Holland & Knight signs merger agreement with 42-lawyer Branch, Pike & Ganz in Atlanta

Business Wire, Nov 9, 1995

the Southeast's largest law firms, and Branch, Pike & Ganz, one of Atlanta's premier mid-sized firms, Thursday signed an agreement to merge the two firms.

The merger with Branch, Pike & Ganz increases Holland & Knight's presence in Atlanta to 53 attorneys and allows the firm to compete more effectively in this market.

The merger is the largest undertaken by Holland & Knight to date. Holland & Knight, with more than 470 attorneys (after the merger), established an Atlanta office in July of 1994 when it joined forces with the Atlanta firm of Webb & Daniel. Webb & Daniel, a respected litigation boutique, gave Holland & Knight a solid footing in the Atlanta market with partner Hal Daniel, a former president of the state Bar of Georgia and Laurie Webb Daniel, the first woman president of the Lawyers Club of Atlanta. The merger with Branch, Pike & Ganz will broaden Holland & Knight's transactional practice in Atlanta by adding more than 15 partners practicing in business-related areas.

Bill McBride, managing partner for Holland & Knight said:

"A merger with the lawyers and staff of Branch, Pike and Ganz will represent an important step in Holland & Knight's plans to become a major full-service firm in Atlanta and a growing force in the region's legal community. We will now be better positioned to offer Holland & Knight quality service to our clients in one of the nation's most thriving communities."

Harold Daniel, executive partner in Holland & Knight's Atlanta office and immediate past-president of the Georgia Bar Association, looks forward to welcoming the additional talent and capabilities of the lawyers, legal assistants and staff of Branch, Pike & Ganz.

"Branch, Pike & Ganz has distinguished itself as one of the leading mid-size general practice law firms in the city," Daniel said. "The firm's experience in litigation, corporate law and real estate will be especially beneficial in supporting and expanding our client base in Atlanta."

Branch, Pike & Ganz Managing Partner, Alfred B. Adams III, said a merger with Holland & Knight makes good business sense for a number of reasons.

"By joining Holland & Knight, we would gain an opportunity to compete for larger clients and to increase support in serving our existing clients. From a management perspective, we think Holland & Knight's `One Firm' concept, based on an idea of firm-wide interdependency, is the right pattern for success," Adams said.

Branch, Pike & Ganz will remain in its current offices at Two Midtown Plaza, 1360 Peachtree Street, N.E. until mid-1996.

Branch, Pike & Ganz was founded in 1979, and the firm is divided into six principal sections: (1) corporate, banking, securities and tax; (2) finance, commercial and workouts: (3) litigation; (4) real estate; (5) environmental; and (6) labor and employment law.

Holland & Knight traces its roots to the early 1900s. In addition to its Atlanta and Washington, D.C., offices, the firm has Florida offices in Fort Lauderdale, Jacksonville, Lakeland, Miami, Orlando, St. Petersburg, Tallahassee, Tampa, and West Palm Beach.

CONTACT: Holland & Knight, Atlanta

Harold Daniel, 404/817-8500

or

Holland & Knight, Tampa, Fla.

Bill McBride, 813/227-8500