Additionally, partner Casey Ryan, who serves as Reed Smith’s Global Head of Legal Personnel and as a member of the firm's Senior Management Team, has been named finalist for most “Distinguished Leader.” Claudia Z. Springer, a prominent bankruptcy and restructuring partner, who chairs the firm’s expanding Cannabis Law Team, is a also finalist for “Best Mentor.”

The Legal’s annual Professional Excellence Awards seek to highlight and honor “the great work and achievements across the full breadth of the Pennsylvania legal community.”

As one of only three firms named as a finalist for the 2019 Law Firm Innovator award, The Legal recognizes Reed Smith for its forward thinking in legal tech, including breaking from the pack in 2018 with the launch of GravityStack, the first-of-its-kind U.S.-based Big Law subsidiary for delivering collective intelligence in law.

For the Distinguished Leader award, Casey Ryan is spotlighted for her career highlights, as well as the launch of two major firm initiatives in 2018: “Wellness Works” and “Associate Life,” which have both resulted in positive changes in the firm’s culture and improvements in the health and well-being of its personnel.

Meanwhile, Claudia Springer is honored in the Best Mentor category for her guidance to dozens of protégés over the years, including many diverse women lawyers who are now successful, acclaimed attorneys at Reed Smith and other firms, general counsel in corporations, and standouts in other professional roles.