Profile: Sidley Austin LLP

Sidley Austin LLP - Who's Who Legal '70'

What is the Who's Who Legal '70'?

Since the merger, Sidley Austin has continued to expand worldwide with branches in Geneva, Brussels and Frankfurt, and a joint enterprise in Tokyo. The latest opening was in Sydney in 2007, underlining Sidley Austin’s global credentials.

The firm has a presence in 22 of the 29 chapters in this publication, with 74 individuals listed. Sidley Austin’s Chicago office dates back to 1866, and it is home to nearly half of the firm’s partners in this book; this strength led to the firm being awarded the accolade of Who’s Who Legal Law Firm of the Year – Illinois.

Finance
All 11 of Sidley Austin’s listed capital markets experts in this publication practise in the United States; the majority are based in Chicago or New York. Recognised by one interviewee as “the top firm in Chicago for derivatives work”, the Illinois contingent is headed by Thomas Albrecht, co-head of Sidley’s global securitisation and structured finance practice group, and a “formidably impressive lawyer”. Perry Shwachman is recognised for his work on behalf of insurance companies, while partner Kevin Hochberg is “consistently impressive”. Gary Stern heads the banking and securitisation group in Chicago and is highly rated for his work in both areas. Thomas Brown is a “phenomenally talented lawyer” recognised for his international securitisation practice. The consistently recommended Norman Slonaker is a senior partner in the firm’s New York office, and he is joined by Joseph McLaughlin, Edward Fine – picked out for his securitisation work in particular – and the “outstanding” Renwick Martin. Sidley’s final two representatives are based in San Francisco. Paul Pringle is a “seasoned practitioner”, and Dale Lum’s securitisation and structured financing work also attracted admiring comment.
The three banking experts we feature in this book all reside in Chicago. The “superb” James Looman is well known to respondents, and James Clark, the former chair of the acquisition financing subcommittee of the commercial financial services committee of the American Bar Association business law section, also appears. Bruce Bernstein possesses an “immense reputation” and completes the trio in this field. Bernstein also appears as one of four featured partners in the insolvency and restructuring chapter, and his colleague in the Chicago office Larry Nyhan joins him. Nyhan co-chairs the firm’s corporate reorganisation and bankruptcy group and was recommended as a “can-do lawyer” who is “nationally and internationally renowned”. Sally Neely in Los Angeles was also consistently recommended for her “fantastic track record”, which includes representing Federal Mogul Global in its asbestos-related chapter 11 case. UK based Patrick Corr gives the firm an international dimension to its listing with his established and “respected practice”.

Sidley Austin ranks in the recently published private funds chapter swelled to five, up from one in the previous edition, and it counts companies such as Citadel and Fortress Investment Management Group among its clients. David Sawyier “stands out”, with one source describing him as “the go-to lawyer” in Chicago. “Top” practitioner William Kerr joins him, as does New York based Michael Schmidtberger, co-head of the investment funds, advisers and derivatives group. The “very experienced” Susan Lewis also appears, as does Effie Vasilopoulos; the sole entry from the firm’s Hong Kong office.

Trade, Competition & Regulation
Sidley Austin also makes its mark in the trade and customs chapter, where its “excellent group” has an “outstanding reputation for trade defence work”, 10 partners feature here. DC-based David Palmeter is a “stand-out individual” and the firm’s most highly nominated trade practitioner, while Andrew Shoyer, chair of the firm’s international trade and dispute resolution practice and “one of the most respected names in the business”, is also highly rated. Richard Belanger also performed well; leading one of our sources to say that “as a customs lawyer I would rank him above any of his peers”. Neil Ellis is recognised for his strong international trade and antitrust practices, and Amelia Porges brings the contingent from the firm’s DC office to five: her excellent showing in this year’s research saw her described as “top-tier”, “excellent” and “a must for inclusion”. Sidley also occupies a rarefied position within the Swiss market, with three partners making the cut. Scott Andersen manages the Geneva office and comes recommended as “excellent for dispute settlement within the WTO”. Todd Friedbacher is described as “very shrewd”, and Nicolas Lockhart is an “outstanding lawyer”. The firm also has an excellent reputation in the Brussels market, with two highly rated nominees. Laurent Ruessmann is well known locally and internationally, while Richard Weiner, managing partner of the Brussels office, is a “stalwart” of the trade and customs bar who divides his time between the Belgian capital and Washington, DC.

The firm’s representatives in the competition chapter are also spread between Brussels and the US. Stephen Kinsella was described as “the man” and “extremely smart”, and ranks among the most highly nominated individuals in this area worldwide. Stephen Spinks is “reliable and hugely respected” for this type of work, and John Treece is a global coordinator of the firm’s antitrust and competition practice and “the cream of the crop of the Chicago antitrust bar” in the eyes of our sources. Spinks also appears in the regulatory communications research, one of four partners from the firm to earn representation in multiple chapters. David Carpenter appears from Chicago, while Clark Wadlow in DC is head of Sidley’s communications group and a “top-notch operator”. From the same office, Alan Charles Raul garnered sufficient nominations to appear in the internet & e-commerce chapter.

Corporate
Sidley Austin has a “formidable corporate practice”, and its featured contingent in the corporate governance chapter is made up of Thomas Cole and Frederick Lowinger, both based in Chicago. Cole is “one of the deans of the Illinois bar” and chair of the firm’s executive committee, he was also recognised for his five-year tenure teaching the subject at the University of Chicago Law School. Lowinger is head of the Chicago office’s corporate group and was memorably described as “so smart it’s scary”. Both also appear in the M&A chapter. The firm is well regarded across the spectrum of transactional work, and is said to be “difficult to beat for this kind of work”; Sidley was summed up by one source as “one of the best corporate firms around – [it] has been for a long time and will continue to be into the future.” Imad Qasim was consistently recommended and also appears in this chapter.

Partners from the firm also excel in other areas. The “top-tier” Marketa Lindt appears in the corporate immigration chapter, and the former chair of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) Chicago chapter was described as “talented and focused”. Jeffrey Berman in Los Angeles is regarded as a “strong lawyer” for labour and employment work.

Insurance and Aviation
Sidley Austin’s six strong contingent in the insurance and reinsurance chapter is split between the Chicago and London offices. From the former, James Stinson co-chairs the firm’s insurance and financial services group, and is a “very sophisticated attorney with great skills”. Susan Stone has an “outstanding” international practice, William Sneed is “a fantastic reinsurance litigator” and arbitrator and Kenneth Wylie was said to be “excellent” for regulatory insurance matters. The firm has a fast-expanding presence in the London market. Nigel Montgomery joined from DLA Piper LLP in 2006 and is “a big name” for transactional, restructuring and run-off work. He is joined by Dorothy Cory-Wright, a July 2007 lateral hire from Kendall Freeman and one of the English capital’s most highly regarded individuals in this field. She now heads the office’s new insurance and reinsurance dispute practice.

Turning to the firm’s aviation practice, Dennis Bekemeyer,  senior counsel in the New York office, is “highly respected”. Rory Kelleher is “one of the best for representing manufacturers”, while in Chicago Sheila Sundvall’s litigation defence practice was consistently endorsed by our sources.

Energy & Environment
The environment research demonstrates that this is one of the firm’s strongest areas: it has five nominees in the chapter. Angus Macbeth is “at the top of the game” and one of three featured lawyers from the firm’s DC office. Macbeth is one of the most highly recommended individuals in the research overall. David Buente heads the firm’s environmental group and is “at the peak of his powers”, according to our sources. Timothy Webster is the third partner from the DC office and a “terrific trial lawyer in civil and criminal environmental matters”. Robert Olian heads the Chicago office’s environmental practice group and is co-head of the firm’s national environment practice, and “one of the finest big case Superfund lawyers around”, while the “superb” Judith Praitis in Los Angeles is said to be particularly impressive.

Elsewhere, two partners from the Washington office represent the firm in the oil and gas chapter; Eugene Elrod was recognised for his regulatory, transactional and litigation work, while William Williams is an “authority on Federal Energy Regulatory Commission related matters”. In the Chicago office, the “first-class” Virginia Aronson is head of the firm-wide real estate practice and gives Sidley Austin a presence in that chapter.

IP and Disputes
The Dallas office of Sidley Austin is the only one to focus on a single practice area; intellectual property law. Bryan Medlock is a “hugely experienced and very fine lawyer”. David Pritikin chairs the firm’s national intellectual property practice from Chicago, where he is renowned for his pharmaceutical work in particular. Thomas Beck in NY is similarly well regarded in the same field.

Sidley Austin also performed well in other disputes related practice areas. The “first-class” Carter Phillips from the DC office gives the firm a presence in the commercial litigation chapter, while Stanimir Alexandrov is a “highly regarded arbitration specialist”, recognised for his work relating to investor-state arbitration and WTO trade disputes in particular, and he has been appointed to ICSID’s panel of arbitrators. Also in DC, Thomas Green manages the firm’s federal and state investigation and white-collar defence practice groups, and he is joined by Scott Lassar from the Chicago office; deemed to be “among the very best” white-collar crime defence lawyers in Illinois. The firm’s products liability defence practice is well regarded, and earns three places in the corresponding chapter. Michael Davis heads the product liability and mass tort group, and he is joined by Sara Gourley, described to researchers as “excellent”, especially for blood-products work. The work of Debra Pole in the Los Angeles office was described as “astonishing”, and she completes Sidley’s showing in this chapter and its contingent in the book overall.