Greenberg Traurig Opens Chicago Office; Move Marks the International Law Firm's Expansion Into the Midwest

Business Wire, Jan 21, 1999

MIAMI--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 21, 1999--International law firm Greenberg Traurig today announced it has opened a Chicago office - the firm's first office in the Midwest.

The office will be co-managed by shareholders Keith J. Shapiro and Paul T. Fox, who join Greenberg Traurig from the Chicago firm of Holleb & Coff, where they served on the firm's executive committee. Shapiro, vice president of the 6,500-member American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI), headed Holleb & Coff's bankruptcy practice. Fox headed the firm's adversarial practice.

Also joining Greenberg Traurig's Chicago office is associate Nancy Peterman, also formerly with the law firm of Holleb & Coff. Peterman serves as co-chairman of ABI's Committee on Health Care Insolvency and was the assistant editor for ABI's Health Care Insolvency Manual.

"The addition of our Chicago office solidifies Greenberg Traurig's national bankruptcy and commercial litigation practices. It also serves as an extension of our business-oriented approach to the practice of law," said Cesar Alvarez, president and CEO of the firm. "By broadening the national capabilities of our bankruptcy practice, the firm is well positioned to provide significant advantages to clients in the event of an economic downturn."

Shapiro broke new ground in bankruptcy law as the founder and first chairman of the ABI's Health Care Insolvency Committee. He was also a recent witness on proposed health care bankruptcy legislation before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee.

"Even if the anticipated economic downturn and global market difficulties do not increase, there are industry sectors, such as health care, that can experience cyclical downturns in a strong economy," commented Shapiro, who will co-chair the firm's national bankruptcy practice with Miami shareholder Mark Bloom.

Initially, the Chicago office will focus on business bankruptcy law and commercial litigation. The attorneys represent a wide variety of business clients, including creditors and financially troubled businesses in complex bankruptcy matters, and publicly and privately held businesses in litigation disputes. Shapiro and Peterman currently represent the creditors' committee in the FPA Medical Management case, one of the nation's largest bankruptcy cases with more than $2 billion of claims filed. Shapiro has also been appointed examiner in the Unison case, the largest nursing home bankruptcy case in the U.S.

The addition of the firm's Chicago office marks the latest achievement by the nationally recognized firm. Greenberg Traurig was ranked No. 4 in the country for the number of public offerings the firm handled on behalf of issuers in 1997, according to SEC New Registrations Report. The firm was also ranked No. 4 in 1997 among the nation's fastest growing law firms, based on size, according to Martindale-Hubbell. VentureOne Corporation's Venture Capital Investment Report for 1997 ranked Greenberg Traurig No. 8 nationally in providing legal counsel to venture-backed companies going public in 1997. In addition, sitting at the gateway to the Americas, Greenberg Traurig's Miami office has been recognized as having more Hispanic attorneys than any other firm in the country.

This is the sixth office Greenberg Traurig has opened in the past two years.

Greenberg Traurig is an international law firm with nearly 400 attorneys practicing in 13 offices located in Miami; New York; Washington, D.C.; Chicago; Atlanta; Philadelphia; Tysons Corner, Va.; Sao Paulo, Brazil; Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; West Palm Beach, Fla.; Orlando, Fla.; Tallahassee, Fla.; and Boca Raton, Fla.

Editor's notes: The Chicago office is located at 200 South Wacker Drive, Suite 3200, Chicago, IL 60606. The phone number is (312) 674-4530.