LONDON, May 19, 2005 – LAWFUEL – The Law News Network – Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP announced today that 11 new partners will be joining the firm in the U.K. and Russia. The announcement confirms the report from Coudert Brothers that its partners are leaving its London and Moscow offices.
The new partners are all recognized leaders in their fields. They bring to Orrick expertise in a diversity of specialties and include premier legal experts on Russian energy, U.K. property, cross-border-banking and mergers and acquisitions transactions, international arbitration, U.K. employment law and commercial property litigation and arbitration. All are expected to join Orrick as soon as possible consistent with their obligations to Coudert Brothers.
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“Expanding our European practice is among our highest priorities. These moves will broaden and deepen our London office and make us a new and important player in the fast-growing Russian legal market,†said Ralph Baxter, chairman and CEO of Orrick. “These new partners bring expertise unsurpassed in their respective fields. Our global corporate practice and worldwide finance capabilities are strengthened by the addition of these top-tier lawyers.â€
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The new partners in London include: Simon Cockshutt, an expert in property litigation and arbitration; John Evans, the former head of Coudert’s employment law practice; Maria Frangeskides, a litigator and leading practitioner of international trade and arbitration; Alexander Michael Janes, a preeminent international banking lawyer; Peter O’Driscoll, an expert in mergers and acquisitions in emerging markets; Anne O’Neill, a commercial property specialist; Dean Poster, the former head of Coudert’s corporate and commercial law group, and Fiona Stone, a commercial property specialist.
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The new team in Moscow includes: John Sheedy, a leading expert on oil and gas law in Russia, Larisa Afanasyeva, an expert on mergers and acquisitions and corporate restructuring, and Olga Anisimova, a litigator and international arbitration expert.
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Orrick launched its European practice when it opened an office in London in 1998. Since then, it has opened offices in Paris in 2002, Milan in 2003 and Rome in 2004. Orrick’s European practice has now grown to more than 100 lawyers.
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“Moving to Russia is the right move to make at the right time,†said David Syed, Orrick’s managing partner for Europe. “Orrick has evolved into a multi-national firm that can expertly handle complex global transactions for clients in Europe and across the world.â€
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“We are expanding our expertise into new areas, including arbitration and commercial real estate, which gives us a broader base from which to serve our clients,†said Adrian Harris, head of Orrick’s London office.
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About Orrick’s London Office
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London’s importance to global markets makes it a critical business center for Orrick’s clients, many of whom have major operations in the United Kingdom and Continental Europe. Orrick established its presence in London in 1998 and, following steady growth, now has a team of leading corporate, finance and litigation lawyers qualified in English and U.S. law.
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About Orrick
Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP is an international law firm with more than 700 lawyers in North America, Europe and Asia. The firm focuses on litigation, complex and novel finance transactions, and innovative corporate transactions. Orrick clients include Fortune 100 companies, major industrial and financial corporations, commercial and investment banks, high-growth companies, governmental entities, start-ups and individuals. The firm’s 14 offices are located in New York, Washington, D.C., San Francisco, Silicon Valley, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Orange County, Pacific Northwest, London, Paris, Milan, Rome, Tokyo, and Taipei.
This year Orrick was ranked among the top 10 firms in rankings on American Lawyers Corporate Scorecard. The Legal 500 ranks Orrick’s London office among the top law firms in five categories: Securitization, International Capital Markets: US Capability, Insolvency & Corporate Recovery, Project Finance and Energy: Electricity, Nuclear and Renewables.
About Orricks New Partners in London
Simon Cockshutt is a U.K. solicitor practicing in London. He specializes in litigation, particularly in the area of real estate, and arbitration. He is an Associate Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. His litigation practice is focused in two key areas: property-focused litigation, such as residential and commercial landlord tenant matters, and general commercial actions, including disputes over construction contracts, joint ventures, share purchase agreements and general commercial contracts.
Cockshutt graduated from the University of Sheffield College of Law.
John Evans is a U.K. solicitor practicing in London. The former head of Couderts employment law practice in London, Evans represents employers in all aspects of employment law, including both contentious and non-contentious matters. He also represents senior employees and directors in employment-related matters and advises in partnership disputes. He has considerable experience in litigation, arbitration and dispute resolution and has been trained as a mediator.
Evans graduated from Cambridge University, Gonville and Caius College, in 1981, and the College of Law, Chester, in 1982.
Maria Frangeskides is a U.K. solicitor practicing in London. She specializes in commercial litigation and international arbitration, including international trade, commercial fraud, banking, finance, insurance, commodities trading and sale of goods, entertainment, telecommunications, shipping, professional negligence and building construction disputes.
Maria received her Bachelor of Laws, Upper Second Class Honours, from University College London in 1988 and graduated from the College of Law, Chancery Lane, London, in 1989.
Alexander Michael Janes is a U.K. solicitor practicing in London. Acting for both lenders and borrowers, he specializes in structuring international banking transactions, including acquisition and asset financing, project finance and trade finance. He has extensive experience working on projects in the U.K. and Western Europe experience gained at the Office of the General Counsel of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development ”and has worked on a variety of projects in Central and Eastern Europe, including Russia, and the Central Asian Republics.
Janes received his LL.B. from Queen Mary College, London University, in 1984.
Peter ODriscoll is a U.S. lawyer admitted in New York and practicing in London and Moscow. He specializes in emerging market mergers and acquisitions, private equity, securities and general corporate work, as well as project finance and secured lending work.
ODriscoll received his B.A., summa cum laude, from Oral Roberts University in 1984 and studied at Kings College of London. He received his J.D. from Northwestern University School of Law in 1987.
Anne ONeill is a U.K. solicitor practicing in London. She advises on all aspects of commercial property work and landlord and tenant matters, with particular emphasis on shopping centre development and management and on the acquisition and development of property for housing associations, developers and investors.
ONeill received her LL.B., with honors, from University College London in 1981.
Dean Poster is a U.K. solicitor practicing in London. The former head of Couderts U.K. corporate and commercial law group and a member of its worldwide TMT practice, he specializes in mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, corporate and commercial, technology, media and telecommunications and private equity/venture capital.
Poser received his LL.B. from the University of Leicester in 1987 and graduated from Lancaster Gate College of Law, London, in 1988.
Fiona Stone is a U.K. solicitor practicing in London. Her real property practice focuses on commercial conveyances, including landlord and tenant matters.
Stone received her M.A. from Kings College, Cambridge.
About Orricks New Partners in Moscow
Larisa Afanasyeva is a Russian national practicing in Moscow and admitted to practice in New York. She has 18 years of experience in corporate and commercial work, advising foreign and Russian companies on commercial transactions in Russia and cross-border transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, corporate restructuring, and venture capital. She focuses mainly on the oil, gas and telecommunications sectors and has represented the Property Fund of the Russian Federation in some of the largest Russian privatizations. She also represents clients in international arbitrations.
She received her law degree (with honors) from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations in 1980, her Ph.D. in Law from the Institute of State and Law in Moscow in 1984 and her LL.M. from Harvard University in 1992. Afanasyeva speaks Russian, English, Spanish and French.
Olga Anisimova is a Russian national practicing in Moscow. She specializes in litigation and international arbitrations in Russia. A former Judge in Vasilieostrovsky District Court in Leningrad from 1982 to 1990, she has extensive experience in the Russian courts.
She received her law degree from Leningrad State University in 1979, attended the Budapest College of Law of Central European University in 1993 and received her LL.M. from American University in 1994. She speaks Russian and English.
John Sheedy is a U.S. national practicing in Moscow. He specializes in energy and natural resources work. Widely regarded as an authority on Russian energy matters, he has acquired expertise through the representation of numerous multinational and independent oil companies in Russian transactions.
Sheedy received his B.S., magna cum laude, from Georgetown University in 1979. He studied at Leningrad State University in 1978 and received his J.D. from the University of Michigan in 1983. He is fluent in Russian and English, as well as French, German, Danish, Norwegian and Indonesian. John joined Coudert in 1987. From 1987 to 1989, he worked in the firms Singapore office, and he worked for many years in the firms New York office.
