PARTNER, GREENBERG TRAURIG, LLP
Washington, D.C.
YEARS PRACTICING: 29
PRACTICE AREA: Africa
JUDE KEARNEY
AS CHAIR OF GREENBERG’S AFRICA PRACTICE, Jude Kearney works with major U.S. and international clients in the areas of energy, telecom- munications, infrastructure projects, and financial services. He also handles mat- ters involving mergers and acquisitions, complex litigation, and corporate matters, and has specific experience in international markets including Africa, Eastern Europe, and Asia. Kearney’s interest in Africa began when he completed a yearlong post- graduate fellowship in Nigeria. At the end of his stay, he vowed to return and be part of the developing continent’s growth. In some respects he feels personally
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vested in Africa’s well-being: “Over the decades there have been a lot of oppor- tunities in Africa, but the individuals who pursued those opportunities weren’t always concerned with the ultimate suc- cess of their projects—or the impact of those projects on the host countries. I’m keenly aware that commercial realities must play a role in decisions to invest in a market or to develop its infrastructure, but making sure the projects we work on and leave behind has sustainability is incredibly important to me.” He describes his business development
style as very hands on. He stresses the importance of being where the opportuni- ties are. Tough based in Washington, D.C., the Arkansas native travels to Africa monthly, visiting one of the ten African nations with whom he does business. Kearney lived in South Africa from 2000 to 2005, as the founder and head of LeBoeuf Lamb’s Johannesburg office. He joined Greenberg in June 2012 to establish the firm’s Africa practice. “Tere’s probably an expectation
around me to continue at this pace, but that’s not my primary motivation. I am constantly moving to make sure the best options are available.”
DIVERSITY & THE BAR® NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2013
PARTNER, BAKER & MCKENZIE
Washington, D.C. YEARS PRACTICING: 27
PRACTICE AREA: Global Immigration and Mobility ELIZABETH E. STERN
LIKE THE MOVEMENT OF GOODS, TECHNOLOGY, AND CAPITAL, THE MOVEMENT OF PEOPLE can trigger legal issues. As the rainmaking head of Baker & McKenzie’s global mobility practice, Elizabeth (Liz) Stern helps companies establish global compliance and management programs to move their executive and professional work corps to various locations around the world. When Stern started her practice, she mainly focused on employees
entering Western markets. “Today, with corporations expanding in emerg- ing economies, there’s movement in all directions,” she says. Over time it became clear to her that an exclusively inbound practice was not sufficient. As globalization accelerated, her practice needed to adapt. Early in her career, Stern utilized her legal and language skills handling
immigration issues for burgeoning IT companies in the Washington, D.C. area. As the daughter of an Ecuadorian diplomat, Stern’s first language is Spanish even though she was born in the United States. She also speaks French. “I’d wanted to be a trial lawyer,” she recalls. “But I quickly learned that moving people was a huge part of business planning, and I found that I liked business planning much more than fighting disputes in court.” In 2005, she joined Baker & McKenzie. She stresses the importance of having an engaged, service-oriented team. "We manage risk,” she says.
PARTNER, SEDGWICK LLP
Los Angeles, CA YEARS PRACTICING: 25 PRACTICE AREA: Media and Entertainment
JAMES J.S. HOLMES
RAINMAKING ENTERTAINMENT AND MEDIALAWYER JAMES (JIM) HOLMES REMEMBERS early in his career offering his services to a movie studio with a strong commitment to diversity. He recalls, “I told them ‘If you want to hire me because I’m gay that’s fine, but I’d rather you hire me because I’m good. And by the way, I’m both.’” He was hired. “I’ve always been out. I was out in law school, and out in my practice,”
he adds. An entertainment and media partner at Sedgwick in Los Angeles, Holmes is active in national and local bar associations, both general and those specific to LGBT. “I’m there to improve the bar and not to develop business; however over the years these groups have offered me leadership opportunities that have given me confidence, knowledge, and compassion. Both existing and potential clients like these things a lot. Tere’s no seminar, cocktail party, or golf outing that’s going to do that.” Holmes has been with Sedgwick for twenty years, and credits the firm
with providing him with a platform which allows him to be successful: “Te firm is a national practice, so I’m not just the guy in Los Angeles. Being able to staff a file anywhere in the country has been fundamental to the expan- sion of my practice.”
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