News

Legal 500 Recognizes Milbank Attorneys and Practices as Leaders in Their Fields

Eleven Practice Areas and 21 Lawyers Receive Honors

NEW YORK, June 18, 2009 – International law firm Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP received accolades in the 2009 U.S. edition of The Legal 500, released this month. The publication's "aim is to provide independent, unbiased commentary on the leading law firms – and lawyers" in the country. The Legal 500 consistently recognizes Milbank as a leading law firm for its top lawyers and premier legal practices.

The Legal 500 ranked Milbank in the following nationwide practice areas:

• Asset finance and leasing
• Bank lending
• Capital markets: global offerings: advice to financial institutions
• Capital markets: global offerings: advice to corporates
• Corporate restructuring
• M&A: national firms: middle-market 
• Project finance: advice to lenders
• Project finance: advice to sponsors
• Securities: shareholder litigation 
• Technology: outsourcing
• Telecoms and broadcast: transactional

The Milbank attorneys whom The Legal 500 recognized as "Leading Lawyers" in the U.S., as well as the practice areas for which they were recognized and the publication's commentary for each attorney, are:

• Drew S. Fine – "'Responsive, practical and results-orientated,' Drew Fine is without peer in the market for advising issuers on structured finance deals." (Asset finance and leasing); "Drew Fine is 'very experienced, very patient and able to communicate complex legal concepts clearly.'" (M&A: national firms - middle-market)
• Robert M. Finkel  – "Robert Finkel is [a] prominent name with a reputation for handling large-scale outsourcing agreements 'with a practical outlook' and 'first class judgement.'" (Technology: outsourcing)
• Michael L. Fitzgerald – "'The leading lawyer in Mexico for international public equity and debt offerings' ... [Fitzgerald] has 'an amazing understanding of the Mexican corporate world ... Very few, if any, individuals have as much experience in Latin America.'" (Capital markets: global offerings: advice to financial institutions; Capital markets: global offerings: advice to corporates)
• John D. Franchini – "John Franchini is singled out for his 'knowledge of corporate law and ability to anticipate avoiding problem areas in how he structures a transaction. He is always readily available and easy to understand.'" (M&A: national firms - middle-market)
• Glenn S. Gerstell – "He 'practically wrote the book on the satellite finance' ... Gerstell's practice is one-of-a-kind within the communications market." (Telecoms and broadcast: transactional)
• Elliot Gewirtz – "Elliot Gewirtz provides a wealth of expertise, particularly in relation to aircraft securitizations and cross-border tax leases." (Asset finance and leasing); "Elliot Gewirtz is recognized for his 'seniority and ability to take part in difficult negotiations and reach compromises and good solutions.'" (Bank lending: national)

Other Milbank attorneys recognized by the publication, as well as the practice areas for which they were recognized and the publication's commentary for each attorney, are:

• Paul S. Aronzon – "'Very strong' ... He benefits from an impressive track record in the industry as a result of high-caliber instructions from debtors, financial institutions, lender syndicates, creditors' committees, and troubled companies and their assets." (Corporate restructuring)
• Matthew S. Barr – "'Excellent,' ... Matthew Barr's star continues to rise off the back of some impressive mandates." (Corporate restructuring)
• James N. Benedict – "James Benedict has a wealth of expertise advising defendants in class and shareholder derivative actions ... Benedict also has an excellent reputation advising clients in excessive-fee class actions for mutual funds." (Securities: shareholder litigation)
• William B. Bice – "Regarded by clients as standing 'head and shoulders above the other law professionals that I have engaged outside of Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP.'" (Project finance)
• Gus Cheliotis – "He 'is a top notch deal lawyer. His attention to detail, laser precision drafting, and strong negotiating skills make him the guy you absolutely want on your side of the table and the guy you dread seeing sitting across from you.'" (M&A: national firms - middle-market)
• Charles J. Conroy – "Charles Conroy is 'brilliant, pragmatic, resourceful and wonderfully creative.'" (M&A: national firms - middle-market)
• Dennis F. Dunne – "'Smart and well respected in the restructuring community' ... 'Very intelligent and responsive, he also has the ability to recall points and answers questions on the spot.'" (Corporate restructuring)
• Scott A. Edelman – "Scott Edelman is 'sensational' say clients. 'He's a quick study, a tenacious advocate, and as sharp as a tack in negotiations.'" (Securities: shareholder litigation)
• Edwin F. Feo – "'Excellent' ... With particular expertise in the renewable energy arena, Los Angeles-based Feo focuses his personal practice on the representation of investors and sponsors in the infrastructure and energy markets." (Project finance)
• Jonathan J. Green – "Jonathan Green has a substantial following among banks and corporates, particularly in the energy and infrastructure sectors." (Bank lending: national)
• Jerry L. Marks – "Jerry Marks has an excellent reputation in the West Coast securities litigation market." (Securities: shareholder litigation)
• Peter D. Nesgos – "Comes in for praise for the range of corporate services he offers to his communications clients, many of who are active in the space and satellite sector." (Telecoms and broadcast: transactional)
• Arnold B. Peinado, III – "Arnold Peinado is recognized as a 'good guy on the leveraged finance stuff.'" (Bank lending: national)
• Helfried J. Schwarz – "'Patient and calm during negotiations' ... 'He brings to the table a wealth of profound knowledge and experience, combined with some of the best negotiating skills in the aviation industry.'" (Asset finance and leasing)

About Milbank
Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP is a pre-eminent global law firm that for more than 140 years has provided innovative legal solutions in many of the world’s largest, most complex, “first-ever” corporate transactions and litigation. Our transactional expertise includes capital markets, corporate finance, project finance, acquisition finance, and other major fields of law practice. Milbank litigation teams resolve disputes involving mergers and acquisitions, proxy battles, financings and securities offerings, intellectual property, white collar crime, and corporate restructurings, among others. Our clients range from prominent multinational financial, industrial and commercial enterprises to governments, institutions and individuals. The Firm is headquartered in New York with offices in Beijing, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, Munich, Singapore, Tokyo, and Washington, DC.