Greenberg Traurig Announces Opening of Third Texas Office in Austin

Business Wire, August 1, 2008

Firm Welcomes New Shareholders Demetrius G. McDaniel, Thomas J. Bond and Barry Senterfitt

AUSTIN, Texas -- The international law firm Greenberg Traurig, LLP announced today the opening of a new office in Austin, TX, its third office in that state and 27th in the United States. The firm has had an established presence in Dallas since 2003 and in Houston since 2005. With the launch of the Austin office, along with Dallas and Houston, Greenberg Traurig will have more than 100 attorneys in Texas. Worldwide, Greenberg Traurig has approximately 1,800 attorneys in 30 offices. Greenberg Traurig has the most U.S. lawyers among the 2008 AmLaw 100, and the most U.S. offices among the Top 10 on the 2007 NLJ 250.

To launch the Austin office, the firm welcomes Demetrius G. McDaniel, Thomas J. Bond and Barry Senterfitt. In addition, joining as of counsel is Patricia Fuller McCandless and as associate, Janet W. Farrer. Prior to joining Greenberg Traurig, the three new shareholders were partners, McCandless was of counsel and Farrer was an associate, with Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP. McDaniel will head Greenberg Traurig's Texas Governmental Affairs Practice; Bond will head its Texas insurance regulatory practice and be a senior leader in the firm's national practice; and Senterfitt, who had been partner in charge of Akin Gump's Austin office, will become the Managing Shareholder of Greenberg Traurig's new office.

In addition to the new additions, firm shareholders John S. "Chip" Rainey, currently resident in the firm's Houston office, and James Thoma, currently resident in the firm's Los Angeles office, who both have long roots in Austin, will join the new team.

"We are delighted to add these highly regarded, top notch professionals to our Texas team while opening a presence in this important state capital," said Richard A. Rosenbaum, President of Greenberg Traurig. "Greenberg Traurig is totally committed to building upon our strong foundation in Dallas and Houston, and now Austin, creating a top tier presence in this critically important growth state, where our lawyers work as one, unified team across offices and practices. In addition to government representation, we expect to build a full service Austin location, with practices including corporate, litigation and real estate. Given our uniquely strong entertainment and media practices in Atlanta, Los Angeles and New York, and our firm-wide strength in the technology area, we are also a good fit to serve these important local industries."

Greenberg Traurig's strategy for growth is to establish a presence in markets with identifiable business opportunities that can be supported by several of the firm's nationally recognized practice groups. The firm only opens offices where and when it makes sense and it can make a difference for its clients. More and more, state legislatures are taking the lead on establishing laws that impact insurance, environmental, labor, technology, real estate, corporate and climate change issues. Austin, as the Texas state capital, makes sense. When Greenberg Traurig adds an office, it does so because it has found a local team of attorneys that complement the firm's collaborative platform and -- importantly -- are lawyers who are culturally consistent with the firm's values.

Fred W. Baggett, Chair of the firm's National Governmental Affairs Practice, stated: "While Greenberg Traurig maintains its government practice in many state capitals throughout the country, it has always been a goal of the firm to ensure a strong presence in the four bellwether states of New York, Florida, California and Texas. These high quality, collaborative talents in Austin will join our strong Albany, NY, Sacramento, CA and Tallahassee, FL state capital network. Coupled with our longstanding presence in Washington, D.C., our ability to deliver effective and efficient federal, state and local government representation to our client base is now even greater, with first rate capabilities in four of the most important growth states."

Austin is a vibrant city with expanding and diverse demographics and a healthy economic base that continues to attract business. Austin was named No. 1 in economic vitality by The Wall Street Journal in 2007 and was named No. 1 in Expansion Management's "Top Metros for Future Business Locations" in 2006. In addition, the Austin metropolitan area grew by 41.1 percent from 1996 to 2006. In the comparable time period, the population growth of Texas grew by 23.7 percent, and the United States, in general, at 12.9 percent. [Statistics courtesy of Austin, TX Chamber of Commerce.]

"Opening an office in Austin has been a goal of Greenberg Traurig for awhile," noted Doug Atnipp, Managing Shareholder of the firm's Houston office. "The availability of these talented and respected attorneys meant the moment was right and we are excited to be expanding our presence in the Texas market." Ralph G. Santos, Managing Shareholder of the Dallas office added: "As the center of business and governmental activity in Texas, Austin was always the next point on our growth plan. Together, our new and current shareholders are a very strong foundation of legal talent for the building of our new office."