(June 2, 2011, Washington, D.C.) - Reed Smith LLP today announced the firm is enhancing its real estate practice with the addition of Debra Yogodzinski and Edward Rogers. Their move to Reed Smith will increase the firm's strength in finance, mixed-use project development, public-private partnerships, retail and office leasing, and condominium and association project experience. Ms. Yogodzinski and Mr. Rogers, former Arent Fox partners, have joined the firm's Washington, D.C. office.

"Debra and Ed are well-known to us through their work for the D.C. Economic Partnership with Reed Smith partner Olivia Shay-Byrne, and through other high-profile work in the region," said Dusty Elias Kirk, firmwide Practice Leader of the Real Estate Group. "This team will complement Reed Smith's real estate capabilities in downtown D.C. and will work closely with the attorneys in our Northern Virginia office to continue to handle some of the region's key development projects."

Mr. Rogers and Ms. Yogodzinski each have more than 20 years of experience in real estate development and commercial finance, with a focus on the development of large-scale, mixed-use projects and public-private partnerships. They advise major financial institutions, real estate developers, entertainment and communications companies, museum operators, national and regional retailers, hotel and resort operators, and a variety of national and international investors on a wide variety of projects, including office buildings, shopping centers, museums, theaters, hotels, resorts, and residential developments.

"Our practice is a great fit for Reed Smith," Ms. Yogodzinski said. "We bring skills and contacts that will enhance the firm's strong downtown D.C. commercial real estate presence, and we will be able to further leverage our experience in mixed-use projects, sales and acquisitions, office condos, leases, tax exempt bonds and new market tax credits to benefit clients."

"A lot of real estate development is going on and more is on the way in the D.C. region, because of the relatively strong local economy. Reed Smith's broad-based local and international platform will allow us to assist our clients' participation in that development to the greatest extent possible," Mr. Rogers said. "Debbi and I have strong relationships with several Reed Smith attorneys and we are delighted to be joining their ranks."

Major projects in the District of Columbia in which Mr. Rogers and Ms. Yogodzinski have played significant roles include the Newseum, Waterfront Station, the south campus of Catholic University and the Capital City Market. Among their clients are Forest City Washington, Inc., Abdo Development, First Congregational United Church of Christ, and Freedom Forum.

Mr. Rogers is board co-chairperson of the Washington, D.C. Economic Partnership and is a member of the board of the Pennsylvania Quarter Neighborhood Association. He also co-chairs the DCBIA Retail Business Development Committee, is a board member of the D.C. Chapter of Lambda Alpha International, and is a member of the International Council of Shopping Centers.

Ms. Yogodzinski is a member of the D.C. Chapter of Commercial Real Estate Women; a member of the board of the D.C. Business Industry Association and co-chair of its Retail Business Development Committee; a member of the board of the Washington, D.C. Economic Partnership and of Lambda Alpha International; chair of the Avalon Theater Project, Inc; and a member of the International Council of Shopping Centers.

"Washington, D.C. is arguably the first- or second-strongest commercial real estate market in the country," said Reed Smith D.C. Managing Partner A. Scott Bolden. "Our region led the nation last year in major retail development and is expected to continue to dominate this year. With Debbi and Ed as part of the group, we can further leverage our experience in using tax exempt bonds and new market tax credits to benefit clients. We are very happy to have them on board."

Reed Smith's firmwide Real Estate Group is comprised of more than 160 lawyers worldwide and provides a global, full-service practice that advises on all types of transactions for investors, developers, lenders and corporate clients. The Reed Smith D.C./Northern Virginia real estate practice includes mixed-use developments, complex financing and leasing transactions, and special experience in ultra-low interest-rate real estate bond financing and new market tax credits, as well as affordable housing bond projects and office condo transactions.

The firm's Washington and Northern Virginia offices have played significant roles in many of the metro area's largest and most important real estate development projects, among them Progression Place and Harborplace, both large, mixed-use projects; the Torpedo Factory, Ballston Metro Center and the new home of the United Negro College Fund, the American Society of Nephrology Headquarters, the Jesuit Conference Headquarters, and the Fordham Foundation Headquarters. The firm has represented the National Capital Revitalization Corporation and its affiliate, and RLA Revitalization Corporation, as well as numerous developers involved in obtaining Enterprise Zone Bonds, new market tax credits, affordable housing bonds, and other economic incentives, such as tax abatements and grants in the District of Columbia and elsewhere.

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.

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