- Chairman: Mark S Stewart
- Number of partners: 226
- Numbers of lawyers: 506
Firm Overview:
Ballard Spahr is a national firm with 13 offices. Attorneys provide counseling and advocacy in more than 40 practice areas. The firm’s mission: to provide nothing less than excellence in every legal representation.
Main Areas of Practice:
Business & Finance:
The Business and Finance Department serves regional, national, and international clients. They include financial institutions, government entities, and nonprofit organizations, as well as life science, energy, and health care companies. In the M&A/private equity area, attorneys structure, negotiate, and close transactions for buyers, sellers, and related parties, including venture capital firms. Securities attorneys advise on development and capital-raising activities and compliance with public reporting and proxy obligations. Attorneys in the firm’s consumer financial services practice advise on regulatory matters, assist in the design and documentation of credit products, and represent clients in class actions, regulatory enforcement proceedings, and other lawsuits. Employee benefits and executive compensation attorneys help design and implement benefits packages that comply with all regulatory requirements. The energy and project finance practice handles the development, acquisition, and financing of energy assets and regulatory compliance. Attorneys represent producers and distributors of electricity from renewable and other sources, operators of regional wholesale energy markets, natural gas producers, and large industrial consumers of natural gas. Clients also include underwriters, private issuers, banks, and investors.
Intellectual Property:
Ballard Spahr work nationally and internationally to identify, secure, and protect clients’ intellectual property. Many attorneys hold PhDs or other advanced degrees. The firm’s attorneys provide the spectrum of IP representation, including copyright and trademark clearance and counsel, patent counseling and procurement, licensing, branding services, and litigation. They also counsel on unfair competition, trade secret, and trade dress matters. Attorneys offer strategic due diligence guidance during mergers and acquisitions and portfolio restructuring, and work with early-stage growth companies and entrepreneurs in commercializing IP assets.
Litigation:
Litigation is the firm’s largest department,with more than 200 attorneys. They handle complex litigation, from securities class actions and contractual disputes to federal and state appeals, for regional, national, and international clients. A dedicated group handles eDiscovery and data management issues. Labor and employment attorneys counsel and defend against discrimination, harassment, and retaliation claims. They also handle issues involving family and medical leave,whistle-blowing, ERISA, and noncompetition agreements. Attorneys have significant experience in class and collective action litigation. White collar lawyers conduct internal investigations and represent clients facing government enforcement. They also represent clients in False Claims Act and other civil fraud litigation and administrative proceedings.
Public Finance:
Ballard Spahr have one of the premier public finance practices in the nation. Clients include state and local governments and authorities throughout the country, underwriters, borrowers, investors, financial institutions, nonprofit organizations, and trustees. Attorneys regularly act as bond counsel, disclosure counsel, underwriter’s counsel, issuer’s counsel, special tax counsel, borrower’s counsel, lender and credit enhancer’s counsel, and trustee’s counsel. They also advise on defaults, restructurings, tax audits, and securities investigations, as well as arbitrage rebate and post-issuance compliance. The firm’s experience covers matters in municipal, tax, securities, transportation, economic development, real estate, affordable housing, environmental, public utilities, energy, health care, education, banking, administrative, and corporate areas.
Real Estate:
The Real Estate Department, one of the most prominent in the nation, serves a diversified client base. Representations include acquisitions and equity participations; securitized and balance-sheet loans; construction and design contracts; mixed-use development and research parks; public/private ventures; leasing; housing development and finance; industrial facilities; condominium and planned community development; hotel, resort, and fractional interests; and workouts, restructurings, and foreclosures. Clients include owners, lenders, investors, and developers, as well as government agencies, colleges and universities, and hospitals.