Locke Lord's New London Team in Place and Poised to Grow; Partners Elected to Leadership Positions on Executive Committee and Firm's Board of Directors

LONDON, February 20, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

Locke Lord, an international law firm with 650 lawyers, has opened a new and expanded London office with a well-respected team who bring added depth and breadth to the Firm's core practices. Among the lawyers on board in the first phase of expansion are Roger Abrahams as Head of the London Office; Stephen Finch who has been elected to Locke Lord's global Executive Committee, expanded to reflect the importance and growth of the Firm's UK presence; and Paula Howard who has been elected to Locke Lord's Board of Directors.

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A group of new Partners, other lawyers and staff members have joined Locke Lord in its new Bishopsgate location, with more expected in the coming weeks and months as the Firm continues its global expansion to meet the needs of its national and international clients. Locke Lord's strategic plan to establish an international team in London that strengthens the Firm's core areas of banking and finance, bankruptcy/insolvency, capital markets, corporate, dispute resolution, energy, insurance and real estate is well underway. Already, the London team is collaborating closely with Locke Lord colleagues in the United States to better serve clients' growing global needs.

'We are extremely proud and excited to welcome this talented, highly skilled group of lawyers to our Firm's international team," said Locke Lord Chair Jerry Clements. She said Abrahams' and Finch's extensive experience in managing, developing and leading international law firms is a major benefit to the expanded London/UK presence and to the entire Firm. 'We are confident that Locke Lord is better positioned than ever to move to the next level in global service to our clients around the world."

Partner and EC Member Stephen Finch's practice focuses on banking and finance, and he has built a highly respected reputation throughout the London and European legal communities in his more than 25-year career. He has extensive experience in the energy sector and consumer credit, securitization, syndicated lending, project finance, asset finance, leasing, invoice discounting, factoring and banking. Finch's leadership position on Locke Lord's Executive Committee will ensure the London office has a successful and quick integration with the Firm's 11 U.S. offices, as well as with its office in Hong Kong. He is a former Chairman of the Global Board of Salans.

Partner and Board Member Paula Howard focuses on banking and finance, advising on a variety of cross-border financings and equity investments. She is also a leading specialist in consumer credit and asset finance law with considerable experience in data protection and privacy law. Howard's clients include several well-known finance houses, banks and leading international financial institutions.

London Head Roger G. Abrahams has extensive international law firm management experience and for decades has advised clients in the real estate, automotive and banking and finance industries. He is a former Global Managing Partner of Salans. Before moving to private practice, he was Chief General Counsel of Ford Credit Bank Europe plc, a subsidiary of Ford Motor Company. He was a non-executive and senior independent director of European Motor Holdings plc, a fully listed company on the London Stock Exchange.

The team officially opened Locke Lord's new London office this month on the Second Floor of 201 Bishopsgate, London, EC2M 3AF. Contact information includes the following telephone and fax numbers: T: +44(0)20-7861-9000; F: +44(0)20-7861-9004.

Along with Abrahams, Finch and Howard, the initial London team also includes:

David Grant, a Partner with an insolvency restructuring practice that has an emphasis on contentious insolvency and recovery actions, including cross-border asset tracing and asset and security recoveries.

Kevin Heath, a Partner with more than two decades of experience in banking and finance litigation and reorganisation, restructuring and insolvency.

Daniel Polden, a Partner and member of Locke Lord's real estate and finance group, with a focus on all aspects of property law.

Graham Spitz, a Partner with a focus in the corporate and real estate areas with solid experience in corporate finance and private equity, including joint ventures, management buy-outs and mergers and acquisitions.

Jim Varley, a Partner with extensive experience consulting in the area of contentious insolvency and who has advised a wide range of accountancy firms and businesses facing financial challenges.

Marc Abrahams, an Associate who focuses on contentious/non-contentious insolvency law, including corporate restructuring and personal insolvency matters.

Simon Cohen, an Associate who focuses his practice on asset and consumer finance litigation and insolvency proceedings.

Joyce Moore, a Real Estate Specialist, who works on all aspects of real estate law, including commercial and residential developments, landlord and tenant and secured lending.

Locke Lord LLP consistently ranks among American Lawyer's top 100 U.S. law firms. The Firm's full range of practice and industry areas serve national and international clients from offices in Atlanta, Austin, Chicago, Dallas, Hong Kong, Houston, London, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York, Sacramento, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. It has an excellent reputation in complex litigation, regulatory and transactional work, with its 650-plus lawyers building collaborative relationships and crafting creative solutions - all designed and executed to meet clients' long-term strategic goals.