Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP > New York, United States > Firm Profile

‘David Mitchell is the most knowledgeable derivatives attorney that I have worked with. He is extremely responsive.’

‘Ray Shirazi is a valued and trusted advisor in the structured products and derivatives space. Ray has significant experience across the practice and is an expert in the various matters of securities law, cross-border issues, regulatory issues and contractual matters presented by structured products and derivatives transactions. Ray has a unique ability to analyze and break down a complex issue into its component parts to provide valuable advice and reach logical conclusions.’

‘The Fried Frank team is outstanding in all facets of private fund representation. We have worked with them on raising closed-end funds and co-investment vehicles and have consulted them on matters relating to our hedge funds.’

‘Jeremy Berry is one of the best fund lawyers we have worked with and his associate team is extremely strong as well. They have tremendous experience but most importantly they are able to use that experience to come up with creative solutions to thorny issues.’

‘The knowledge this firm has on zoning and land use is by far superior to any of the other firms I have worked with. Zoning is nuanced, and Fried Frank knows what they are doing. When I make offers to buy property, their mistakes could be devastating to me. They don’t make mistakes. ’

‘My lawyer is simply the most knowledgeable in the world of zoning and land use. I have confidence in her guidance and advice.’

‘Fried Frank has an exceptional breadth and depth of knowledge coverage all aspects of real estate transactions. They are involved in the most significant transactions in the New York City market and are well-positioned to provide practical legal advice.’

‘Jonathan Mechanic is among the most prominent real estate attorneys nationally and knows most, if not all, the major players in the New York market.’

‘Valerie Kelly is extremely intelligent and technically skilled.  She has great people and client skills, which is a tremendous asset in negotiations.’

‘They do a good job in navigating how we compare to our peers in the market for our funds. They are eager to partner and provide effective and efficient responses to our issues.’

‘Very senior and knowledgeable. Has taken the time to understand how I approach matters and is able to efficiently explain the issues so that we can make informed decisions that are best for both our investors and our firm. ’

‘Fried Frank’s tax lawyers are the best in the business. Their secret sauce is that they are very smart and knowledgeable about tax law, super hardworking and responsive, and have an incredible ability to describe incredibly complicated tax law and fact patterns and distill them into easy to understand chunks that lead to good outcomes for the company and smarter decision makers.’

‘Alan Kaden is a king in the tax world. Everyone knows him, respects him, and listens to him. He’s the rare combination of a brilliant tax lawyer and really nice guy who makes you feel like you’re the most important client he has. Shane Hoffman, who works with Alan is an excellent up-and-coming lawyer. He knows a lot, is an excellent lawyer and is so good at explaining complicated concepts. Their work product is excellent.’

‘Our corporate tax department contact is a tax lawyer at the firm, but he acts like the engagement partner, brining the right resources for every issue. Great customer services. Great diversity of practice. Great expertise.’

‘Mike Alter is committed to customer service, making sure he understands our needs as a company (and individual professionals), and serving those needs. Mike sets you up as an individual to succeed within your company and sets up the company to succeeds in its transaction.’

‘Their technical expertise is phenomenal across the many different sectors of tax. Their ability to attack tax issues from a business perspective is what makes them the best.’

‘Libin Zhang is my contact at the firm. I have worked in the tax departments of two publicly traded REITs and he is by far the best tax attorney I have worked with. His technical and business acumen is always on point and his responsiveness is amazing.’

‘While of course we strive to avoid litigation, engaging Fried Frank’s team in dispute resolution makes sense because of the strong commercial sensibilities of the team, who understand the big picture and the needs of a repeat M&A player when it comes to litigation. I think they provide excellent advice, which they closely coordinate with their corporate colleagues to ensure that the dispute doesn’t overtake the merits of the deal where possible.’

‘Close collaboration with their corporate colleagues to really get the big picture is a hallmark of Fried Frank’s litigation practice.

‘Peter Simmons and Scott Luftglass have both provided wise counsel on complex matters. They are engaged and available at all times, greatly appreciated when the stakes are high.’

‘Jamie Wareham and Stephen Juris provide outstanding service and advocacy, high levels of engagement, and strong business acumen and problem-solving skills.’

‘There are many good firms and Fried Frank is among the best.’

‘Jamie Wareham is smart, hardworking, experienced and totally dedicated to getting the best results for the client.’

‘Extremely insightful. Always knows what the other side is trying to do and crafts great strategies on how to counter. Gives practical advice about how to handle challenges day to day.’

‘James Wareham is absolutely the best litigator and dispute resolution expert I have ever worked with. He was as much life coach as he was my lawyer. He always fielded late night and weekend phone calls, even when to discuss frustrations vs. legal matters.’

‘Excellent execution, thorough knowledge of the process, excellent working relationships with underwriters, their counsel, and specialists. Excellent at walking the client through the mysteries of the process.’

‘I would single out Daniel Bursky and Joshua Coleman for their business-savvy, comprehensive knowledge of the field, responsiveness, diligence, and positive attitude.’

‘Great business lawyers with a wealth of knowledge. They are thoughtful, available 24/7, technically competent and know how to get the deals done.’

‘Michael Barker is super experienced and a terrific lawyer; detail oriented and impressive in his overall judgment.’

‘Fried Frank has broadest bench in real estate of any firm. They represent well-heeled borrowers and the largest institutional lenders, so they know where the give-and-take is and what the end result should be. They are super smart and always great advocates for your positions.’

‘Michael Barker is a stand-out as well as Suzanne Decker.  Of course, the head of the firm, Jon Mechanic, is without dispute the most well-known real estate law in New York and he knows absolutely everyone.’

‘They are top tier practice at the bleeding edge of market developments in complex real estate transactions.’

‘Michael Vines is extremely sharp and is on top of the latest market developments; when he is on your deal you know you nothing is going to slip through the cracks and when it comes to a complex transaction he is always one step ahead in identifying problems and coming to you with solutions.’

‘Michael Barker is a fantastic negotiator. He always manages to get the point across in a way that is collaborative and turns the temperatures down while getting you to the right place.’

‘Barry Nigro has the rare combination of DOJ and FTC expertise that is invaluable to clients who need to understand the agencies’ latest thinking.’

‘Fried Frank’s Antitrust practice is excellent at the big things and the small things. Not only do they have a great knowledge of the law, the markets, and how investigations work, but they are also great at guiding a company in both the pre-deal antitrust analysis and in any review of a transaction. Their relentless hard work and attention to detail is second to none. They also give you the thoughtful and insightful advice you need, not necessarily what you want to hear. ’

‘Nate Asker is excellent. He knows what he’s talking about. He’s great at talking to high level executives and CEOs and also good at explaining complicated concepts into simple easy to understand terms. He also puts in the time to really understand our business and thereby is well positioned to advise us. We also worked with Aleksandr Livshits, who was incredibly knowledgeable, thoughtful, responsive and very hardworking.’

‘The rejoining of Barry Nigro is a great move for the firm. His decades of experience generally, and recent experience as the number 2 lawyer in the Antitrust Division, makes him a knowledgeable and skilled counselor on a broad array of government enforcement matters.’

‘Team has a lot of flow; they see many deals and know where the market is at.’

‘Daniel Bursky is an outstanding partner.’

‘Very strong sense of what is market and when to push lenders to give more to benefit their clients.‘

‘Daniel Bursky understands innately how to guide his clients and provides extremely sound, beneficial advice driven by what is right for the client over all other considerations that justifiably should remain no more than distractions.‘

‘Joshua Coleman is a consummate technician, aware of all of the details needed to bring a transaction home successfully.‘

‘Top-flight knowledge of the market, well-grounded business-oriented advice, state-of-the-art documentation, thorough knowledge of the rules and accepted practices.‘

‘Daniel Bursky and Joshua Coleman – thorough, prepared, diligent, friendly, efficient, effective, excellent legal and business counsel.‘

‘The team seems and does many deals and acts for many large PE firms and corporate issuers and has lot of experience / exposure to the market.’

‘Daniel Bursky is outstanding.’

‘Jim McCullough’s depth of knowledge relating to all aspects of government contracts is unrivaled among our outside counsel. He knows our business and our approach to doing business.’

‘Jim McCullough and Michael Anstett are focused professionals. They hone in on the important issues and provide clear guidance for how to address them.’

‘Overall, exceptional performance. Very client-focused, proactive, always on point, differentiated judgment, and balanced. They partner seamlessly with internal counsel. They have been outstanding in managing complex, cross-border transaction work, including managing external legal teams across jurisdictions and specialties.’

‘Mark Lucas is extremely client-centric. Thoughtful, nuanced and balanced judgment. Both legally and commercially analytical and rigorous. Overall, provides differentiated, consistent, keen counsel.’

‘High quality, commercial attorneys. Know how to balance getting the deal done with getting the perfect deal done.’

‘In my over 30 years in real estate tax, I have not had better service. They provide practical and economical advice. They look for easy solutions. They are extremely responsive.’

‘We often have to have Fried, Frank collaborate with our tax preparer and they seamlessly collaborate with them. They have no egos, which leads to exceptional collaboration.’

‘Thorough knowledge of cross-border offerings and their unique characteristics. Excellent sense of what is market and how to maximize effectiveness for the client.’

‘Daniel Bursky and Joshua Coleman – Excellent judgment, straightforward advice, comprehensive knowledge of the market, diligent, prepared, efficient, effective.’

‘Brad Eric Scheler is critical to the practice. He is very highly regarded as a deal lawyer.’

‘Brad Eric Scheler takes tough positions but works to find the “clearing price” in a negotiation, avoiding unnecessary and costly litigation.’