(March 16, 2009, Chicago) – Reed Smith LLP, one of the 15 largest law firms in the world, today announced the addition of J. Michael Brown as a partner in its Financial Industry Group (FIG). He is now resident in the firm’s Chicago office.
“We are continuing to expand our FIG practice through the addition of partners with high-quality expertise and a breadth of experience working for significant clients,” said Perry A. Napolitano, Reed Smith’s firmwide FIG practice group co-leader. “Mike more than fills those requirements. We anticipate that his broad experience in global financial markets will be particularly valuable to our clients affected by the current international economic emergency.”
Reed Smith’s cross-border, cross-discipline FIG includes more than 235 attorneys dedicated to clients in the financial sector focusing on finance, litigation, commercial restructuring and bankruptcy, investment management, and regulatory matters.
Mr. Brown’s practice experience includes providing representation in complex international and domestic structured finance transactions, with an emphasis on multi- national commodity trading and food product company work. He was formerly a partner in the Chicago office of Winston & Strawn, LLP, where he had a leadership role in the Global Financial Markets Spotlight Group focusing on the Federal Reserve’s Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF).
“Reed Smith has an outstanding international platform and significant experience in the financial arena that made the firm a great fit for my practice and for my clients,” Mr. Brown said. “Its UK shipping and commodities trading practices are very synergistic with my work, including structuring commodity financing facilities in Latin America, Europe and Asia. Another plus is that other Reed Smith lawyers and I handle work for several of the same clients, and our shared knowledge and experience will enable Reed Smith to provide a more efficient and broader range of services for these clients.”
A 1995 graduate of Northwestern University School of Law, Mr. Brown started his career as an associate with Chapman & Cutler in 1995. He has published numerous articles on financial topics, including the issues related to the structuring of international securitizations and TALF.
About Reed Smith
Reed Smith is a global relationship law firm with nearly1,700 lawyers in 23 offices throughout the United States, the United Kingdom, Continental Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
Our Financial Industry Group is comprised of more than 235 lawyers organized on a cross-border, cross-discipline basis and dedicated to representing clients involved in the financial sector, advising 28 of the world’s top 30 financial institutions. 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 FIG advise on transactional finance covering the full spectrum of financial products, litigation, commercial restructuring, bankruptcy, bank regulation, consumer compliance and investment management. For more information, visit reedsmith.com/fig.