(June 13, 2011 Philadelphia, PA) - Reed Smith LLP today announced the return of experienced litigator Marilyn Heffley to the firm. She will be of counsel in the Financial Industry Group, in the Philadelphia office.
Ms. Heffley re-joins Reed Smith from Sunoco, Inc., a leading transportation fuel provider with operations primarily on the East Coast and in the Midwest, which she left the firm to join in 2005. She founded the litigation group within the company's legal department; oversaw the group's growth from two to seven attorneys with a 10-person support staff in her six-year tenure, and served most recently as Sunoco's Assistant General Counsel and Chief Litigation Counsel. Ms. Heffley will continue to be involved in the management and oversight of Sunoco's litigation in her new role at Reed Smith.
In addition, Ms. Heffley centralized the management of Sunoco's nationwide litigation portfolio and implemented new e-discovery protocols. In 2010, she was named In-House Counsel of the Year by the Delaware Valley Chapter of the Association of Corporate Counsel-America (DELVACCA) for her accomplishments at the company.
"Marilyn is an experienced and skilled litigator who is returning to Reed Smith after a period of remarkable success as in-house counsel in a major American oil company," said Ajay Raju, Managing Partner of Reed Smith's Philadelphia office. "We've watched her accomplishments and the recognition she's earned at Sunoco with pride, and are delighted she'll be bringing her wealth of experience back to benefit our litigation clients and practice."
Ms. Heffley has substantial trial and appellate experience. In her previous stint at Reed Smith, she represented clients in a wide array of financial services litigation both in putative class actions and individual lawsuits. Representative matters included defending lenders in actions alleging claims under the Truth-in-Lending Act, the Home Ownership and Equity Protection Act, the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, the Fair Debt Collection Act, state consumer fraud statutes, and in administrative proceedings alleging discrimination in lending before the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and state agencies. She has also represented clients in a broad range of insurance, products liability and employment-related disputes.
"My work at Sunoco was rewarding, and I am very pleased at what I was able to accomplish as inside counsel," said Ms. Heffley. "But I'm now eager to return to my first love of providing litigation services to a diverse group of clients across the country and around the world from the platform of a major international law firm."
A 1984 graduate of Temple University Beasley School of Law, Ms. Heffley is active in a variety of civic and professional organizations, including the Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia, the Philadelphia Forum of Executive Women, the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary, and Temple American Inn of Court. In addition, she also serves on the Board of the Delaware Valley Chapter of the Association of Corporate Counsel-America (DELVACCA.)
Ms. Heffley has been active for many years in the Philadelphia Bar Association and currently serves on the Executive Committee of its Public Interest Section.
Reed Smith Financial Industry Group
Reed Smith's Financial Industry Group is comprised of more than 220 lawyers organized on a cross-border, cross-discipline basis and dedicated to representing clients involved in the financial sector, advising most of the top financial institutions in the world. As well as being authorities in their areas of law, FIG lawyers have a particular understanding of the financial services industry sector, enabling the practice to evaluate risks, and to anticipate and identify the legal support needed by clients. Lawyers in the group advise on transactional finance covering the full spectrum of financial products, litigation, commercial restructuring, bankruptcy, investment management, consumer compliance and bank regulation, including all aspects of regulatory issues, such as examinations, enforcement and expansion proposals. For more information, visit reedsmith.com/fig.
About Reed Smith
Reed Smith is a global relationship law firm with more than 1,600 lawyers in 22 offices throughout the United States, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Founded in 1877, the firm represents leading international businesses, from Fortune 100 corporations to mid-market and emerging enterprises. Its lawyers provide litigation and other dispute resolution services in multi-jurisdictional and other high-stakes matters; deliver regulatory counsel; and execute the full range of strategic domestic and cross-border transactions. Reed Smith is a preeminent advisor to industries including financial services, life sciences, health care, advertising, technology and media, shipping, energy trade and commodities, real estate, manufacturing, and education. For more information, visit reedsmith.com.
U.S.: New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Washington, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Oakland, Princeton, Northern Virginia, Wilmington, Silicon Valley, Century City, Richmond
Europe: London, Paris, Munich, Greece
Middle East: Abu Dhabi, Dubai
Asia: Hong Kong, Beijing