Alston & Bird announced the election of 20 lawyers to its partnership, effective January 1. The new partners span 13 of the firm’s practice groups and eight offices.
“On behalf of the entire firm, I am pleased to welcome our new class of partners,” said Alston & Bird Managing Partner Richard Hays. “Each new partner reflects the very best of Alston & Bird in terms of their dedication to the highest levels of client service, embodiment of our culture and values and leadership of the firm’s business and people.”
The firm’s new partners are:
- Andrew R. Allen (Atlanta) has been named partner in our Real Estate & Finance Investment Group. He advises large institutional and pension fund investors, developers and publicly traded real estate investment trusts in the acquisition, financing, development, leasing and disposition of commercial real estate.
- Meaghan Goodwin Boyd (Atlanta) has been elected partner in our Environment, Land Use & Natural Resources Group. She has significant experience as a litigator representing clients in complex environmental and toxic tort litigation and advising on compliance matters involving federal environmental statutes and their state counterparts.
- Clark R. Calhoun (Los Angeles) is a new partner in our State & Local Tax Group, representing clients in state income, property and sales/use tax controversy and litigation matters before state and local administrative agencies, as well as state trial and appellate courts.
- Michael T. Cecka (Charlotte) has been named partner in our Finance Group. He focuses his practice on capital market transactions, representing lenders, finance companies, servicers and property owners in mortgage and securities-backed loans, raw land acquisition and development and commercial leasing.
- Zachry T. Gladney (New York) has been elected partner in our State & Local Tax Group. Specializing in state tax controversy matters, including administrative proceedings and litigation, he also advises clients on multistate tax issues related to corporate restructurings, including acquisitions and dispositions.
- Kevin A. Gooch (Atlanta) has been named partner in our Finance Group and represents financial institutions and corporate borrowers in a variety of corporate finance transactions, including syndicated credit facilities, acquisition financings, notes offerings and asset-based financings and restructurings.
- Kyle G. Healy (Atlanta) is a new partner in our Corporate Transactions & Securities Group. In addition to representing public and private companies in securities transactions, mergers and acquisitions and other corporate transactions, he counsels clients on general corporate matters, including ongoing SEC compliance and corporate governance issues.
- Kamran Jivani (Atlanta) has been elected partner in our Intellectual Property Litigation Group. He has litigated more than 100 cases involving patents in a wide array of technologies, including computer software, data processing, Internet applications and computer hardware, spanning such industries as consumer electronics, pharmaceuticals, chemicals manufacturing and luxury goods.
- Matthew D. Kent (Atlanta) has been named partner in our Litigation & Trial Practice Group. Specializing in antitrust litigation, he has extensive experience prosecuting and defending global price-fixing cartels for Fortune 100 companies, including defending pharmaceutical companies in private litigation and government investigations of so-called reverse payment settlement agreements.
- Jennifer S. Kozar (New York) has been made partner in our Litigation & Trial Practice Group. She represents financial institutions and other corporations in complex commercial litigation, with a focus on disputes arising from structured and real estate finance, securities, insurance and other financial products.
- Ashley B. Menser (Research Triangle) has been named partner in our Federal & International Tax Group. She represents lenders and CMBS servicers on transactions involving securitized and nonsecuritized loans, with an emphasis on defeasance transactions.
- Michael H. Park (Washington, D.C.) has been elected partner in our Health Care Legislative & Public Policy Group. He represents health care providers, insurers and manufacturers before Congress and the administration on a wide range of health care issues, including Medicare and Medicaid coverage and reimbursement, fraud and abuse laws.
- Casondra K. Ruga (Los Angeles) is a new partner in our Intellectual Property Litigation Group. She has broad experience in both litigation and transactional work, focusing on copyright and trademark disputes, as well as procurement, protection and licensing of IP rights, including trademarks and copyrights.
- Sage M. Sigler (Atlanta) has been made partner in our Bankruptcy, Workouts & Reorganization Group. She represents debtors in complex Chapter 11 cases and advises clients in all aspects of bankruptcy proceedings, including secured and unsecured claims, preferences and fraudulent transfers, as well as complex business and commercial litigation.
- Sean A. Simmons (Atlanta) has been elected partner in our Products Liability Group. He focuses his practice on complex litigation matters, primarily class actions and products liability, and has litigated numerous consumer, insurance and other complex disputes in both state and federal courts.
- Nathan D. Sinning (Los Angeles) has been named partner in our Construction & Government Contracts Group. He focuses on construction and complex commercial litigation, representing public entities, owners, contractors, design professionals, manufacturers and subcontractors in all aspects of construction projects and disputes.
- Bryan Skelton (Research Triangle) has been made partner in our Patent Group. He specializes in advising pharmaceutical companies and research institutions on complex legal issues relating to the protection, enforcement and transfer of intellectual property.
- Lance A. Termes (Silicon Valley) has been elected partner in our Patent Group. Specializing in patent procurement and strategic patent counseling in biotechnology and pharmaceuticals, he focuses on patent prosecution in the United States and abroad, freedom-to-operate analyses and opinion work.
- Andrew J. Tuck (Atlanta) has been named partner in our Litigation & Trial Practice Group. He focuses his practice on complex litigation, including appeals, class actions and antitrust matters, and represents clients in appellate courts – both in Georgia and at the federal level – on issues ranging from contract interpretation to federal constitutional law.
- Sean M. Whyte (Dallas) is a new partner in our Litigation & Trial Practice Group. He has extensive trial experience before state and federal courts, representing clients in matters involving complex commercial litigation, consumer class actions and products liability, including litigation resulting from Hurricane Katrina and the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.