Law Firm News

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Law Firm News

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Proskauer & Rose, LLP

Anthony Pacheco of Proskauer Rose Elected President of Los Angeles Police Commission
Proskauer Rose LLP, an international law firm with more than 700 lawyers worldwide, is proud to announce that Anthony Pacheco, a partner in the Los Angeles office, has been elected President of the Los Angeles Police Commission.

Comprised of five commissioners, the Police Commission is the head of the Los Angeles Police Department. Acting on behalf of the over 4 million residents of Los Angeles, the Commission sets policy for the L.A.P.D. and provides civilian oversight of all aspects of the department's operations and conduct. Mr. Pacheco began serving as a commissioner in 2005.

"I'm extremely honored to hold this position and look forward to continuing to serve the community," said Mr. Pacheco. "My last two years on the commission have given me an in-depth understanding of the issues facing the L.A.P.D. and the community. I gladly accept this new leadership position and look forward to using it as an opportunity to address the issues that impact all residents of Los Angeles such as gang violence, community-police relations, Consent Decree compliance, and homelessness, among many, many others."

Mr. Pacheco is deputy chair of Proskauer's Corporate Defense and Investigations Practice Group and focuses on litigation matters such as special investigations, Foreign Corrupt Practice Act investigations, and criminal defense. Prior to joining Proskauer, Mr. Pacheco served for five years as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Central District of California. As a federal prosecutor he handled all aspects of criminal prosecutions including a hostage takeover bank robbery, bribery of a U.S. Consular official in Belize, and illegal trafficking in counterfeit access devices.

"This extraordinary vote of confidence and recognition of Anthony puts him at the highest level of our city's government and vests in him an extraordinary responsibility. We're extremely proud and congratulate him for his willingness to serve in this important role," said Bert H. Deixler, head of Proskauer's Los Angeles office.

"Anthony's dedication to civic service is matched only by his skills as a litigator," said Allen I. Fagin, chairman of Proskauer. "The City of Los Angeles is fortunate to have him in such a role and we are fortunate to have him as a partner."

08-02-2007

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Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP

Murray Hill Properties Sells Building to The Moinian Group
As reported in the August 1 New York Law Journal, the firm represented Murray Hill Properties in its sale of a 12-story building at 417 Fifth Avenue to a joint venture between The Moinian Group and Whitehall Properties. The sale price of $250 million, or $640 per square foot, for our clients over the nearly two years that the property was held by Murray Hill and its joint venture partner GEBAM Inc., a subsidiary of General Electric Capital. Real estate counsel Allen Wieder and associate Yossi Subar represented the seller in the transaction.

08-02-2007

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Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P.

Fulbright Partner Stephen Pate Receives Prestigious Olshan Award for E-Discovery Work
Stephen Pate, a partner in the Houston office of Fulbright & Jaworski received the Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel's (FDCC) Joseph R. Olshan Award for his work in chairing the FDCC's E-Discovery Task Force. The award was presented at the Federation's Annual Meeting in Sun

Under Pate's leadership, the Task Force produced a 12-author, 131-page manual designed for use by active trial lawyers dealing with e-discovery issues. The group also produced a FDCC program on e-discovery moderated by Fox News commentator Mercedes Colwin which included presentations by former Judge Ronald Hedges, author of The Judge's Pocket Guide to E-Discovery, and Laura Kibbe, e-discovery counsel for Pfizer Industries. This program was initially presented at the FDCC Annual meeting and will now be presented nationally. The program consisted of a mock client meeting, mock meet and confer session, and a mock sanctions hearing.

The Olshan Award was established by the FDCC in memory of Joseph Olshan, longtime executive director of FDCC. The award is presented annually to the chair of a board committee, administrative committee, or special project whose work and dedication as chair has made the most significant contribution to advancing the FDCC's goals of knowledge, justice and fellowship.

Federation membership is highly selective and is limited to 1100 defense counsel. It also has an active membership consisting of corporate counsel and executives from the United States, Australia, Canada, Asia, and Europe. Fulbright has a long history of involvement with the FDCC. Three Fulbright partners--John Williams, Dudley Oldham and L.S. Carsey -- have all served as presidents of FDCC. Currently, Oldham, Reagan Brown, and Scott Incerto are also FDCC members.

"Steve earned this award due to his hard work and dedication to the work of the FDCC. The award is a fitting recognition of his service to the organization," said Oldham. "Steve's ongoing efforts follows a long tradition of Fulbright partners who have supported the organization and its corporate defense efforts."

Pate was also reelected as a vice president of the FDCC. Pate is a member of Fulbright's e-discovery practice group. He is also a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates and is listed in Best Lawyers in America, Texas Super Lawyers and Chamber's Guide to America's Leading Lawyers. He frequently counsels clients on e-discovery issues.

08-02-2007

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Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P.

Fulbright Partner Elected Chair of Arlington School Board
Fulbright partner David M. Foster will immediately begin service as chair of the Arlington School Board for the 2007-08 school year, following his election at the board’s annual organizational meeting.

Foster joined the Arlington School Board in January 2000 after working for many years in Arlington school and civic organizations.

A past president of the Arlington County Civic Federation, Foster is a member of the Arlington Chamber of Commerce and has served on the County Council of PTAs and its executive board, the Arlington Community Foundation’s Education Fund Advisory Committee, the Arlington Public Schools Strategic Planning Committee and the Superintendent’s Budget Advisory Group. He is a member of the Virginia Attorney General's Task Force on Internet Youth Safety.

Foster co-chairs a firm-wide litigation practice group dedicated to antitrust and trade regulation matters. He has extensive experience dealing with investigations brought by the Department of Justice, the Federal Trade Commission, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and other agencies as well as state attorneys general.

08-02-2007

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Foley & Lardner

Foley Study Reveals Continued High Cost of Being Public
According to the fifth annual study conducted by Foley & Lardner LLP on the costs associated with corporate governance reform, companies of all sizes experienced double-digit percentage increases in compliance costs during fiscal year 2006 in comparison to fiscal year 2001, the year prior to the enactment of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

Specifically, the Foley study reports that the average cost of compliance for companies with under $1 billion in annual revenue has increased more than $1.7 million to approximately $2.8 million since the enactment of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. This represents a 171 percent overall increase between fiscal years 2001 and 2006.

“Compliance costs for all companies have continued to remain high, even after the impact of Section 404 of the Act has been realized and absorbed,” said Tom Hartman, study director and Foley partner. “We did see a decrease in certain costs during 2006, particularly in internal costs associated with Section 404 compliance. Nevertheless, out-of-pocket costs continued to rise at double-digit rates in 2006.”

Out-of-pocket costs associated with Sarbanes-Oxley compliance were up 13 percent in fiscal year 2006 from fiscal year 2005 for public companies with annual revenue of under $1 billion, and were up 12 percent over the same period for public companies with annual revenues over $1 billion. The increased cost of audit fees, board compensation and legal fees were the primary drivers of these out-of-pocket percentage increases.

Audit Fees Continue to Increase
External audit fees have continued to increase and represent a significant expense for public companies. The increases seen in connection with the initial implementation of Section 404 in fiscal year 2004 have been sustained in fiscal years 2005 and 2006.

On average, external audit fees have increased 271 percent between fiscal years 2001 and 2006 for companies with under $1 billion in revenue. Between fiscal years 2005 and 2006, external audit fees for these companies increased by 4 percent.

“Some experts predicted that external audit fees would decrease after the initial implementation of Section 404 audits as external auditors became more familiar with their client's accounting controls and therefore more efficient in conducting their audits,” explained Hartman. “Our study results do not support this prediction. Indeed, external audit fees have been the only cost our study has shown to increase every year since the Sarbanes-Oxley Act was passed.”

In fiscal year 2006, audit fees alone represent more than 47 percent of out-of-pocket costs associated with compliance for public companies with under $1 billion in annual revenue and 60 percent for companies with $1 billion and over in annual revenue.

Audit fees have, however, leveled off in 2006 for companies of all sizes with relatively modest year-over-year increases. The percentage increase in average audit fees was relatively consistent for all companies analyzed with a five percent increase for S&P small-cap companies, a four percent increase for S&P mid-cap companies and a six percent increase for S&P 500 companies.

Going Private
Consistent with results from previous years, nearly one in four survey respondents, or 23 percent, are considering going-private transactions as a result of corporate governance and public disclosures reforms. Additionally, respondents to Foley's 2007 survey continue to consider other options, including selling the company (16 percent), and merging with another company (14 percent).

“It is no surprise that this year's respondents are increasingly seeking alternatives to going private transactions,” said Hartman. “This is most likely due to increased awareness among the business community of the attractive prices being paid over the last year by private equity players in the mergers and acquisitions market.”

08-02-2007

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Davis Wright Tremaine LLP

Davis Wright Tremaine Partner Eric Stahl Appointed Copyright Society National Trustee
Davis Wright Tremaine partner Eric M. Stahl has been elected a national trustee of the Copyright Society of the U.S.A. (CSUSA). One of seven newly elected Copyright Society trustees, Stahl was a founding member and original chair of the society’s Pacific Northwest chapter.

Stahl represents copyright owners and users in key industries including motion pictures, newspaper publishing, music publishing and recording, and advertising as an advisor and litigator. In addition to copyright matters, Stahl regularly advises media clients on defamation, access and other content-related issues, and works with advertisers and other businesses on regulatory and litigation matters.

CSUSA is a center of the U.S. copyright community for business people, lawyers in private practice and in-house, law professors and law students who share a common interest in copyright and related intellectual property rights. A not-for-profit corporation founded in 1953, the Society works to advance the study and understanding of copyright law and related rights, the scope of rights in literature, music, art, theater, motion picture, television, computer software, architecture, and other works of authorship, and their distribution via both traditional and new media.

08-02-2007

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Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC

Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney Shareholder Guillermo Fernández-Quincoces Re-elected to Board of Bacardi Limited
Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC announced today that shareholder Guillermo J. Fernández-Quincoces has been elected for another year to the board of directors of Bacardi Limited (Bermuda). Fernández-Quincoces, vice chairman of the Buchanan's International Tax Practice, has served on Bacardi's board for five years and is as member of its audit committee as well as the chair of its compensation committee.

Bacardi Limited is the largest privately held spirits company in the world and produces and markets a variety of internationally recognized spirits. Bacardi Limited's brand portfolio consists of more than 250 brands and labels, including Bacardi® rum, Grey Goose® vodka, Dewar's® Scotch whiskey, Bombay Sapphire® gin, Cazadores® blue agave tequila and Martini & Rossi® vermouth.

About Fernández-Quincoces

Fernández-Quincoces focuses his practice on estate and trust planning and administration, business tax and transactional practice, charitable planning and giving, international transactions and taxation, and tax-exempt entities and charitable organizations. He is a former member of the firm's board of directors.

He represents Fortune 100 companies (in the foodstuffs and leisure industries) in setting up operations in each of the major countries in South America; selecting tax and entity structure of the operations in each of the applicable countries; and coordinating such structuring with local counsel and in-house tax departments and/or general counsel.

Fernández-Quincoces received his J.D. degree from Boston University School of Law and his M.B.A. from Harvard University. He is fluent in Spanish and is also a Certified Public Accountant.

08-02-2007

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