Law Firm News

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Law Firm News

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Debevoise & Plimpton, LLP

Trident IV, L.P. in Agreement to Acquire Automobile Protection Corporation (APCO) From Ford Motor Company
Debevoise & Plimpton LLP is advising Trident IV, L.P. in its definitive agreement to acquire, in partnership with APCO’s management team, APCO from Ford Motor Company. APCO’s management team has committed to purchase a significant portion of APCO’s equity on the same terms as Trident IV. Trident IV is a private equity fund managed by Stone Point Capital LLC.

Stone Point Capital is a global private equity firm that manages the Trident Funds and has raised more than $8 billion in committed capital to make investments in the global insurance and financial services industries. Debevoise & Plimpton LLP is a leading international law firm with offices in New York, Washington D.C., London, Paris, Frankfurt, Moscow, Hong Kong and Shanghai.

The Debevoise team is led by partner Stephen R. Hertz and associate Stephen A. Levey and includes partners Daniel M. Abuhoff, William B. Beekman, David P. Mason and Seth L. Rosen, counsel Kyra K. Bromley and John Dembeck and associates Tali Farimah Farhadian, Matthew A. Heintz, David S. Lebolt and Matthew O’Halloran.

03-02-2007

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Davies, Ward, Phillips & Vineberg, LLP

Davies Corporate/Securities Law Moot
Sears Canada was the most talked-about decision of the Ontario Securities Commission in 2006. Some said the OSC was right to intervene in a flagrantly abusive insider bid, others said the OSC had gone too far in treating normal support agreements with significant shareholders as collateral agreements providing "consideration of greater value" contrary to the take-over bid provisions of the Securities Act. The Sears Canada decision was the main inspiration for the Davies 2007 Corporate/Securities Law Moot which was held in Toronto on March 2 and 3. Just to make things even more interesting for the mooters, the Moot threw in another tricky legal issue: if a corporation undergoes an amalgamation, does it have 18 months from the amalgamation before it needs to hold its next annual shareholders meeting?

Recognized as the leading event of its kind in Canada, the Davies' annual Corporate/Securities Law Moot provides an opportunity for top students from Canadian law schools to debate current legal issues in corporate and securities law with senior practitioners from Toronto law firms and corporations, regulators from the Ontario Securities Commission and judges. The students were tested on their written advocacy (presented in a factum delivered prior to the competition) and their oral advocacy. Each student was required to argue twice during the competition, once on behalf of the appellant and once on behalf of the respondent.

Ten law schools from across Canada competed in the two-day event before panels of judges drawn from the firm, from the judiciary and from the legal and business community. The two top teams, the University of Toronto and the University of Western Ontario, competed in a final round before a five-member panel, consisting of Justices John Laskin, Kathryn Feldman and Robert Blair of the Ontario Court of Appeal, David Brown, former Chair and Chief Executive Officer of the Ontario Securities Commission and now a Partner of Davies in the Toronto office, and Paul Moore, who recently retired from his position as Vice Chair of the Ontario Securities Commission.

The University of Toronto won top prize with a team consisting of Brian Duong, Adam Hirsh, Mark Myhre and Andrew Parley. The team of Maureen Armstrong, Will Buchner, Sonia Cappe, Matt Hawkins and James Mangan from the University of Western Ontario placed second, and the Queen's University team of Michael Blinick, Jeffrey Love, Christopher Slade, Jennifer Stewart and Ora Wexler claimed third place. Faran Umar-Khitab of the University of Windsor was named top oralist of the Moot, second place oralist was Christopher Slade of Queen's, and Matt Hawkins of Western was third place oralist. Factum prizes were awarded to Queen's University and the University of Toronto for their first and second place rankings, respectively, while the University of British Columbia and University of Western Ontario tied for third place.

03-02-2007

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Willkie, Farr & Gallagher, LLP

Willkie Represents Farmers Group in $712 Million Acquisition of Bristol West
It was announced that Willkie client Farmers Group, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Zurich Financial Services Group, has agreed to acquire auto insurer Bristol West Holdings Inc. for $712 million, excluding the assumption of debt. Under the terms of the agreement, the holders of Bristol West common stock will receive $22.50 per share.

With operations in 41 states, Farmers Insurance Group of Companies is the nation's third-largest personal lines property & casualty insurance group. It comprises insurers that provide homeowners, auto, business, and life insurance, as well as financial services to more than 10 million households through 17,000 exclusive and independent agents and district managers. Zurich Financial Services Group is an insurance-based financial services company with approximately 55,000 employees serving customers in more than 120 countries. Bristol West provides private passenger automobile liability and physical damage insurance in 22 states.

The deal was handled by partners Thomas Cerabino, Adam Turteltaub, Richard Reinhold and David Rubinsky; and associates Kelly Sutherland, Michael Brandt, Seth Zelnick, Vladimir Kobzar and Katie Calabrese.

03-02-2007

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Willkie, Farr & Gallagher, LLP

Paris and Frankfurt Offices Advise Sartorius AG on Acquisition of Stake in Stedium SA
Willkie client German lab-equipment maker Sartorius AG announced it has agreed to purchase a controlling stake in French peer Stedim SA, which is controlled by its founders. Under the agreement, Sartorius will pay €43 per share. Announced on February 21, the deal values the Aubagne-based Stedim at €310 million. In conjunction with the acquisition, Sartorius will carve out its biotechnology division, which will be contributed to Stedim against issuance of new Stedim shares and will launch a tender offer to the Stedim shareholders. The contribution of the newly formed German subsidiary is valued at €430 million which already reflects assumed debt of €120 million. At the close of such operations, Sartorius will own more than 70% of Stedim reflecting an equity value of €520 million. Stedim's founders will reinvest in the combined company, holding a substantial stake in the business. The combined group will have headquarters in France and operate under the name Sartorius Stedim Biotech SA. The transaction will be financed by a syndicated loan, which will also be used to substitute an existing general purpose facility of Sartorius AG. The Sartorius Group is an internationally leading laboratory and process technology provider focused in the areas of biotechnology and mechatronics and is listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. The French aspects of the deal were handled by partners Daniel Hurstel and Stéphane Sabatier and special European counsel Julien Mougel. Partners Jochen Winter and Michael Bernhardt handled the German aspects of the deal.

03-02-2007

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Stoel Rives, LLP

Stoel Rives Sends Lawyers to Boot Camp
Stoel Rives held its inaugural Boot Camp for new associates in February 2007, as part of the firm’s Stoel Rives University (SRU) professional development program. Twenty-three recently hired attorneys from the firm’s California, Utah, Idaho, Oregon and Washington offices attended the four-day Boot Camp.

“Our Boot Camp training focuses on four areas: client service, finance and accounting, effective legal writing, and time and project management,” says Rita Alli, Director of Professional Development at Stoel Rives. “We want to give our new associates the tools they need to be successful. We view this as an investment in the next generation of leaders—an investment that we believe will also help our firm, our clients and our communities.” The firm invited one of its clients that excels in customer service, Les Schwab, to a Boot Camp session to discuss how to deliver extraordinary client service.

The Boot Camp wasn’t all hard work. Social activities included attendees cooking their own dinner at a local cooking school and performing in a talent show. As evidence that lawyers don’t always take themselves too seriously, the winning act from the talent show was a four-member band that sang “I Sold My Soul to Rives & Stoel.” The band was so well received that it has been pressed into service at the firm’s upcoming all-attorney retreat in Lake Tahoe.

Response from attendees was extremely positive:

“For me, the most valuable part of Boot Camp was spending quality time with fellow first-year associates and realizing others were going through what I was, as well as building camaraderie with colleagues and gaining practical work skills.”

“The firm has demonstrated its commitment to excellence and teamwork. Those themes ran through everything we did at Boot Camp.”

In addition to the Boot Camp, SRU encompasses a 22-part Universal Curriculum educational program for associates in their early years of practice at Stoel Rives. “We think of the Universal Curriculum as a set of building blocks designed for lawyers in their first few years of practice” says Randy Foster, Stoel Rives’ lead partner for SRU. “We are developing the ‘Stoel Rives lawyer,’ a phrase that represents the high standard of judgment, legal skill and professionalism that our communities, professional colleagues and clients have come to expect from our lawyers.”

Stoel Rives’ commitment to excellence is evidenced by its annual investment of more than $1 million in lawyer professional development. That sum does not include the thousands of hours that the firm’s lawyers spend developing and presenting educational programs each year.

03-02-2007

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Stinson, Morrison & Hecker, L.L.P.

Firm Obtains $485 Million Claims Settlement for Retired Pilots of Delta Airlines
Stinson Morrison Hecker has announced the approval of a settlement between Stinson’s client, the Official Retired Pilots Committee, and Delta Airlines, which has resulted in the allowance of $485 million in claims. The settlement was approved February 22, 2007 by Bankruptcy Court Judge Adlai S. Hardin, Southern District of New York. The claims are allowed to the retired pilots, their spouses and survivors of Delta Airlines for reductions in medical benefits necessitated by Delta's financial difficulties and Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing in September of 2005.

The approval of this settlement follows the court's October 19, 2006, approval of the prior agreement between the Committee and Delta regarding the modification of retiree medical benefits. Stinson Morrison Hecker was retained by the Retired Pilots' Committee in March 2006, and the firm assisted the Committee in negotiating both agreements reached with Delta. The October agreement, and now the $485 million claim settlement, have resulted in the overall preservation of medical benefits and claims providing greater protection to pilot retirees than previously achieved in other prior airline cases.

“This settlement is a significant and important victory for the retired pilots of Delta Airlines,” said Mark Foster, Stinson Morrison Hecker managing partner. “At Stinson Morrison Hecker, in our bankruptcy practice and throughout the firm, we always focus on achieving the optimal result for our client. This settlement is a reflection of that commitment.”

Alisa Lacey, lead counsel for Stinson on this case said, “Judge Hardin commented that this settlement was an excellent example of what can be accomplished when parties work together. While Delta had objected to the appointment of the Committee, the appointment has turned out to be an exceedingly good decision.”

In addition to Lacey, Taylor Ashworth, Chris Graver, Bob West, and Warren Stapleton lead the Stinson team in the Delta case. Based in Phoenix, Lacey, Ashworth, Graver and Stapleton have over 70 years of cumulative experience in complex commercial chapter 11 bankruptcy cases. West, based in Kansas City, has extensive experience in both employee benefits and employment and labor law cases.

Stinson Morrison Hecker has a proven track record and expertise in substantial regional and national bankruptcy cases. Their bankruptcy practice recently ranked number six in Bankruptcy Law360’s survey of the 300 largest U.S. law firms. The firm also ranked as the fourth fastest-growing bankruptcy practice group in the national survey. Additionally, Stinson Morrison Hecker has one of the largest employee benefit practice groups in the Midwest and has extensive experience in handling employee benefits issues to clients ranging from Fortune 500 corporations to closely held businesses.

03-02-2007

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Schiff Hardin LLP

SCHIFF HARDIN HOSTS MUSLIM BAR ASSOCIATION'S MENTORING PROGRAM DINNER
The highlight of the event was a visit from Schiff Hardin attorney Patricia Brown Holmes and other members of the Retired Judges Committee of the Illinois Judges Association, including Hon. Shelvin Singer, (ret.), Hon. William Pendergast, (ret.), Hon. Arthur Perivolidis, (ret.) and Hon. Jesse Reyes, who is the current President of the Illinois Judges Association. Hon. Jesse Reyes stressed the importance of students becoming actively engaged in the legal profession and the great need for diversity.

Following the formal program, the nearly 60 attendees took advantage of the opportunity to meet the judges and attorneys, made contacts and formed mentoring relationships.

03-02-2007

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