Norton Rose Fulbright expands US public finance practice and opens in San Francisco

Norton Rose Fulbright today announced the expansion of its public finance practice by 17 lawyers, including six partners, located in New York, Washington, DC and San Francisco, which marks the global law firm's entrance into the Northern California market.

Expansion of public finance practice

The incoming group of lawyers comprises the entirety of Sidley Austin LLP's public finance practice. Eight lawyers will join Norton Rose Fulbright's New York office, and two will join in Washington, DC. Seven lawyers will help launch a presence for the firm in the new San Francisco office.

Linda Addison, Norton Rose Fulbright's US Managing Partner, said:

"We are delighted to strengthen our robust public finance practice with such a talented and respected group of lawyers, whose healthcare and financial institutions experience aligns closely with our industry-focused approach."

Of the 17 public finance lawyers, six are partners, including Larry Bauer and Matt Hughey in New York; Peter Canzano in Washington, DC; and Jerry McGovern, Eric Tashman and Cliff Gerber in San Francisco.

Senior counsel Michael Burke, Patti Wu and Mark Norell will join the New York office, along with of counsel Homer Schaaf and Frank Robinson and counsel Jinelle Craig. Senior counsel Eric Hebert will be located in Washington, DC. Senior counsel Dave Sanchez and Michele Dulik will be based in San Francisco, along with senior associate Mary Kimura and associate Preston Swapp.

Bob Dransfield, Norton Rose Fulbright's US Head of Finance, said:

"We put client service first and foremost, and our clients will benefit greatly from this impressive team. They will increase the size our public finance team by almost 50 percent to approximately 50 lawyers, making us even better positioned to give coast-to-coast coverage across the US. In addition, their experience in securitizations, healthcare finance and municipal restructurings in particular will enhance our firm's public finance capabilities."

Jerry McGovern, who joins Norton Rose Fulbright following 32 years as a partner at Sidley and predecessor firm Brown & Wood, said:

"We are pleased and excited to be joining Norton Rose Fulbright, a national leader in the public finance arena. We look forward to collaborating with our new colleagues as we expand the scope and reach of our practice. Our goal is to continue to provide our clients with the highest level of service and to assist them in achieving their goals."

This group represents major issuers, underwriters, bondholders, lenders and bond insurers in municipal finance. With experience as bond counsel, underwriter's counsel and disclosure counsel, they advise clients throughout the US and its territories with respect to the issuance of all types of municipal securities.

Both Norton Rose Fulbright and Sidley consistently rank as tier 1 law firms nationally for public finance law in the US News & World Report and Best Lawyers annual "Best Law Firms" survey. Both firms' public finance practices are consistently among the top 10 by Thomson Reuters, based on dollars raised.

Larry Bauer, who comes to Norton Rose Fulbright after serving as Co-Head of Public Finance at Sidley, said:

"This marks the union of two great public finance teams under Norton Rose Fulbright. To put it in perspective, the collective work of these teams would have totaled a second-place ranking in both the bond counsel and underwriter's counsel tables for the first quarter of this year."

Opening of San Francisco office

The San Francisco office marks Norton Rose Fulbright's 12^th in the US and 53^rd worldwide. San Francisco becomes the global law firm's second California office, joining Los Angeles.

Addison, who chairs Norton Rose Fulbright's US Management Committee and also serves on its Global Executive Committee, said:

"We have wanted to expand our firm's West Coast presence for some time, and San Francisco is the ideal location for our strategic growth. These accomplished partners give us a solid foundation in San Francisco, as they possess strong connections to the city's business leaders."

Peter Martyr, Norton Rose Fulbright's Global Chief Executive, said:

"Our global clients have legal needs in California, and this new office will complement the offerings in our Los Angeles office. Our new San Francisco office allows us to grow our practice not only in California, but also in other parts of the US and the world."

Eric Tashman, who served as Head of Sidley's West Coast Public Finance, said:

"We are thrilled to open this Northern California office with Norton Rose Fulbright. Our San Francisco public finance team has deep roots in the community. In addition, our securitization, municipal restructuring and public finance relationships and experience should complement and expand Norton Rose Fulbright's capabilities both locally and nationally."

Rick Robinson, Norton Rose Fulbright's Co-Head of Life Sciences and Healthcare, said:

"This new office will immediately distinguish itself with a remarkable national healthcare finance practice that will provide a strong base for the expansion of our healthcare practice in Northern California. In addition, we have many other practices – from intellectual property to M&A to financial institutions litigation – that will be logical areas of growth for us in San Francisco. We look forward to providing a broad array of services to Northern California clients seeking global and local advice."