Washington, D.C.
Duane Morris LLP
505 9th Street, N.W., Suite 1000
Washington, DC 20004-2166
USA
Phone: 202.776.7800
Fax: 202.776.7801
Lawyers in Duane Morris' Washington, D.C. office represent national and international corporations, local and foreign governments, and individuals before state and federal courts, state, federal and international agencies, the U.S. Congress and other legislative bodies. Our lawyers have been practicing law in the nation's capital for many years, including handling many matters of concern to individuals in government and business communities. Attorneys in our Washington, D.C. office held high-level positions in government agencies, and that experience enables them to better understand the potential impact of regulatory and legislative activity on our clients' interests.
Range of Services
Energy and Natural Resources
When industry or government leaders need advice in the energy and natural resources fields, Duane Morris attorneys are often the advisors and advocates called upon first. Members of our national Energy Practice Group regularly assist clients with advisory, regulatory and litigation matters involving water, natural resources and environmental issues, often counseling clients in their interactions with federal, state and municipal agencies. Our Energy Practice Group provides representation and advice on every aspect of the oil, electric and natural gas industries, including exploration and production, transportation, licensing and compliance with safety and environmental laws. Our attorneys regularly represent clients before the federal courts, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the Department of Energy (DOE), the Department of the Interior (DOI), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and numerous state regulatory commissions. We also assist federal and state regulators and agencies in the formation and implementation of regulations and policymaking. Our Practice Group has been involved in multibillion-dollar transactions and successfully litigated significant cases before agencies and courts on complex regulatory issues. Prior to joining Duane Morris, several of our attorneys held high-level positions with energy-related governmental agencies, committees and commissions, including the FERC, and are familiar with their operations and procedures.
Banking and Financial Services
Duane Morris attorneys have represented banks, savings associations and their holding companies in jurisdictions across the U.S. and around the world. Our lawyers also have represented other providers of financial services, including investment banking and brokerage firms, commercial finance companies, insurance companies and credit unions in a broad range of regulatory, legislative and business law areas. The firm serves as counsel in a wide range of expansion and restructuring transactions, including domestic and international mergers and acquisitions, strategic divestitures, merger/conversion transactions, purchases and sales of branches and branch systems, product development, the pursuit of new powers, and antitrust counseling and litigation. We assist in the formation of new banks and savings associations and in the transformation of banks and nonbanks into other business forms to meet changing demands in the regulatory environment. Prior to joining Duane Morris, partners in our Washington office held positions in federal banking agencies and various state banking departments and are familiar with their operations and procedures. Our lawyers regularly represent clients before the board of governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Comptroller of the Currency, the Department of Justice, the Office of Thrift Supervision, the National Credit Union Administration and state banking, securities, insurance and antitrust supervisors.
Intellectual Property
Duane Morris' intellectual property (IP) lawyers appreciate that a client's intellectual property is among its most valuable assets, and understand the importance of intellectual capital to the success of the business. We are a full-service IP group offering all aspects of IP services relating to the acquisition, maintenance, transfer and enforcement of intellectual property rights. Our practice includes all aspects of patent, trademark, unfair competition, copyright and trade secret law, including counseling, prosecution, licensing and litigation. IP attorneys in our Washington, D.C. office have technical expertise in telecommunications, wireless communications, computer software, semiconductors, fiber optics, lighting and various mechanical arts. We also represent clients on IP issues related to international trade, portfolio management, the Internet, e-commerce, government contracts, antitrust and unfair competition. Duane Morris' IP litigators have substantial trial and appellate experience in disputes over patents, trademarks, unfair competition, copyrights and trade secrets.
Corporate, Securities, Mergers and Acquisitions
Duane Morris corporate attorneys advise early-stage and mature companies on a wide variety of corporate and securities matters. The firm represents clients in all aspects of mergers and acquisitions, including negotiated acquisitions and divestitures, hostile acquisitions and defense against takeover attempts. Our attorneys are experienced with venture capital and private equity transactions and work with our entrepreneurial clients in developing and implementing creative strategies to accomplish their corporate finance and acquisition objectives. Our lawyers regularly assist closely held companies with strategic planning, equity incentives and succession planning. We represent listed and NASDAQ clients in securities offerings and advise public companies on securities law compliance, ongoing reporting obligations and corporate governance issues.
Healthcare
Duane Morris' healthcare attorneys provide innovative solutions to assist healthcare providers in protecting their assets and increasing their overall profitability. Our healthcare clients benefit from the collective experience of one of the largest healthcare practice groups in the country providing a full range of regulatory and transactional services in every major sector of the healthcare industry. When the uncertainty that characterizes the healthcare system spills over into legal disputes, Duane Morris lawyers represent clients in courts, arbitration and mediation sessions and administrative proceedings.
Litigation and Alternative Dispute Resolution
Lawyers in Duane Morris' Trial Practice Group represent clients in all types of complex commercial litigation, from inception through trial and appeal. Our litigators are experienced in an array of areas, including securities, antitrust, intellectual property, white-collar criminal defense and real estate disputes. Members of our Trial Practice Group often represent insurance companies and work closely with the firm's corporate and bankruptcy lawyers in the representation of financial institutions. Duane Morris attorneys have represented numerous international and national manufacturers in all forms of products liability and toxic tort litigation, including defense of product class actions, serving as national coordinating counsel, lead counsel, regional counsel or local counsel. Duane Morris also represents individuals and corporations facing federal and state allegations of criminal conduct, including fraud, environmental crimes, securities violations, RICO violations, trade espionage, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act issues and a variety of business-related offenses. In addition to representing clients in U.S. forums and before international tribunals, we also provide counsel on settling disputes without conventional litigation by using alternative dispute resolution and advise on methods to anticipate and avoid litigation.
Immigration
The Immigration Practice Group serves a diverse group of clients, including multinational corporations, small professional businesses, financial institutions, embassies and individuals. Attorneys in the Immigration Practice have a comprehensive knowledge of the legal, political and business context in which immigration concerns arise. Our immigration attorneys not only have a thorough understanding of immigration law, but also understand the bureaucratic intricacies, that frequently arise when dealing with decision-makers at the Departments of Homeland Security, State, Commerce and Labor. We assist clients in obtaining non-immigrant visas including those for H-1B professionals (i.e., doctors, engineers, computer scientists), L intracompany transferees, E treaty investors, NAFTA visas for Canadians/Mexicans, students, entertainers, extraordinary ability, foreign media, cultural exchanges and other types. We also assist with immigrant visas, including labor certifications, multinational executives/managers, outstanding professors and researchers, nurses, doctors, physical therapists, investors and family visas. We provide representation in deportation hearings, waiver cases, complex immigration cases, analysis of criminal issues for foreign nationals, I-9 Compliance programs and employer sanctions, and work closely with attorneys in various specialties with immigration ramification issues. We also provide guidance on visa matters at U.S. embassies around the world.
Employment and Labor Relations
Duane Morris' lawyers represent employers of all sizes in a broad spectrum of labor and employment matters, including equal employment opportunity compliance and litigation, statutory compliance and litigation defense and employment termination. We provide a full range of labor relations services, representing clients in union-organizing campaigns, proceedings before the National Labor Relations Board, negotiations of labor contracts and disputes over labor contract provisions. We assist employers in protecting their proprietary information and in enforcing noncompetition and nonsolicitation agreements. Our lawyers emphasize policies to prevent employment problems through our problem prevention programs and services, including seminars and workshops, customized training programs and employment practice audits.
International
Our International Practice Group integrates the services of attorneys from various disciplines who practice around the world, creating a global infrastructure of not only international experience, but also enhanced sensitivity to cultural differences. In the area of international trade regulation, we provide advice regarding domestic and international regulatory and commercial aspects of trade in goods and services, including product labeling and other domestic and foreign regulations that affect imports and exports. Our client base includes foreign governments, international and foreign corporations, foreign nationals and domestic entities desiring to conduct business abroad. We have represented U.S. companies in acquisitions abroad, as well as foreign companies in connection with acquisitions in the United States. We are familiar with the intricacies of the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act and have successfully counseled and defended foreign sovereigns and diplomats in actions pending before federal courts throughout the U.S.
For More Information
For more information, please contact Sheila Slocum Hollis, Douglas Woloshin or any of the lawyers referenced in the Attorney Listing.