Olexandr Lysak

Bill Backstrom is a partner and leader of the firm’s Tax Practice Group. For more than 35 years, he has focused on state and local tax matters in Louisiana and on a multistate basis. Bill provides comprehensive, practical, and solution-focused tax guidance to a broad range of business enterprises. Known for the quality of his counsel, his commitment to client service, and his ability to explain sophisticated issues in clear terms — particularly with respect to Louisiana’s hi...

Spencer Katona's practice focuses on lending and financing transactions, commercial real estate services, corporate and business transactions, and land use and development. He represents institutional lenders in secured and unsecured commercial financing transactions, including FHA and Fannie Mae deals, and structuring, drafting, and negotiating loan documentation for real estate development projects, including hotels, medical office, retail, multi-family, and historic tax credit transactions...

Vaughn McWilliams specializes in general business and corporate law, mergers and acquisitions, real estate, and real estate and commercial finance. He represents lenders and developers in a variety of commercial real estate transactions, including senior housing, medical office, self-storage, multi-family, and tax credit financing. Vaughn also represents clients on the purchase and sale and financing of of closely-held businesses, including professional practices. Prior to moving to Birmingha...

Ross E. Webster is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Commercial Litigation. Ross E., who practices law in Memphis, Tennessee, has been recognized since 2019. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Ross E. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Wendy Cohen, managing partner of Katten's New York office and co-chair of the Investment Management and Funds group, understands the business realities and challenges of the competitive world of asset management. For three decades, asset managers have turned to her to navigate the minefield of regulation that governs the structuring and operation of private investment funds. From the largest and most established hedge funds to innovative players with alternative strategies, clients rely on We...

Christopher M. Wells heads Proskauer’s Hedge Fund Group and has been a leading lawyer in the hedge fund industry for more than 30 years. Chris advises on all aspects of fund formation, compliance and operations, has been described as "one of the deans of the hedge fund bar," and has led hundreds of hedge fund launches, counselling fund managers as they grew from often very modest beginnings to become some of the world’s largest and best known hedge fund managers.

Brett B. Larsen is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Commercial Litigation. Brett B., who practices law in Phoenix, Arizona, has been recognized since 2025. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Brett B. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Gary Gassman focuses his practice in the areas of insurance coverage counseling and litigation and is co-chair of the firm’s Professional Liability Practice Group. For more than 20 years, his practice has been concentrated on management liability including directors and officers and entity liability, employment practices liability, fiduciary liability, and various types of professional liability and commercial general liability coverage. He also has significant reinsurance experience. G...

Patrick represents his clients in the prosecution and defense of many types of civil litigation matters, primarily in the areas of commercial and business litigation, torts, and complex defense litigation. He also has significant experience advising clients in the area of insurance coverage and the defense of professional claims. His extensive experience in commercial litigation has permitted him to successfully represent large multinational corporations in both state and federal courts acros...

Serving as co-chair of the firm’s Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation Practice, Joe focuses his practice exclusively on employee benefits and executive compensation and has represented some of the largest companies in the world and many prominent “C-suite” executives with respect to such matters. Clients describe him as “efficient and easy to work with,” "an incredibly skilled employee benefits attorney," and “able to help with judgment calls on am...