Law Firm Profile

Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP

By Rebecca Neely Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP is a prominent global law firm, headquartered in New York City. Originally founded in 1909, the firm currently has more than 1,100 lawyers in 26 offices in 15 countries on 4 continents, and is known primarily for its corporate, insurance, litigation, tax and restructuring practices. The firm is the 8th largest in New York City and the 7th largest US based law firm office in London.

The firms 400 lawyers in Europe have broad experience across numerous sectors, including energy, financial services, insurance and life sciences. The firm also has strong reach in emerging markets, including offices in China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Poland, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and South Africa. In 1909, three recent graduates of Harvard Law School Grenville Clark, Francis W. Bird, and Elihu Root, Jr., son of New York Senator Elihu Root, established a law partnership on Wall Street, named Root, Clark & Bird. The young lawyers were able to capitalize on the senior Roots connections to gain an entry into elite financial circles and soon had a thriving law practice. In 1913, the firm merged with the firm of Buckner & Howland to form Root, Clark, Buckner & Howland. Following a failed merger attempt with Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe in early 2007, on October 1, 2007, Dewey Ballantine (formerly Root, Clark, Buckner & Howland), which at that time had approximately 500 attorneys in 12 offices around the world, merged with LeBoeuf, Lamb, Greene & MacRae. From its beginnings in 1929, LeBoeuf, Lamb, Greene & MacRae was known for its representation of energy and public utility companies, and from 1965, when it was selected as U.S. counsel for Lloyds of London, it became a preeminent law firm advising insurance companies. It was this that led to the opening of the London office in 1978. The firm developed an ambitious growth strategy in the 1970s through the 1990s. As a result, it opened additional offices in the U.S., London, Paris, Moscow, Riyadh, Beijing and Hong Kong. By October 2007 and at the time of its merger with Dewey Ballantine, LeBoeuf, Lamb, Greene & MacRae had approximately 650 attorneys in 19 offices around the world. Some of the firms recent awards include Law Firm of the

Year in the area of energy and natural resources by AsianCounsel magazine. The firm was also the recipient of Best Overall US Law Firm by Reactions magazine, an honor the firm has received for nine consecutive years. Allison Tam was named one of Law360s 10 insurance lawyers under 40 to watch. The firm was also a part of the winning team for Project Finance Internationals Power Deal of the Year at the global publications annual awards ceremony for its work on Astoria Energys 550 MW Phase II expansion. In addition, Chambers USA, in its 2009 edition, ranked Dewey & LeBoeuf as a leading firm in 29 practice or sector categories, with 56 partners recognized as leaders in their area of practice. Dewey & LeBoeuf has long maintained a strong commitment to pro bono service, and its attorneys devote tens of thousands of hours every year to public service projects around the world in a broad range of areas, including housing, civil rights, voting rights, education, criminal trials and appeals, and family law and domestic violence. In September 2009, Dewey & LeBoeuf agreed to act on a pro bono basis for Caster Semenya, the South African track athlete, to protect her civil and human rights in connection with the controversial gender testing to which she was subjected. Previously, a team headed by Dewey partners Jeffrey Kessler, Marco Consonni and David Feher represented, on a pro bono basis, Oscar Pistorius, a South African double amputee runner who was seeking to qualify for the 400 m event at the 2008 Summer Olympics, but was banned by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) from participating. Diversity has always been valued at Dewey & LeBoeuf; the firm views it as one of its core strengths. The Minority Corporate Counsel Association has presented the firm with the Thomas L. Sager Award in recognition of the firms commitment to diversity in 2008 and 2009. The firm also received a perfect score on the Human Rights Campaigns 2008 and 2009 Corporate Equality Index.

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Law Firm Profile

In September 2009, Dewey & LeBoeuf played a leading role in Walt Disneys $4 billion cash and stock acquisition of Marvel Entertainment, a deal that gave Disney the rights to more than 5,000 Marvel characters, including Iron Man and the Incredible Hulk. A team of Dewey & LeBoeuf lawyers also advised eBay in the companys agreement to sell a 65 percent stake of its Skype communications unit to a group of private investors, led by the Silicon Valley private equity firm Silver

Lake Partners, in a deal valuing the business at $2.75 billion. The firm also represented billionaire Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban against the Securities and Exchange Commissions accusations of insider trading. Dewey & LeBoeuf is regularly acknowledged by independent organizations and legal publications as one of the worlds leading law practices.

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