Thelen LLP

Infobox Law Firm
firm_name = Thelen LLP
firm_|
headquarters = flagicon|USA San Francisco, California
num_offices = 8
num_attorneys = 430
practice_areas = Construction, Energy, Technology and Outsourcing
revenue =
key_people = Stephen V. O'Neal (Managing Partner)
date_founded = 1924
company_type = Limited liability partnership
homepage = [http://www.thelen.com www.thelen.com]

Thelen LLP, formerly known as Thelen Reid Brown Raysman & Steiner is an American bicoastal law firm formed as a product between two mergers between California and New York-based law firms, mostly recently in 2006. It currently numbers 450 attorneys with offices in 8 cities in the United States, England and China. Thelen is known for its preeminent construction practice which dates back to the 1930s and the local association between the law firm and contractors and developers of large hydroelectric dam projects. Currently, the construction practice offers regulatory, transactional and dispute resolution (litigation and arbitration) support. It is also known for its energy expertise, particularly in the electricity regulatory area, as well as for legal advice concerning technology and outsourcing.

History

The firm that would become Thelen LLP was founded in 1924 as Thelen, Marrin, Johnson & Bridges in San Francisco, California. The firm counseled contractors and developers in a wide range of big ticket infrastructure projects, including the Hoover Dam, the Golden Gate Bridge, the San Francisco-Oakland Bridge and the second stage of Grand Coulee Dam.

In June 1998, Thelen Marrin merged with New York-based Reid & Priest, a firm with 160 attorneys founded in 1935 with a Washington, D.C. office, known for its industry experience in the electric utility sector. [http://www.thelawyer.com/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=98582] . The combined firm reportedly sought to merge with an English law firm following the revelation that New York-based Rogers & Wells and London-based international firm Clifford Chance were in merger talks that eventually reached fruition. [http://www.thelawyer.com/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=89301] However, the firm did not ultimately engage into a transatlantic merger. Instead, it opted for a series of domestic growth by acquiring the 10 lawyers of San Francisco-based technology boutique Britton Silberman & Cervantez in 2000. Three years later, the firm established a joint venture with UK firm Pinsent Masons focused on construction and project finance, called Masons Thelen Reid. [http://www.thelawyer.com/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=85110] The joint venture later launched a link-up with a law firm in Iraq in 2004 to assist firms involved in reconstruction. [http://www.thelawyer.com/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=108567] The joint venture was abandoned in 2007. [http://www.legalweek.com/Articles/1043945/Pinsents+and+US+ally+pull+plug+on+projects+JV.html]

Thelen Reid & Priest LLP merged, effective on December 1, 2006, with Brown Raysman Millstein Felder & Steiner, LLP, to form Thelen Reid Brown Raysman & Steiner LLP. [ [http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2006/10/30/law-blog-wedding-announcement-thelen-reid-brown-raysman/ Law Blog - WSJ.com : LB Wedding Announcement: Thelen Reid & Brown Raysman ] ] The transaction was the largest law firm merger in 2006, according to the Hildebrant International consulting firm creating a bicoastal firm of over 600 attorneys with revenues of over $400 million. [ [http://www.hildebrandt.com/Documents.aspx?Doc_ID=2482 Hildebrandt International - Hildebrandt International's MergerWatch: Year End 2006 ] ]

According to the results of the 2007 National Law Journal's 30th annual survey of the nation's largest law firms, Thelen Reid Brown Raysman & Steiner ranked 70. [ [http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1194516246671 Law.com - The 2007 NLJ 250 ] ] The firm later launched in London and Shanghai.

Since 2006, however, the firm has experienced trouble integrating with legacy Brown Raysman. As of 2008, all of the name partners of Brown Raysman have decamped to rivals. The firm has lost almost 200 attorneys since the merger, including many important rainmakers who have switched to such firms as DLA Piper, Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe, Proskauer Rose, Loeb & Loeb and most recently, the entire China practice group which left for Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman.

The firm has announced its intention to seek another merger partner to boost its headcount and stem the tide of partner defections. The firm shortened its name to Thelen LLP in 2008. [ [http://abovethelaw.com/2008/08/thelen_new_name_merger.php Thelen Their Oats: Will A New Name Lure Suitors?] ]

Notable Mandates

*Provided legal counsel to China Water and Drinks Inc., a Chinese beverage company in its $625 million acquisition by Heckmann Corp in 2008.
*Represented underwriters led by Morgan Stanley with Credit Suisse as co-manager in a $1.135 billion debt offering portion of a leveraged lease financing of the Bruce Mansfield Unit 1 coal-fired generating station by FirstEnergy Generation Corp., a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp. in 2007.
*Advised UniSource Energy Corporation in its $3 billion acquisition by a consortium consisting of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, JP Morgan Partners LLC and Wachovia Capital Partners in 2003.
*Represented the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in the 2001 $2.6 billion privatization of Nigerian Telecommunications plc.

References

External links

* [http://www.thelen.com Thelen Reid Brown Raysman & Steiner website]