetlands delineation, CAFRA, hazardous waste, insurance coverage for mold contamination, and the New Jersey Spill Compensation and Control Act.

Mottola is a member of the American and New Jersey State Bar Associations, the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce Environmental Committee, the Environmental Business Council of the Commerce and Industry Association of New Jersey, the Association of Engineering Geologists, as well as a Barrister of the Justice Stewart G. Pollock Environmental American Inn of Court. He has been published in the New Jersey Law Journal and Commerce Magazine, and has spoken on Environmental Law and Regulation for the Rutgers University-Cook College Continuing Professional Education Program.

10-30-2006

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Nexsen Pruet Adams & Kleemeier, P.C.

Josh Ellis Joins Nexsen Pruet's Litigation Group
Joshua L. Ellis has joined the Charleston office of Nexsen Pruet, LLC, where he will serve as an associate in the firm’s business litigation practice group.

Ellis comes to Nexsen Pruet from the Atlanta office of a national law firm. While there, he gained a broad base of experience in helping companies to develop and implement strategies to avoid employment claims and lawsuits, and to maximize their rights to manage and direct their workforce.

He also has experience in litigation, arbitration, and contract negotiation in employment-related matters, and has drafted and analyzed a broad range of documents such as employment contracts, compensation and incentive agreements, employee handbooks, benefits policies, and severance agreements.

“Josh’s experience covers key areas for our clients,” said Leighton Lord, chairman of the board of Nexsen Pruet. “He’s strong in general business litigation as well as labor and employment law. He is a great addition to our firm.”

Ellis also served as a clerk for the Hon. G. Thomas Cooper of the Fifth Judicial Circuit in Columbia, SC, assisting in the drafting and preparation of orders, judicial opinions, and other related materials.

While in law school, Ellis worked with Synergy Sports International, Inc., in Columbia, where he helped negotiate and draft multimillion-dollar contracts on behalf of more than 30 professional athletes – including five first-round NFL picks – and various NCAA Division I basketball and football coaches.

10-30-2006

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Mayer Brown LLP

Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw advises AstraZeneca and CAT on sale of Humira® royalty stream to Royalty Pharma
International law firm Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP's Corporate group has acted for AstraZeneca and its subsidiary Cambridge Antibody Technology Limited (CAT) in the disposal by CAT of its Humira® royalty stream to Royalty Pharma for a cash consideration of around $700 million. The sale signed and completed on 25 October.

This was an innovative deal for AstraZeneca and relates to the first product from the UK biotech industry to achieve blockbuster status. Humira® is a drug developed and marketed by Abbott to treat rheumatoid arthritis.

London senior partner Paul Maher and IP partner Sarah Byrt led the Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw team, supported by tax partner Peter Steiner, corporate associates Karrie Walsh and Hwei Tan and IP associate Sangeeta Puran. US law support was provided within the London office by Mark Uhrynuk and Paul de Bernier.

Goodwin Procter of Boston advised Royalty Pharma.

10-30-2006

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Latham & Watkins

LATHAM & WATKINS ELECTS 26 NEW PARTNERS
Latham & Watkins LLP1 is pleased to announce that 25 associates and one counsel, representing all five of the firm's departments and 12 offices across the US, Europe and Asia, have been elected to the partnership, effective January 1, 2007.

"We are delighted to announce another group of extraordinary partners with diverse backgrounds and broad practice area expertise," said Latham & Watkins' Chairman and Managing Partner, Robert M. Dell. "These new partners bring a wealth of experience that can be applied to our clients around the world. I am proud of their accomplishments and their commitment to the firm, including their demonstrated teamwork, mentoring and active participation in the management of our firm," added Dell.

10-30-2006

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