Squire Patton Boggs > Miami, United States > Firm Profile

Squire Patton Boggs > The Legal 500 Rankings

Government > Government relations Tier 1

Comprised of a bipartisan and bicameral team formed of many senior former leaders of government and top Capitol Hill staffers, Squire Patton Boggs is a destination of choice for foreign governments, trade and business associations, multinational corporations, and non-profit organizations. Key areas of strength include defense and security, IT, healthcare, education, energy, and manufacturing. Edward Newberry, who assists sovereign government clients and corporations with high-profile and difficult policy challenges, is managing partner of the firm’s global public policy group, while foreign investment, international trade, project development, and international treaty negotiations expert Robert Kapla and taxation and international trade specialist David Stewart co-chair the Washington DC-based practice. Patricia Doersch focuses on transportation policy, regulations, compliance and enforcement, while Aubrey Rothrock is engaged in coalition-building to reduce federal tax burdens, as well as healthcare, financial services, environment, transportation, and trade regulatory implications. Ludmilla Kasulke has an emphasis on international trade and policy, and Brandon Román is a key contact for nonprofit organizations in corporate formation and in obtaining tax-exempt status from the IRS. Former Chief of Staff to Senator John McCain and of counsel Pablo Carrillo has strong expertise in defense and national security matters, and Beth Goldstein supports on healthcare queries. The addition of Everett Eissenstat in June 2023 from in-house further strengthens the team’s trade offering.

Finance > Restructuring (including bankruptcy): municipal Tier 2

Squire Patton Boggs‘ restructuring and insolvency group provides an integrated approach to municipal restructuring matters, combining the team’s expertise in public finance, policy and governmental affairs in connection with out-of-court restructurings. Situated in San Francisco, Karol Denniston  is experienced in representing debtors, creditors, bondholders and other parties in litigated bankruptcy cases and out-of-court transactions, as well as working with stressed and distressed governmental entities having represented cities and special districts. Cincinnati and New York-based Stephen Lerner handles cross-border Chapter 15 proceedings and Chapter 9 municipal restructurings, while Miami-based Pedro Hernandez specializes in representing a variety of clients in public finance matters including the State of Florida and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Cleveland-situated Maura McIntyre is noted for her focus on workout proceedings on behalf of financially distressed municipal entities and their creditors.

M&A/corporate and commercial > M&A: middle-market ($500m-999m) Tier 3

Fielding a ‘very responsible and flexible’ team, Squire Patton Boggs specializes in corporate governance matters, multi-jurisdictional M&A, and complex joint ventures. The global corporate practice is supported by experts in the IP, employment, and real estate fields, with practice head Cipriano Beredo focusing on divestiture transactions and securities law issues from Cleveland, and Michele Connell, who is also based in Cleveland, regularly handling M&A in the fintech, transportation, and healthcare sectors. From Washington DC, Abby Brown focuses on securities compliance and governance matters, whilst Los Angeles-based James Hsu concentrates on public finance transactions.

Dispute resolution > International arbitration Tier 4

Squire Patton Boggs continues to gain traction in investment treaty work, particularly on the state-side where the wider global international arbitration group now represents twenty-eight sovereign nations. It has also carved out a significant niche in energy disputes, with a lengthening raft of global energy corporations—including state-owned entities—turning to the team for support. Stephen Anway co-chairs the global practice from the US, where he splits his time between New York and Washington DC; he is representing Slovakia, Romania, and Iraq in arbitral disputes, among others. The team also includes Luka Mišetić, who specializes in cases involving Central and Eastern Europe; Charles Rosenberg, who recently joined from King & Spalding LLP; and senior associate Carlos Guzmán Plascencia—all are in New York. Miriam Harwood has left the firm.

Environment > Environment: litigation Tier 4

Led by Peter Gould in the Denver office, the environmental, safety & health group at Squire Patton Boggs represents a diverse clientele of mining, energy, chemicals and manufacturing companies seeking assistance with toxic tort defense and enforcement actions, as well as challenging new legislations. The Columbus office fields Karen Winters, who is a name to note for large-scale environmental liability and compliance issues and Vincent Atriano, who has extensive experience in the defense of governmental enforcement actions and citizen suits, indemnification claims and toxic tort class actions, in addition to Douglas McWilliams, whose workload includes matters related to the Clean Air Act and the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act. Denver’s Carolyn McIntosh is also recommended for her ability to handle a spread of environmental, natural resources, and complex commercial litigation cases.

Environment > Environment: regulatory Tier 4

Under the leadership of Denver’s Peter Gould, the team at Squire Patton Boggs represents a diverse clientele, with particular strength in the mining, chemical manufacturing, energy and infrastructure spaces. In Cleveland, Allen Kacenjar assists clients with compliance issues, identifying environmental risks and implementing strategies to mitigate them, while Denver’s Carolyn McIntosh counsels clients on environmental compliance, regularly assisting companies with the regulatory landscape surrounding land use and renewables projects.

Finance > Restructuring (including bankruptcy): corporate Tier 5

Noted for their ‘extremely strong knowledge of the restructuring process and related law,’ Squire Patton Boggs handle all facets of the restructuring and insolvency process, with capabilities in handling cross-border matters. Cincinnati and New York-situated global chair Stephen Lerner is skilled in handling Chapter 11 reorganizations for a range of clients in the coal, energy, financial services and healthcare industries, while San Francisco-based Karol Denniston  has experience representing both creditors and debtors in litigated bankruptcy cases and out-of-court transactions. Norman Kinel, in New York, is noted for his cross-border capabilities in bankruptcy and insolvency proceedings.

Latin America: International firms > City focus - Miami Tier 1

Squire Patton Boggs’s Miami office is best known for cross-border litigation and arbitration. It represents a number of sovereigns and government-owned entities in cases seated in the US, and is also regularly engaged in Section 1782 cases. Notable sovereign clients include the Republic of Ecuador, Republic of Peru, Republic of Panama and Republic of Costa Rica, along with state entity EP Petroecuador. In the Costa Rican case, the group defended the State in a BIT arbitration brought by a Spanish investor alleging that the Costa Rican Ministry of Health’s inspections of its chicken farming facilities, and subsequent suspension of its activities due to infractions, forced the exit of Ibérico (the claimant’s company) from the Costa Rican market. Aside from sovereign work, the Miami office has also seen ongoing growth in energy and transportation-related cases. Digna French is chair of the litigation practice in Florida and co-chair of the Miami-Latin America task force; she and Raúl Mañón, who heads the international dispute resolution practice in Miami, are the key names to note.

Latin America: International firms > International arbitration

Squire Patton Boggs  represents a number of sovereigns and government-owned entities in major cases. Clients include the Republics of Ecuador, Peru, Panama and Costa Rica, with recent mandates including defence of the latter in a Costa Rica-Spain BIT case brought by a Spanish investor. The team is also notably active in energy and transportation-related cases. Although probably best-known for its investor-state experience, the firm is a recognised force in representing state-owned companies and private companies in commercial arbitrations. Raúl Mañón heads the international dispute resolution practice in Miami and is the key figure for Latin America-related arbitrations, along with John Adam and Jose Feris (both of them in Paris), who are senior investment and commercial arbitration specialists. Singapore partner Rodman Bundy is a leading name in public international law and has represented Latin American governments in a number of state-to-state cases.