Notes From The Executive Committee - DD 3/06

Defense Digest

Notes From The Executive Committee

As you have learned in a number of recent issues of this publication, last year our firm experienced a transition in leadership. It would appear by all accounts that this transition was successful. Our firm experienced a stable and healthy year. Further, as Tom Brophy explained in the last issue of this publication, our firm also spent a good portion of last year focusing on delivering a higher level of service through improved compliance with our clients' file handling guidelines. Given the high marks that we received in various client audits, this goal was achieved. On behalf of the firm, I would like to extend our thanks for your support and continued business.

So what is in store for 2006? On January 1st, we opened a "virtual" office in lower Manhattan. We did this in response to numerous requests from our clients to help them with their New York litigation. At present, our firm has 22 attorneys who are licensed in New York. Many of these attorneys have been retained to represent client interests in litigation in New York, primarily in New York City. In the past, this representation has been strained because of the lack of a home base in the New York. We now have a home base. It is located on the 46th Floor of 140 Broadway, New York, New York 10005. Our telephone number is (212) 858-7567 and our fax number is (212) 858-7568. All communications directed to this office shall be routed to our Roseland, New Jersey office. This will afford us the ability to provide immediate responses to office contacts. Office and conference room space will be available for our use at all times. In effect, we will have an actual office in New York while avoiding much of the overhead expense of such an office. This will afford us the ability to provide services at fees consistent with our existing rate structures. In light of the gains in technology, we believe this will be a great opportunity for our clients to take advantage of the wealth of experience our attorneys have in all aspects of New York litigation.

On March 1st, the Geraghty Law Firm will be joining us. This firm specializes in admiralty litigation. [They will be located in our Roseland, New Jersey office.] For those of you who have been associated with our firm as long as I have, you will recall that we used to post on our letterhead the fact that we were proctors in admiralty. For many reasons beyond our control, our admiralty practice diminished. I am very pleased to announce that we are back. John R. Geraghty has over 35 years of experience in Blue Water Litigation representing clients such as Carnival Cruise Lines, The Achille Lauro, Maersk Lines, Ltd., and the Cross Sound Ferry. His son, Patrick, has followed in his footsteps, having worked as a seaman on ferries throughout college and law school. Patrick also brings with him an insurance background, having served as in-house counsel for two years in Oslo, Norway working for Assuranceforeningen Skuld. We are excited at the prospects of offering our clients this maritime litigation and insurance experience.

On March 6th, Charles William Dorman joined our firm as a member of our appellate practices department and managing attorney of our Jacksonville, Florida office. Charlie will be retiring from the United States Marine Corps as a Brigadier General. His last duty assignment was as the Chief Judge of the United States Navy - Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals. Charlie has authored over 300 appellate briefs and decided over 3,000 appeals within the military justice system. With his wealth of appellate experience and his many years of supervision over both judges and lawyers, Charlie will be a fine addition to our Jacksonville office. Born in Jacksonville, Charlie is looking forward to returning home.

For a number of years, we have been searching for a top notch professional liability litigator to augment our Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania litigation capacity. I am pleased to announce that on March 13, 2006, Dennis Roman joined our firm. Dennis has spent his entire 23-year career practicing professional liability litigation in the Pittsburgh area. Dennis comes to us from the Grogan, Graffam firm where he was a shareholder and member of its executive committee. Dennis is not just an extremely talented litigator, he is a man with tremendous character. We are fortunate to have Dennis join our firm and look forward to his contributions.

While conveying to you some of the people and events to look forward to, I would be remiss if I did not also acknowledge two important additions to our team during the last quarter of last year. Armand Della Porta joined our Wilmington, Delaware office, and Dana Argeris joined our Cherry Hill, New Jersey office. Armand has a considerable amount of experience in asbestos litigation, and he will spearhead our efforts to defend our asbestos clients in that litigation which is burgeoning in Delaware. Dana is a certified civil trial attorney with 30 years of experience involving complex litigation, particularly involving coverage disputes arising from construction, landlord-tenant, and property management disputes.

As you can see, we are starting the year out with a bang. We are very excited about the energy and talent these attorneys bring. We are especially excited about the commitment that we have made to our clients' growing needs in New York. However, none of this growth could occur without the support of our clients. On behalf of the firm, I extend to you our pledge to continue to strive for excellence in the services that we provide to you. I would also like to thank you for your continued support and extend to you and your families a very healthy, successful and happy New Year.