Law Firm News

---

Law Firm News

Firm Name

News Title

News

News Date

25383 matches |  20504-20510 displayed

1  2926 2927 2928 2929 2930  3627

---

Cowles & Thompson

Selected Supreme Court Cases -- March-June, 2006
Greg Lensing reviews selected Texas Supreme Court decisions issued between March 3 and June 2, 2006. The cases involve products liability, legal malpractice, trial procedure, bad faith, insurance coverage, employment law, arbitration, and more.

08-07-2006

---

Schiff Hardin LLP

SCHIFF HARDIN'S PATRICIA COSTELLO SLOVAK CHAIRS THE AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION'S LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT LAW SECTION
Schiff Hardin partner Patricia Costello Slovak has become Chair of the Section of Labor and Employment Law of the ABA for a one year term beginning August 8, 2006. She previously was the Chair-Elect and is a Council Member of the Labor and Employment Law Section. The Section has more than 21,000 members and includes attorneys representing employers, employees and unions as well as neutrals, government attorneys, academics, and law students.

08-07-2006

---

Haynes & Boone, LLP

Benefits/compensation expert Susan L. Letney returns to Haynes and Boone, LLP
After a stint as benefits counsel for a Fortune 50 company, employee benefits and executive compensation specialist Susan L. Letney has returned to the Haynes and Boone, LLP Houston office in an Of Counsel capacity.

Ms. Letney has about 20 years experience advising clients in the design and implementation of qualified retirement plans, nonqualified deferred compensation plans, executive compensation arrangements and executive employment agreements, equity compensation programs, health and welfare plans, and severance plans. She also has negotiated and drafted employee benefits and executive compensation provisions in mergers, acquisitions and other corporate transactions.

She had previously served Of Counsel in the Haynes and Boone Houston office during 1997.

Among her clients, Ms. Letney has represented a large nursing home facility in a private acquisition, including treatment of executive contracts, advised an international banking company with respect to benefits and taxation issues for expatriates, and was seconded to a major pharmaceutical company to act as in-house counsel for benefit issues for all global acquisitions and divestitures.

Ms. Letney is a 1988 graduate of the University of Texas Law School, and obtained her BBA in accounting from UT in 1985.

She is a member of the Houston ERISA Industry Group, Southwest Benefits Association, and the tax and labor sections of the Houston, State Bar of Texas and American bar associations.

Haynes and Boone, LLP is an international corporate law firm with offices in Texas, Washington, D.C., Mexico City, Moscow and New York, providing a full spectrum of legal services. With more than 450 attorneys, Haynes and Boone is ranked among the largest law firms in the nation by National Law Journal. The firm has been recognized by Vault.com as one of the ""20 Best Law Firms to Work For,"" by Corporate Board Member Magazine as one of the “Best Corporate Law Firms in America,” and has received the Minority Corporate Counsel Association’s Thomas L. Sager Award for commitment to diversity.

08-07-2006

---

Harris Beach LLC

Behind the Top 100: Harris Beach has long tradition in the field of law
Reprinted with permission by the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle. This article first appeared on August 5, 2006.

Harris Beach was featured as part of an ongoing series by the Democrat & Chronicle on Rochester's Top 100 companies.

Mary Chao
Staff writer

Perinton-based law firm Harris Beach was founded in 1856 with two general practitioners in Rochester. Then known as Ives and Harris, the firm made its mark by representing some of the leading banks, industries and railroads in the area.

The firm has represented some of these companies right through today, handling mergers, takeovers, expansions and IPOs. Harris Beach has nearly 200 attorneys and has offices throughout New York state and in New Jersey. The firm ranked 85th on this year's Top 100 list.

Here, CEO James A. Spitz Jr., 55, of Perinton talks about continuing tradition and how the firm works to retain clients and continue to expand.

How competitive is the Rochester legal market?
The Rochester market is competitive, but we have a unique niche. We are a significant regional law firm that provides services to clients on a local, statewide and national platform. We compete within these multiple markets and we integrate our services to deliver holistic solutions to meet our clients' legal needs.

How do you differentiate your firm from your competitors?
We have multidisciplinary industry teams to complement our traditional legal practice areas to provide solutions unique to client industries. Our offices throughout New York state allow us to provide services with a knowledge of the geographic area where our clients compete. We also provide nonlegal affiliate businesses to assist clients in such areas as facility planning and development, marketing, communications, information technology and human resources.

And as a leader in the area of legislative advocacy, we have two affiliate organizations located in Albany to serve client needs in this area. With all of our services, we are unwavering in our dedication to ensure the highest level of client satisfaction.

Where do you see your firm five years from now?
We will continue to strengthen our presence in each office and expand the legal and nonlegal services we provide to clients. We will continue to look for new and unique ways to provide our clients with a competitive advantage.

Who are some of your major clients?
Our clients include leading manufacturers of consumer and industrial products, science-based companies, educational institutions, health care providers, energy-related businesses, government agencies and financial institutions.

What advice would you have for aspiring young lawyers?
I tell young lawyers to learn to be the best technical lawyers they can be, develop an area of specialization, be well tuned in to your clients' industries, and be actively involved in your communities through civic participation. Be a lawyer who knows how to get to a solution to attain a client's goals, and knows how to effectively communicate to the client the best course of action.

How much has the firm grown in the past decade? Are you still growing?
Within the past decade, the firm has nearly doubled in size and we look to continue to expand here in Rochester and throughout the state and region.

What are some of the significant cases Harris Beach attorneys have worked on over the years?
We represented longtime clients Wilmorite Properties Inc. and Wilmorite Holdings in connection with its acquisition by The Macerich Company, a publicly traded REIT, in a $2.3 billion transaction.

We represented both Cayuga and Seneca counties in the recent Indian land claim suits before the Court of Appeals.

We served as national coordinating counsel for major pharmaceutical companies in large class actions.

What community activities are Harris Beach employees involved in?
We support a number of community and cultural and arts groups, and youth education and sports programs.

In addition to supporting our not-for-profit clients, our attorneys and administrative personnel participate in such events as the JPMorgan Chase Corporate Challenge, American Cancer Society Making Strides Against Breast Cancer fundraiser walk, March of Dimes, United Way, coaching youth sports teams and many more.

How did you personally become interested in law?
A family friend, Rae Clark, Esq., convinced me to intern with his law firm during the summer after my college sophomore year. I found the issues the attorneys dealt with interesting and discovered I had the skills to enjoy the practice of law as a career.

08-07-2006

---

Harris Beach LLC

Governor Signs Bills Authorizing the Imposition of Conditions to Long Term Student Suspensions
Several years ago, Harris Beach attorney Ted Streppa represented a school district in an appeal to the Commissioner of Education involving a student suspension penalty. Following a suspension hearing, a pupil was suspended for 20 weeks for giving a prescription drug to another student. The superintendent’s letter notifying the parents of the suspension stated that the student could “earn back” up to 13 weeks of suspension time provided the student completed 35 hours of community service, three negative drug screens, a drug assessment and weekly meetings with a guidance counselor. The commissioner stated in his decision that the use of agreements or contracts may be permissible in student suspensions, provided none of the conditions in the contract impose any special rules on students that are not similarly imposed on other students. In this case, because the district imposed a number of conditions which had to be fulfilled before this one student could return to school, the commissioner held that “…it is well settled that a school district cannot condition a student’s return to school on participation in counseling or community service.”

With the help of Harris Beach, the district enlisted the support of its local state senator and assemblyman to introduce legislation which effectively reversed the commissioner’s decision. On July 26, Governor Pataki signed into law Chapter 170 of the Laws of 2006 to amend Section 3214(3)(e) of the Education Law. This new provision states: “The board of education may also condition a student’s early return to school and suspension revocation on the pupil’s voluntary participation in counseling or specialized classes, including anger management or dispute resolution, where applicable.” The law became effective immediately.

School districts now have greater flexibility in imposing long term suspensions which allow the student to return to school at an earlier time by completing certain specified requirements. It is uncertain at this time how the Commissioner of Education will interpret the types of “counseling or specialized classes” that may be imposed upon a suspended student to “earn back” suspension time. Nevertheless, this is seen as a great improvement over the prior restrictions placed upon long term suspensions.

If you have any questions about these matters or any other special education matters, contact Ted Streppa at 585-419-8642 or the Harris Beach attorney with whom you usually consult.

08-07-2006

---

Gardner, Carton & Douglas, L.L.P.

Gardner Carton & Douglas Represents Openlands Project in Fort Sheridan Transaction
Gardner Carton & Douglas LLP represented Chicago-based Openlands Project in its acquisition of one mile of Lake Michigan shoreline in Highland Park, Illinois. During the August 1st special signing ceremony near the new Openlands Lakefront Preserve at Fort Sheridan, the Navy and Openlands signed a Memo of Agreement to transfer key lakefront shoreline bluffs and ravines to Openlands at no cost.

Openlands is a 43-year-old conservation organization that works to protect open spaces in the greater Chicago region. They will initiate a fund-raising campaign to pay for restoration, improvements and ongoing maintenance of this property located at the southern end of Fort Sheridan. Restoration activities are planned to begin in Spring 2007.

Barnett P. Ruttenberg, partner in the firm’s Real Estate and Environmental Department, led the GCD team representing Openlands Project. “We are proud to support Openlands in its acquisition of this unique Lake Michigan shoreline property and applaud their commitment to the restoration, improvement and maintenance of this significant public asset,” said Mr. Ruttenberg. GCD associate Lisa Formolo and summer associate Christopher White assisted in this transaction.

Founded nearly 100 years ago, Gardner Carton & Douglas LLP is a leading national law firm with offices in Chicago, Washington, DC, New York City, Milwaukee and Albany. The firm has more than 200 lawyers and advisors practicing in corporate law, corporate restructuring, government relations, health law, HR law (employee benefits and labor and employment), intellectual property, litigation and dispute resolution, real estate and environmental law, and wealth planning and philanthropy. GCD is a member of the World Law Group, a global consortium of firms in the world’s major commercial cities.

08-07-2006

---

Fitzpatrick, Cella, Harper & Scinto

Fitzpatrick Cella Files Three High-Stakes Lawsuits on behalf of Sankyo; Eisai; and Wyeth and Altana
Leading intellectual property law firm Fitzpatrick, Cella, Harper & Scinto announced that it has filed three separate high-stakes lawsuits on behalf of clients Sankyo Co. Ltd.; Eisai Co., Ltd.; and Wyeth and Altana Pharma AG against generic patent challenges.

On July 31, Fitzpatrick filed a complaint on the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey on behalf of Plaintiffs Sankyo Co. Ltd. and Daiichi Sankyo, Inc. (collectively “Sankyo”) against defendants Mylan Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Mylan Laboratories, Inc. The lawsuit involves a generic patent challenge to Sankyo’s largest drug product, Benicar.™ Benicar™ is an angiotensin II receptor antagonist that is prescribed for hypertension. The lawsuit is Sankyo’s first lawsuit involving a generic patent challenge in the United States.

""The timing of filing the complaint, July 31, was chosen to fall within the 45 day window allowed by the Hatch-Waxman Act,"" said lead trial counsel for Sankyo, Joseph M. O'Malley, Jr. ""Within the 45 day window, however, we had some latitude as to the exact filing date. In part, with our clients, we consulted the traditional six day Japanese calendar. The six day Japanese calendar has a general fortune associated with each day. July 31, according to the Japanese calendar, is 'sen-shoh' meaning 'early win'. It is hard to imagine a better fortune under which to begin such an important case for our client Sankyo.""

On August 3, Fitzpatrick filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey on behalf of Plaintiffs Eisai Co., Ltd. and Eisai Inc. (collectively “Eisai”) against defendants Mutual Pharmaceuticals Co., Inc. and United Research Laboratories, Inc. The lawsuit involves a generic patent challenge to Eisai’s hugely successful, billion-dollar-a-year drug product Aricept™. Aricept™ is prescribed for mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease, and is Eisai’s largest drug product.

On August 4, Fitzpatrick filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey on behalf of Plaintiffs Wyeth and Altana Pharma AG (“Altana”) against defendants Kudco Ireland, Ltd., Kremers Urban Development Co., Shwarz Pharma, Inc., Shwarz Pharma USA Holdings, Inc. and Shwarz Pharma AG. The lawsuit involves a generic patent challenge to Wyeth and Altana’s hugely successful, multibillion dollar drug product, Protonix™. Protonix™ is prescribed for heartburn and gastroesophageal reflux disease or GERD, and is Altana’s biggest drug product.

Sankyo is represented by Fitzpatrick partners, Robert L. Baechtold, Joseph M. O’Malley, Jr. and Lisa Pensabene. Eisai is represented by Fitzpatrick partners, Robert L. Baechtold, Joseph M. O’Malley, Jr. and Bruce M. Wexler. Wyeth and Altana are represented by Fitzpatrick partners, Robert L. Baechtold, Joseph M. O’Malley, Jr. and John D. Carlin. The Fitzpatrick firm was recently recognized by Chambers & Partners as one of the leading New York firms in Intellectual Property in Chambers USA’s third edition. Featured attorneys were Robert L. Baechtold and Joseph O’Malley. According to Chambers USA, “[T]here is no doubt as to the supremacy of this firm, which has “some of the best patent lawyers in the business.” Mr. Baechtold is noted for his “experience and excellent courtroom skills” that are “in tremendous demand,” and Mr. O’Malley is referred to as a “thorough litigator who is extremely able when it comes to complex matters.

08-07-2006

---

25383 matches |  20504-20510 displayed

1  2926 2927 2928 2929 2930  3627