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Hancock, Rothert & Bunshoft, L.L.P.

Philadelphia Bar Association Chancellor Jane Dalton Touts Judicial Independence
Incoming Philadelphia Bar Association Chancellor Jane Leslie Dalton told members yesterday that promoting "judicial independence" would be one of her top goals for 2007.

"The freedom we enjoy as Americans depends, above all, on our courts," Dalton, Duane Morris' first female partner, told the audience at the association's winter quarterly luncheon. "This most vulnerable branch of our government is being attacked. The judges cannot speak out and defend themselves. We can and we must."

Dalton knows a thing or two about successfully speaking up on behalf of judges.

Along with Duane Morris partner John Soroko and Robert Heim of Dechert, she represented a group of common pleas judges from across the state in their effort to convince the state Supreme Court to reinstate the judicial salary increases repealed in the fall of 2005 after the General Assembly's pay-raise legislation from earlier that summer led to significant public backlash.

In a widely publicized September opinion, a five-justice majority ruled in favor of the judges.

"Our judges must be free to render decisions based on the rule of law without fear of reprisal," Dalton stressed yesterday.

Noting that a round of state court judicial elections will be held in 2007, Dalton urged bar members to stay on top of which candidates have been listed as recommended by the association's judicial elections commission, and then share that information with friends and family.

Though she said that the association's recommendations will, as in years past, be publicized by the bar, Dalton did not specifically address a chief concern for the bar during election years: How to persuade powerbrokers in the local Democratic Party machine to consider the association's suggestions before the party officially endorses individual judicial candidates.

Besides judicial independence, Dalton said the other top goals of her 2007 agenda would be membership outreach and reminding the community of the legal industry's impact on the region's economy.

Dalton said the bar must do more to attract local law students to long-term careers in Philadelphia.

She suggested that creating a program that matches local law school students with attorneys who need assistance with pro bono cases could help both Philadelphia's ability to retain legal talent and bar members' efforts to increase pro bono output.

As for her third goal, Dalton said that she wants to highlight "the importance of the legal community to the economic prosperity of our city."

Dalton, like her recent predecessors, also plans to lobby City Council to reform Philadelphia's tax scheme; in particular, the controversial business privilege tax. She noted that city law firms pay nearly three-quarters of the BPT revenue generated by levies on professional services entities.

Dalton will be the association's fourth female chancellor.

The grandmother of seven spoke of how after she graduated from Smith College, "at job interviews, the primary question posed to me was whether I could type."

She also joked about learning she was pregnant soon after accepting an offer to join Duane Morris out of law school.

"I arrived at the firm that summer seven months pregnant - and no one ever told me they didn't know I was pregnant," she said.

Before Dalton addressed the membership, two Center City attorneys were presented with an annual association award for their work as co-coordinators of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania's prisoner civil rights panel.

The 2006 Wachovia Fidelity Award's co-winners - Stephen Brown of Dechert and Samuel Silver of Schnader Harrison Segal & Lewis - have headed that panel since 1993.

Another honoree yesterday was Ken Shear, the association's longtime executive director. Shear was recognized for his 30-year commitment to the bar.

And outgoing Chancellor Alan M. Feldman was presented with a memento of his year at the bar's helm by current Pennsylvania Bar Association President Kenneth Horoho Jr.

The Pittsburgh attorney said that Feldman started out 2006 appearing to be in the 5-foot-9 range, but finished his year as chancellor looking as tall as Wilt Chamberlain.

"Next year he's going to make a lot of money," Horoho said, referring to a bar chancellor's traditional diminution in practice duties during his or her year in power. "So the perfect gift is a new money clip.

12-06-2006

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Alston & Bird LLP

Yukiko Ko to Speak on Cross-Border Privacy Rules at APEC Data Privacy Seminar
Yukiko Ko has been invited to speak at the first technical assistance seminar on international implementation of the APEC Privacy Framework 2007: “Creating Trust in Developing Cross-Border Privacy Rules: Making Compliance Possible and Enforcement Credible when Personal Information Moves between Economies," in Canberra, Australia, January 22-23.

The Data Privacy Subgroup of the Electronic Commerce Steering Group (ECSG) has developed the APEC Privacy Framework with the aim of both promoting consumer protection and facilitating e-commerce in the region. The Framework was fully endorsed by the APEC ministers in 2005. Currently, the Data Privacy Subgroup is developing Cross-Border Privacy Rules (CBPRs) based on the APEC Privacy Framework. CBPRs will make compliance with the local privacy requirements easier for businesses to transfer personal information within the APEC jurisdictions. Also, consumers in the region can address privacy concerns against merchants in other jurisdiction through CBPRs. Governments can develop effective cross-border cooperation for investigation and enforcement. So CBPRs bring benefits to all parties in the region - governments, businesses, and consumers.

Yukiko will be speaking about the options for the APEC Cross-Border Privacy Rules – the kind of instruments or institutions that should be included in the APEC CBPRs in order for the APEC CBPR to be beneficial for businesses, consumers and governments in the region. The seminar will be crucial in developing the APEC CBPRs.

Other major invited speakers include:
- the Privacy Commissioner of Australia;
- the Attorney-General of Australia;
- the Deputy Chair of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission;
- the U.S. FTC Commissioner;
- the Information and Privacy Commissioner for British Columbia, Canada.

Key government officials in charge of privacy issues from Japan, South Korea, China, Singapore, Mexico, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Peru, Chile, Russia are expected to attend the seminar. Businesses and consumer advocacy groups in the region will also be attending.

Australia's hosting of APEC coincides with its domestic Privacy Act reform process. Discussion at the APEC Data Privacy Seminar may have an influence on the reform of Australia's Privacy Act, which is originally based on the EU's privacy law.

Yukiko is the Director of the Global Business Strategy Practice of Alston & Bird LLP and she leads the Asia-Pacific E-Commerce & Privacy Forum.

12-06-2006

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Willkie, Farr & Gallagher, LLP

Firm Advises Colony Capital in Bid to Take Station Casinos Private
On December 4, Station Casinos, Inc. announced that its Board of Directors received a bid from Fertitta Colony Partners LLC proposing to acquire all of the company's outstanding common stock for $82 per share in cash. Fertitta Colony Partners LLC is a new company formed by Frank J. Fertitta III, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Station, Lorenzo J. Fertitta, Vice Chairman and President of Station, and Colony Capital Acquisitions, LLC, an affiliate of Willkie client Colony Capital, LLC. The transaction puts an enterprise value of approximately $9 billion on Station and an equity value of $4.8 billion. A Special Committee of independent directors has been charged with reviewing the bid. With 13 properties and over 10,000 employees, Station is the leading provider of gaming and entertainment to the residents of Las Vegas, Nevada. Colony Capital is a private, international investment firm focusing primarily on real estate-related assets, securities and operating companies. The firm has invested approximately $20 billion in over 8,000 assets through various corporate, portfolio and complex property transactions. The Willkie team advising Colony Capital includes partners Thomas Cerabino and Richard Reinhold; and associates Adam Turteltaub, Daniel Backer, Jeffery Fang, Alycia Green, Lior Hendler, Thomas Henry, Danielle Sheer and Kelly Sutherland.

12-06-2006

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Thompson Hine LLP

Firm Elects New Partners
The law firm of Thompson Hine LLP elected five new partners effective January 1, 2007:

Elizabeth Dallas Gobeil, a member of the firm’s Life Sciences practice group in the Atlanta office. She focuses her practice on the laws and regulations pertaining to the development, promotion and distribution of FDA-regulated products.

Joseph B. Koczko, a member of the firm’s Business Litigation practice group in the New York office, focuses his practice in the areas of litigation and dispute resolution. He represents companies and individuals in a wide range of matters, including commercial and securities, intellectual property, employment, and contract disputes.

Bryce A. Lenox, a member of the firm’s Business Litigation practice group in the Cincinnati office. He focuses his practice on general commercial litigation and environmental litigation.

Penny S. Smith, a member of the firm’s Life Sciences practice group in the Atlanta office. She focuses her practice on pharmaceutical and device product research and development.

David J. Willbrand, a member of the firm’s Corporate Transactions & Securities practice group in the Cincinnati office. He focuses on the representation of emerging companies and venture capital funds.

12-06-2006

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Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

Eric Friedman Speaks at Financial Institutions Seminar
M&A partner Eric Friedman was among the speakers at the PLI program "Understanding Complex Financial Institutions," which took place December 6 in New York City. The program provided a greater understanding of the basic underpinnings of the Securities Act of 1933, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and subsequent SEC rulemaking. Topics covered included the Securities Act registration process, the liability for securities law violations, regulation of tender offers, recent developments in the area and more.

12-06-2006

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Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

Allan Soobert Speaks at Intellectual Property Conference
Washington, D.C. intellectual property and technology partner Allan Soobert was among the speakers at the Law Seminars International workshop, "Corporate Transactions Law for Intellectual Property Lawyers." The conference, which was held December 6 in Arlington, Virginia, was designed for intellectual property lawyers and industry executives looking to identify major corporate law issues and to understand the impact of intellectual property law on corporate transactions. Mr. Soobert spoke on the current state of intellectual property as a core asset and discussed the firm's recent success in eBay v. MercExchange.

12-06-2006

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Shughart, Thomson & Kilroy, P.C.

KC LAW FIRM WINS ONE-OF-A KIND CASE
Kansas City, MO-Attorney Dennis Palmer helped a mother and an insurance provider avoid liability of more than $1,000,000.00. Federal Judge Fernando Gaitan Jr, in the Western District of Missouri awarded summary judgement in an ERISA case involving medical insurance, divorced parents and a child with a fatal illness.

Shughart Thomson & Kilroy attorney Dennis Palmer stated, “It is gratifying to help our client Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas. We are very happy with this result. In awarding summary judgment in a case involving the interpretation of coordination of benefit provisions in health care plans, the judge agreed that the divorced father’s group health care plan and not the mother’s was responsible to pay the health care expenses of the child.”

The case is unique because the child lived with his mother for many years. She was providing support and care for him at the time of his illness and declared the child as her dependent on her tax return. But the father had legal custody according to the Divorce Decree. The mother and father lived in Texas where he worked for Butler Manufacturing, headquartered in Kansas City. The child had a terminal illness and incurred medical expenses totaling more than $1,000,000.00.

The crux of the case centered around the definition of the phrase “parent with custody.” Judge Gaitan wrote, “The Divorce Decree granted custody to Michael Richardson. The provision of health care coverage is one of the duties of a parent. Although the parties may have agreed among themselves to a different living arrangement for their son, the Divorce Decree was never officially modified. Thus the Butler plan is primarily responsible for the child’s bills.”

Palmer says there have been no other reported cases like this involving the living arrangements of the child of divorced parents with each side claiming the other parent’s insurance was responsible. Attorneys Greg Bentz, Monica Fanning, Matt Lytle and paralegal Mary Beth Siernek also worked on the case.

12-06-2006

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