"Paul's breadth of experience at both the trial and appellate levels, and his invaluable experience with the Senate Judiciary Committee are a wonderful addition to our practice," commented Bobby Burchfield, co-partner-in-charge of the Washington, D.C. office.

While working for Senator DeWine, Mr. Thompson handled a number of high-profile matters.  He served as lead counsel during the Senate confirmation hearings for both Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito, the reauthorization of the USA PATRIOT ACT, the passage of the Military Commissions Act (2006), and legislation concerning the National Security Agency's warrantless surveillance program.

From 2002-2005, Mr. Thompson was an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Appellate Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he served as Ethics Advisor, Professional Responsibility Officer, and Acting Chief of the Appellate Section.  During his time with the U.S. Attorney's Office, Paul represented the government in more than 80 criminal and civil appeals before the United States Courts of Appeals and dozens of matters in the United States District Courts.

From 2000-2002, Mr. Thompson served as a law clerk to the Honorable D. Brooks Smith, former Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania and current member of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.  He received his J.D. from Harvard Law School, magna cum laude, and his A.B., magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, from Harvard College.

McDermott’s Washington, D.C. office, founded in 1978, has become a full-service location with more than 200 lawyers practicing in a host of areas that include multinational corporations, government and political institutions, environmental agencies, international organizations and high technology companies.  McDermott's Trial Department is well-known for providing clients with a unique blend of trial skills and substantive experience which can be effectively used in the many areas of law and business where disputes arise.

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Mr. Meyers is one of the leading US legal advisers to Australian companies and Australian and international investment banks on US and international capital raisings and stock exchange listings, cross-border mergers and acquisitions, structured finance and M&A transactions.

Tom Cole, Chair of the firm’s Executive Committee, noted “Our decision to open an office in Sydney and the recruitment of Mr. Meyers demonstrates our commitment to serving our clients throughout the world.”

Tom Albrecht, a member of the firm’s Executive and Management Committees with responsibility for International operations, noted “For over twenty years, our firm has represented investment banks and financial institutions based in the Australian and New Zealand markets on US and European capital markets, structured finance and related transactions.  Given the increased sophistication and number of transactions that have been originated in the Australian market,  we believe that it is now time for us to establish a local presence, and we are very fortunate to have a lawyer with Bob’s skills and reputation join us. The US-qualified lawyers to be based in our Sydney office will also provide additional depth and breadth to our existing international legal practices based in the other Sidley offices in the Asia Pacific time zone.”

Mr. Meyers expressed his delight at joining Sidley, commenting, “Sidley’s longstanding experience in the Australian and New Zealand markets, its strength in the Asia Pacific region, its world class corporate, capital markets and litigation practices and its reputation as one of the world’s leading international law firms is the perfect platform for my practice and my clients.”

Mr. Meyers will join Sidley’s global corporate finance and capital markets practice, which numbers several hundred lawyers practicing in 11 offices around the world.  Sidley has long maintained one of the world’s leading capital markets’ practices.  For the third consecutive year, Sidley was ranked top issuer counsel for U.S. debt, equity and equity-related deals by Thomson Financial in its 2006 U.S. law firm league tables.  The firm advised on 548 deals worth $374.1 billion in deal value representing a market share of 10.7 percent. Sidley also ranked number three as underwriter’s counsel in the same category with $257.3 billion in deal value from 429 offerings representing a market share of 7.2 percent.  In the 2007 American Lawyer Corporate Scorecard, Sidley ranked third (tied) for top law firm transactional practice in the United States.

Sidley Austin LLP is one of the world's largest full-service law firms, with more than 1,700 lawyers practicing in 15 U.S. and international cities including Beijing, Brussels, Frankfurt, Geneva, Hong Kong, London, Shanghai, Singapore and Tokyo.  Sydney will be Sidley’s sixteenth office.  In 2006, Sidley was named to Legal Business’ Global Elite, their designation for "the 15 finest law firms in the world."  Sidley was again named the number one law firm for overall client service by BTI, a Boston-based consulting and research firm, in 2007.  BTI has also named Sidley to their Client Service Hall of Fame as one of only two law firms to rank in the Client Service Top 10 for six years in a row.

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White & Case was retained by the Ad Hoc Committee of Arahova Noteholders, one of the principal unsecured creditor constituencies in the case, in the spring of 2005, after various positions taken by the debtors and other creditor constituencies threatened to materially reduce Arahova creditor recoveries from full par plus accrued interest to mere cents on the dollar.

"The case involved potential shifting of billions of dollars of value around the corporate enterprise," said Miami-based partner Thomas E Lauria, chairman of the Firm's Global Financial Restructuring and Insolvency Group. "More than $2 billion of creditor recoveries were at stake for Arahova creditors. Together with the Ad Hoc Committee, our work was instrumental in negotiating a global settlement between and among a majority of all creditor constituencies fragmented throughout the entire Adelphia capital structure."

What ensued was nearly two years of intense, contentious litigation over the bona fides of Adelphia's general ledgers. With billions of dollars of creditor recoveries at stake, certain major parties finally agreed on a term sheet resolving the inter-debtor disputes and, importantly, providing for near payment in full for Arahova creditors. Under the prior plans of reorganization proposed by the Debtors and pursuant to the May 2005 schedules, the default distribution for Arahova creditors had been in the low 20 cents on the dollar. Instead, as a direct result of White & Case's efforts, Arahova stakeholders were positioned to receive a nearly full recovery — an approximate $2 billion improvement in recoveries on a class basis.

White & Case then took the lead role in developing the plan and structuring the Ad Hoc Committee's recovery, which included cash, stock and certificated litigation trust interests, freely tradable on a national exchange, in one of the largest litigation trust vehicles ever created in a Chapter 11 case.

Capping off more than 21 months of White & Case's involvement on behalf of the Ad Hoc Committee — including 11 weeks of trial in the winter of 2006 and weekly court-ordered settlement negotiations throughout the summer of 2006, the bankruptcy court confirmed the plan and endorsed the settlement, granting a nearly full recovery to the Arahova Noteholders.

Along with partner Thomas E Lauria, the White & Case team was led by New York partners J. Christopher Shore and Gerard Uzzi. In New York, the team comprised partners Wayne Cross, Robert Milne, Michael Gallagher, Jack Pace, James Hayden and Colin Diamond, and associates Meghan McCurdy, David Ernst, John Chung, Douglas Baumstein, Averie Hason, Victoria Kennedy, Raj Gandesha, Victoria Oswald, Kendra Goldenberg and Jessica Marchand. In Miami, associates Richard Kebrdle, Kevin McGill, Fernando Menendez and Lane Begy also advised the committee.

White & Case has taken a lead role in a number of major US bankruptcy proceedings, including the completion of a three-year restructuring of one of the world's largest energy trading companies, Mirant Corporation, in which the Firm acted as debtors' counsel; advising on the cross-border restructuring of Corporación Durango, the largest papermaker in Mexico; representing hedge fund Appaloosa Management in connection with being the principal equity investor for the proposed restructuring of Delphi, one of the largest manufacturing restructurings in US history; and representing French governmental agency CDR Creances as mortgagee and judgment creditor, in the successful prosecution of an involuntary bankruptcy petition against the owner of the Flatotel building in Manhattan.

About White & Case
White & Case LLP is a leading global law firm with more than 2,000 lawyers in 35 offices in 23 countries. Our clients value the breadth and depth of our US, English and local law capabilities and rely on us for their complex cross-border commercial and financial transactions and for international arbitration and litigation. Whether in established or emerging markets, the hallmark of White & Case is our complete dedication to the business priorities and legal needs of our clients.

The Games will be held in Shanghai, People's Republic of China on October 2-11. Because the Games are a major event for China and Shanghai, the GEC is planning a world-class Opening Ceremony on October 2 to be broadcast throughout China and made available worldwide.

“China is the first Asian country to host the Summer Games, and we are honored to be chosen to represent the 2007 Special Olympics World Summer Games Executive Committee for such an important event in China celebrating humanity, culture and human nature,” said Catherine Sun, chair of the firm's Asia Practice. “We are committed to assisting GEC with making the Games a great success.”

Sun, who recently joined Foley from Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP, will oversee the firm's relationship with the GEC. She will work with attorneys on the firm's Entertainment & Media Industry Team such as Ken Suddleson and James Nguyen, who will provide entertainment law, new media and intellectual property counseling, and transaction services.  

“We are happy to collaborate with Foley and appreciate Foley's commitment and support to the 2007 Special Olympics World Summer Games. The Games Opening Ceremony promises to be a grand gathering where people with intellectual disabilities from all over the world unite for friendship and a joyful stage where people of different ethnic groups and cultural backgrounds celebrate and communicate,” said Dr. Derong Shi, CEO of the GEC.

The Foley team will draft and help negotiate all agreements for international talent who will perform or appear at the Opening Ceremony, the creative and production team for the Opening Ceremony, and international vendors and suppliers. The Foley team also will advise on international broadcast and new media deals, and any additional legal issues the GEC may encounter related to the Opening Ceremony.

The engagement with the GEC follows Foley's announcement that it filed an application with the Ministry of Justice of the People's Republic of China requesting approval to open a representative office in Shanghai.

The 2007 Special Olympics World Summer Games will mark the first time the World Summer Games will be held in Asia and only the second time they will be held outside the United States. In addition to 7,000 athletes, Special Olympics expects the 2007 World Summer Games to draw 40,000 volunteers, 3,500 event officials and thousands of families, volunteers, spectators and journalists from every continent. More information on the Games can be found by accessing the event's Web site at: http://www.2007specialolympics.com. Please click “English” on the top right hand corner for an English version.

Foley & Lardner LLP provides the full range of corporate legal counsel. Our attorneys understand today's most complex business issues, including corporate governance, securities enforcement, litigation, mergers and acquisitions, intellectual property counseling and litigation, outsourcing and information technology, labor and employment, and tax. The firm offers total solutions in the automotive, emerging technologies, energy, entertainment and media, financial services, food, golf and resort services, insurance, health care, life sciences, nanotechnology, and sports industries.

The Italian State invited expressions of interest for the purchase of (i) a shareholding of not less than 39.9% and no more than 49.9% in Alitalia - Linee Aeree Italiane S.p.A. ("Alitalia") and (ii) 1,207,147,404 convertible bonds issued under the debenture loan known as "Alitalia 7.5% 2002-2010".  Non-binding offers were to be submitted by 16 April 2007.

Mayer, Brown Rowe & Maw and Italian co-counsel Tonucci & Partners, with which it has an established independent alliance, worked with Roland Berger, strategy consultants, to advise Aeroflot and its consortium partner, UniCredit Banca Mobiliare S.p.A.

Brussels based partners Kiran Desai and Edward Borovikov, assisted by Nunzio Bambara, led the team for Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw, whilst Rome based partners Marco Nicolini and Giorgio Alù assisted by Andrea Rosi and Francesco Fiore based in Milan led the team for Tonucci & Partners.

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