HOUSTON, Dec. 18, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Vinson &
Elkins announces the promotion of eight lawyers to its partnership,
effective January 1, 2015: David
Cole, Devika Kornbacher and Kai Haakon Liekefett in Houston; Tirzah Lollar and Jeremy Marwell in
Washington, DC; John Grand and
Russell Oshman in Dallas; and Tzvi
Werzberger in New York.
"We are extremely appreciative of the hard work and outstanding
leadership of each of these individuals and are pleased to welcome
them to the partnership," said Mark Kelly, Chairman of V&E.
"These promotions are a reflection of their strong commitment to
V&E and our clients."
The new partners will enhance seven of the firm's practice
areas, including appellate, complex commercial litigation, finance,
intellectual property, mergers and acquisitions, real estate and
tax.
"These incredibly talented lawyers have made significant
contributions to the firm, and they each exhibit the qualities we
look for in our partners," said Scott Wulfe, Managing Partner of
V&E. "They have demonstrated a high level of skill in their
respective practice areas and a dedication to excellent client
service. We look forward to their continued success."
The following is a list of V&E's new partners by
practice:
Appellate
Jeremy Marwell is an appellate litigator with experience
handling a broad range of civil and criminal matters before the
U.S. Supreme Court and numerous federal and state courts. Marwell
was recently a key member of the V&E team that secured
dismissal, on appeal, of all claims against Avnet, Inc. in False
Claims Act litigation involving potentially $1 billion in damages. The groundbreaking
decision upended prior understandings of the federal "E-rate
program." He also successfully briefed and argued a case on behalf
of the Nevada Commission on Ethics
before the en banc Nevada Supreme Court, defending the
constitutionality of state conflict-of-interest laws. Marwell
graduated from New York University School of
Law in 2006 and Yale in 1999. He
clerked for Judge Stephen F.
Williams of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of
Columbia Circuit, and for Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor of the Supreme Court of
the United States.
Complex Commercial Litigation
Tirzah Lollar's practice focuses on white-collar criminal
defense, government investigations and litigation. Lollar handles
trial and grand jury work and defends clients in cases related to
the False Claims Act, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and
government contracts and procurement fraud. She is representing
KBR, Inc. in FCA litigation filed by a former KBR employee alleging
the company overcharged the U.S. Army for services performed in
Iraq. The district court ruled
that the former employee was entitled to review KBR's internal
investigation documents, rejecting the company's assertion of the
attorney-client privilege, but the D.C. Circuit reversed and
vindicated KBR's privilege claim. Lollar also successfully defended
KBR against the U.S. in a $1.4
billion fraud trial, resulting in a favorable judgment on
all contested claims. Lollar received her law degree from
University of Virginia School of Law in
2004 and her bachelor's degree from University
of Virginia in 1999.
Finance
Tzvi Werzberger practices finance law and represents corporate
borrowers, private equity sponsors and portfolio companies, high
net worth individuals, financing providers, hedge funds and other
alternative lenders in many types of complex debt facilities. His
experience spans a variety of industries, including shipping,
oilfield services, upstream and midstream oil and gas, restaurant
franchises, airlines, commodity trading, nuclear materials, power
generation and professional sports franchises. He has advised on a
number of maritime deals, including transactions aggregating
$4 billion for the construction and
permanent financing of eight ultra-deepwater drillships. Werzberger
also counseled a private equity fund in connection with the
establishment of a $6 billion
leveraged unitranche loan origination platform, including the
negotiation of loan facilities providing $3.7 billion of leverage. Werzberger received his
law degree from New York University School of
Law in 2006 and his bachelor's degree from Queens College in 2003.
Intellectual Property
Devika Kornbacher, a former structural engineer, provides
intellectual property advice to clients in the software, hardware,
energy, entertainment, sports, aviation and construction sectors.
Her practice focuses on obtaining, licensing and enforcing IP
rights, with a particular emphasis on IP law in the context of
mergers, acquisitions and other business transactions. Kornbacher
currently counsels sports leagues, a cable network, and early stage
companies regarding open source software, digital media and other
information technology issues. Recently, she served as lead IP and
IT attorney for a private equity firm's acquisition of multiple
power plants. She was also part of an international team of lawyers
advising Huntsman Corporation in a complex, cross-border deal
spanning multiple countries, where Huntsman acquired the titanium
dioxide, color pigments and timber treatment business of Rockwood
Holdings Inc. for $1.1 billion.
Kornbacher is a 2006 graduate of Harvard Law School and received
her bachelor's degree from University of
Houston in 1998, cum laude.
Mergers and Acquisitions
John Grand's practice focuses on private equity investments
and energy transactions. He has experience handling matters in the
energy sector, with an emphasis on upstream and midstream joint
ventures; acquisitions and divestitures; investments in oil
services and mining companies; and renewable energy transactions.
He has teamed on some of V&E's largest energy deals, including
representing Pioneer Natural Resources in its $1.8 billion joint venture with Sinochem
Petroleum; and Denbury Resources in its $2
billion exchange with Exxon Mobil and XTO Energy. In the
private equity space, Grand advised TPG Capital in its $1.8 billion purchase of Jonah Field operations
from Encana Oil & Gas, and Apollo Global Management in Double
Eagle Energy's $200 million sale of
its SCOOP and STACK assets in Oklahoma. Grand received his law degree from
Louisiana State University Law Center
in 2006 and his bachelor's degree from Centenary College in 2006.
Kai Haakon Liekefett's practice focuses on mergers and
acquisitions and shareholder activism. Liekefett advised on some of
V&E's largest M&A transactions in 2014, including
representing Oiltanking Holdings Americas in its $4.41 billion sale of the general partner and its
limited partner interests in Oiltanking Partners to Enterprise
Products; C&J Energy Services in its $2.86 billion merger with Nabors' completion and
production businesses; and Energy XXI in its $2.3 billion acquisition of EPL Oil & Gas.
His shareholder activism experience includes representing Endeavour
International in its proxy contest defense against the Talisman
Group, and Crest Financial in its proxy contest against the merger
of Clearwire with Sprint Nextel. Liekefett received his U.S. law
degree from Columbia University School
of Law in 2006; Ph.D. from University of
Freiburg Law School in 2004; Executive MBA from University
of Muenster Business School in 2003; and he passed the German First
and Second Legal State Exam in 2000 and 2004, respectively.
Real Estate
Russell Oshman advises private equity investors, REITs,
hedge funds, developers, financial institutions and energy firms in
complex commercial real estate transactions, including forming
joint ventures and acquiring, financing, developing and selling
commercial real property. He also handles real estate matters
related to MLPs, mergers and acquisitions and syndicated finance
transactions. Oshman advised a private REIT in connection with its
acquisition of a portfolio of seven REITs owning fourteen
industrial buildings in seven states, and Milestone Apartments in
connection with a $278 million Fannie
Mae credit facility. He provided real estate advice to Western
Refining, Inc. in its initial contribution of assets to its MLP,
and Valerus Compression Services in its $435
million sale of Valerus Field Solutions. Oshman received his
law degree and bachelor's degree from Southern
Methodist University, J.D. 2006, B.B.A. 2003.
Tax
David Cole handles tax aspects of domestic and
international matters for corporations, partnerships and high net
worth individuals. He represents clients in all phases of tax
disputes, from audit to IRS appeals to litigation. In his
transactions practice, Cole has counseled foreign issuers in their
initial public offerings of publicly-traded MLP interests. His
clients span a number of industries, including oil and gas
exploration and production, offshore drilling, private equity
funds, domestic and foreign manufacturing, shipping, real estate
and medical devices. Cole has represented multinational
corporations in developing and implementing transfer pricing
strategies and disputing proposed transfer pricing adjustments in
IRS appeals and U.S. Tax Court. His experience includes providing
tax advice on Seadrill Partners' $220
million IPO; Seadrill Partners' $380
million second equity offering; and KNOT Offshore Partners'
$180 million IPO. Cole graduated from
University of Texas School of Law in
2002 and received his bachelor's degree from the University of Texas in 1992.
Vinson & Elkins LLP is an international law firm with
approximately 700 lawyers across 15 offices
worldwide. For more information, please contact
Carrie Dugas at +1.713.758.4330.
1001 Fannin Street, Suite 2500
Houston, TX 77002-6760
+1.713.758.2222
www.velaw.com
This communication may be considered advertising under law
regulating the use of e-mail. This communication is provided by
Vinson & Elkins LLP for educational and informational purposes
only and is not intended, nor should it be construed, as legal
advice.
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