December 22, 2014 — McDermott Will & Emery has been named one of the “Tax Practice Groups of the Year,” a prestigious honor awarded by leading legal news outlet, Law360.

As in past years, Law360’s Practice Groups of the Year profile those practice groups that achieved the biggest wins in the most important cases or worked on the biggest deals over the past year (between November 1, 2013 and November 1, 2014). Firms were selected based on the significance of the litigation wins or deals worked on; the size and complexity of the litigation wins or the deals worked on; and, the number of significant, large or complex deals the group worked on.

Law360 received a record 683 submissions for the series and selected 158 winners across 26 practice areas for honors. McDermott was among a select number of law firms that received two or more Practice Groups of the Year awards this year (the Firm’s Health practice group was also selected for this honor this year).

“This is a terrific validation of the outstanding tax capabilities McDermott is uniquely able to field for our clients in the U.S. and around the world,” said Lowell D. Yoder, partner and head of the Firm’s US & International Tax Practice Group, which includes nearly 100 lawyers located across the United States, Europe and Asia (through a strategic alliance with MWE China Law Offices in Shanghai). “Our tax lawyers provide counsel in all areas of taxation to a wide range of public and private multinational companies with operations in more than 60 countries. They assist with mergers and acquisitions, domestic and international tax planning, internal restructurings, transfer pricing, controversies, joint ventures, legislative matters and compliance.”

“The Firm’s State and Local Tax (SALT) team is once again proud to be chosen among the very best tax law groups in the country,” adds Jane Wells May, partner and head of McDermott’s State and Local Tax Practice Group. “We are focused on delivering the best possible service to our clients in this constantly changing area of the law, and we’re very pleased to be recognized by Law360 with this great honor.”

McDermott Will & Emery was named “Law Firm of the Year” in Tax Law in the 2013 ”Best Law Firms” rankings published by U.S. News Media Group and Best Lawyers. Additionally, some 20 lawyers from McDermott’s U.S. & International Tax Practice Group and three lawyers in the Firm’s State & Local Tax Practice Group were named as leaders in the category.

McDermott Will & Emery has one of the largest and most diversified state and local tax (SALT) practices in the United States. The Firm’s lawyers possess an in-depth knowledge of the constantly changing law, as well as the experience and judgment necessary to provide advice and advocacy of the highest caliber to our clients. The members of the group are nationally recognized authorities and, as such, are regularly sought as speakers at seminars and conferences conducted by numerous tax and business organizations throughout the country.

About McDermott Will & Emery
McDermott Will & Emery is a premier international law firm with a diversified business practice. Numbering more than 1,100 lawyers, we have offices in Boston, Brussels, Chicago, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Houston, London, Los Angeles, Miami, Milan, Munich, New York, Orange County, Paris, Rome, Seoul, Silicon Valley and Washington, D.C. Further extending our reach into Asia, we have a strategic alliance with MWE China Law Offices in Shanghai.

LONDON (December 17, 2014) — International law firm McDermott Will & Emery represented Olam International Limited in its pending acquisition of Archer Daniels Midland Company’s (ADM) global cocoa business. The US$1.3 billion transaction will establish Olam Cocoa as one of the world’s top three cocoa processors.

Based in Singapore and listed on the SGX-ST, Olam is a leading agri-business operating in 65 countries. Its Cocoa business is one of the world’s largest suppliers of sustainable cocoa and is a leader in long-term sustainability initiatives.

The proposed acquisition, which has the support of Olam’s major shareholders, is subject to necessary regulatory approvals and clearances, customary closing conditions.

Corporate Partner Nicholas Azis co-led the McDermott team from London, with David Goldman, partner and head of the Firm’s International Corporate Advisory Practice Group leading the negotiations with partner Michael Sartor in the United States.

“We are pleased to be involved in what is a truly transformational deal for our longstanding client, Olam, and particularly for the cocoa team in London, for who we have advised on previous deals in Europe,” said Azis.

The acquisition follows a string of international deals this year on which McDermott has advised in the food and beverage industry, including, the acquisition of Unilever’s meat snacks business for Jack Links, the sale of the leading Nigerian beverage can manufacturer Alucan to Nampak and the acquisition by Belgian brewer Duvel Moortgat for Boulevard Brewing, in what was reported to be the largest acquisition in the craft beer space to date in the US.

“Olam’s continuing choice to engage McDermott as lead counsel on yet another deal, particularly such a strategic, board-level one, is a testament to our ability to affect a complex, billion dollar, cross-border transactions in food and beverage, a sector that we very much lauded for,” said Goldman.

McDermott has a long established relationship with Olam International, having represented the company on nearly a dozen acquisitions in recent years, including in West Africa, Russia and the United States. McDermott most recently represented Olam in the sale of its sweet condensed and evaporated milk business in Côte d’Ivoire to FrieslandCampina, a multinational dairy group based in the Netherlands.

With its acquisition of the ADM cocoa business, Olam will become one of the top three cocoa processors and enhance its origination footprint. Under the proposed transaction, the deal includes processing facilities in Mississauga, Canada; Koog aan de Zaan and Wormer, Netherlands; Mannheim, Germany; Ilhéus, Brazil; Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire; Kumasi, Ghana; and Singapore, as well as ADM’s buying stations in Brazil, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, and Indonesia, and the iconic deZaan brand and the UNICAO brands.

In addition to Mr. Azis, Mr. Sartor and Mr. Goldman, the McDermott deal team included partners, Maureen O’Brien, Daphne Trotter, John Calandra, Joel Grosberg, Ankur Gupta, Andrea Hamilton, Joanne Ludovici, Obiamaka Madubuko, Rohan Massey, Tom Scott, Volker Teigelkötter, Holger Weiß, and Daniel Zucker. Counsel Dan Bucca and Jan Hückel, and Associates Eleanor West, Lara Stahl, Jessica Bayles, Thomas Gennert, Misbah Imtiaz, Emily Knurek, Bess Morgan and Patrick Ryan were also instrumental in the transaction.

JP Morgan Ltd. acted as financial adviser to Olam. Jenner & Block and Sidley Austin advised ADM.

McDermott represents more than 500 clients in the Food, Beverage and Agribusiness sector, with many of these relationships stretching back for decades. The Firm advises all participants in the value chain—growers, processors, input suppliers, cooperatives, food manufacturers, importers, distributors, trade associations, retailers, restaurants and other stakeholders—across the range of issues affecting the production, distribution and marketing of food, beverages and related products.

About McDermott Will & Emery
McDermott Will & Emery is a premier international law firm with a diversified business practice. Numbering more than 1,100 lawyers, we have offices in Boston, Brussels, Chicago, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Houston, London, Los Angeles, Miami, Milan, Munich, New York, Orange County, Paris, Rome, Seoul, Silicon Valley and Washington, D.C. Further extending our reach into Asia, we have a strategic alliance with MWE China Law Offices in Shanghai.

CHICAGO (November 11, 2014) – McDermott Will & Emery LLP applauds its long-time client, Hackensack University Medical Center (“HackensackUMC”), for its selection by the New Jersey Law Journal as the 2014 “Legal Department of the Year” for in-house legal work.

Audrey Murphy, chief legal counsel for HackensackUMC, leads the team which was honored at this year’s award ceremony held at The Newark Club on November 6, 2014. Ms. Murphy, who is also a registered nurse, oversees the five-attorney department, which serves the legal needs of the Medical Center and its more than 400 physicians.

HackensackUMC is the largest hospital in New Jersey. McDermott attorneys represents Hackensack UMC on a broad variety of matters, including transactional, regulatory, governance, executive compensation, due diligence, reimbursement, finance, compliance, academic medicine, clinical research, managed care and many other matters.

“We are very proud of Audrey and the HackensackUMC family – including its legal department and its support staff — for being recognized with this prestigious honor,” said McDermott Health law partner Michael W. Peregrine. “Hospitals today face enormous legal and regulatory challenges in the wake of health care reform, and Audrey and her talented team have met that challenge and more, helping to make HackensackUMC one of New Jersey’s finest medical centers. HackensackUMC is a long-standing and highly valued client of the Firm, and it has been our honor and pleasure to work with them.”

Mr. Peregrine leads the McDermott team working with HackensackUMC, which includes partners Ralph DeJong, Joshua Buchman, Peter Rich, David Rosenbloom, Thomas Hefty, Lisa Kaderabek, Megan Rooney and Stephen Wu.

McDermott Will & Emery has one of the largest and most prestigious health law practices in the world. It is the only law firm to receive Tier 1 rankings in health care nationally by all of the industry’s top legal directories: Chambers USA, The Legal 500 USA and U.S. News–Best Lawyers.

HackensackUMC was ranked as the number one hospital in New Jersey in the 2014 annual U.S. News & World Report’s Best Hospitals rankings. The medical center has received 11 national rankings – more than any other hospital in New Jersey – and ranked among the top 30 hospitals in the nation.

About McDermott Will & Emery
McDermott Will & Emery is a premier international law firm with a diversified business practice. Numbering more than 1,100 lawyers, we have offices in Boston, Brussels, Chicago, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Houston, London, Los Angeles, Miami, Milan, Munich, New York, Orange County, Paris, Rome, Seoul, Silicon Valley and Washington, D.C. Further extending our reach into Asia, we have a strategic alliance with MWE China Law Offices in Shanghai.

About Hackensack University Medical Center
HackensackUMC, a nonprofit teaching and research hospital located in Bergen County, NJ, is the largest provider of inpatient and outpatient services in the state. Founded in 1888 as the county’s first hospital, it is the flagship hospital of Hackensack University Health Network, one of the largest health networks in the state comprised of 1,250 beds, nearly 10,000 employees and 2,700 credentialed physicians. HackensackUMC was listed as the number one hospital in New Jersey in the U.S. News & World Report’s Best Hospital rankings for 2014-15. HackensackUMC is among Healthgrades® America’s Best 100 Hospitals in five different areas, is one of Healthgrades America’s 50 Best Hospitals™ for eight years in a row, and received the Healthgrades Distinguished Hospital Award for Clinical Excellence™ 12 years in a row. The medical center has also been named a Leapfrog Top Hospital, and received 23 Gold Seals of Approval™ by the Joint Commission – more than any other hospital in the country. It was the first hospital in New Jersey and second in the nation to become a Magnet® recognized hospital for nursing excellence; receiving its fifth consecutive designation in 2014. HackensackUMC is the Hometown Hospital of the New York Giants and the New York Red Bulls and was Official Medical Services Provider to The Barclays PGA Golf Tournament and the NY/NJ Super Bowl XLV111 Host Committee. It remains committed to its community through fundraising and community events. To learn more, visit: www.HackensackUMC.org

BOSTON (November 5, 2014) — International law firm McDermott Will & Emery LLP represented Constellation Brands, Inc., a leading beverage alcohol company, in its concurrent issuances on November 3, 2014 of $400 million aggregate principal amount of Senior Notes due 2019 and $400 million aggregate principal amount of Senior Notes due 2024 in a public offering under a shelf registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Constellation intends to use the proceeds from the offering to redeem on November 26, 2014 its 8.375 percent Senior Notes due 2014 in the aggregate principal amount of $500 million and for general corporate purposes.

“We were delighted to have the opportunity to advise our long-time client Constellation Brands on this securities offering,” said David Cifrino, McDermott partner and lead on the transaction. “Given the recent uncertainties in the corporate bond market, we were very pleased to work efficiently with the talented team at Constellation and with its other advisers to execute this transaction on a timely basis and on favorable terms for the Company.”

The McDermott team also included Constellation relationship partner Bernard Kramer, partners Dan Zucker and Ray Jacobsen and associates Elliot Smith and Zach Swartz.

About Constellation Brands
Constellation Brands is a leading international producer and marketer of beer, wine and spirits with operations in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, New Zealand and Italy.

Constellation is the third-largest producer and marketer of beer for the U.S. market and the world’s leading premium wine company with a leading market position in the U.S., Canada and New Zealand. Constellation’s wine portfolio is complemented by select premium spirits brands. Constellation’s brand portfolio includes Corona Extra, Corona Light, Modelo Especial, Negra Modelo, Pacifico, Robert Mondavi, Clos du Bois, Kim Crawford, Rex Goliath, Mark West, Franciscan Estate, Ruffino, Jackson-Triggs, SVEDKA Vodka and Black Velvet Canadian Whisky.

About McDermott Will & Emery
McDermott Will & Emery is a premier international law firm with a diversified business practice. Numbering more than 1,100 lawyers, we have offices in Boston, Brussels, Chicago, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Houston, London, Los Angeles, Miami, Milan, Munich, New York, Orange County, Paris, Rome, Seoul, Silicon Valley and Washington, D.C. Further extending our reach into Asia, we have a strategic alliance with MWE China Law Offices in Shanghai.

www.mwe.com

International law firm McDermott Will & Emery today announced that 33 attorneys will become partners effective January 1, 2015. The new partners are drawn from 12 practice groups in 12 Firm offices worldwide. Separately, MWE China Law Offices announced the promotion of another new partner in Shanghai.

The Firm’s co-chairs, Peter J. Sacripanti and Jeffrey E. Stone, lauded the new partners’ accomplishments, noting that the promoted associates are among the Firm’s most talented young lawyers.

“This year’s class of new partners is a truly outstanding group of lawyers,” said Sacripanti. “We are pleased to recognize the accomplishments of these fine lawyers, all of whom demonstrated outstanding legal skills and a strong commitment to client service. We are proud to welcome them into the firm’s partnership.”

Stone noted that the new partners represent a telling cross section of the firm’s global business.

“It’s not by accident that these 33 exemplary attorneys come from such a wide range of practices and jurisdictions,” he said. “They are a genuine reflection of our business and the growth we are aiming to achieve as we navigate today’s evolving legal landscape.”

McDermott associates are required to demonstrate excellence with respect to a specific set of substantive, management, and leadership competencies aimed at ensuring superior client service in order to advance to the partnership. This year’s class represents the fifth group of associates promoted to partner based on these achievements.

McDermott’s new partners include:

Peter Allport, Chicago -Trial
Thomas Ammermann, Düsseldorf – Corporate
Laurent Ayache, Paris – Regulatory
Matthew Boch, Chicago – State and Local Tax
Kenneth Cheney, Orange County – Intellectual Property Prosecution
Jeffrey Ekeberg, Chicago – U.S. and International Tax
Douglas Espenschied, Orange County – Intellectual Property Prosecution
Andrew Genz, Washington, D.C. – Trial
D. Jeremy Harrison, Houston – Intellectual Property Prosecution
Matthew Herrington, London – U.S. and International Tax
Jan Hueckel, Düsseldorf – Corporate
Joel Hugenberger, New York – Energy Advisory
Robert Kline, Miami – Trial
Toni Ann Kruse, New York – Private Client
Michelle Lowery, Chicago – Antitrust
Lisa Schmitz Mazur, Chicago – Health
Patrick McCurry, Chicago – U.S. and International Tax
Victoria Pambianco Ose, Chicago – Private Client
Philip Ou, Silicon Valley-Intellectual Property Litigation
Anthony Paronneau, Paris – Corporate
Hasan Rashid, Boston – Intellectual Property Litigation
Sally Rosenberg, Washington, D.C. – Health
Michael Rosen-Prinz, Los Angeles – Private Client
Joel Rush, Washington, D.C. – Health
Michael Ryan, Washington, D.C. – Health
Dhana Sabanathan, London – Private Client
Takashi Saito, Washington, D.C. – Intellectual Property Prosecution
James Saling, Miami – Health
Shu-Ping Shen, New York – Private Client
Megan Thibert-Ind, Chicago – Trial
Brian Tiemann, Chicago – Employee Benefits
Eleanor West, London – Corporate
Rita Yoon, Chicago – Intellectual Property Litigation

MWE China Law Offices:

James Jiang, Shanghai – Corporate

McDermott Will & Emery is a premier international law firm with a diversified business practice. Numbering more than 1,100 lawyers, we have offices in Boston, Brussels, Chicago, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Houston, London, Los Angeles, Miami, Milan, Munich, New York, Orange County, Paris, Rome, Seoul, Silicon Valley and Washington, D.C. Further extending our reach into Asia, we have a strategic alliance with MWE China Law Offices in Shanghai.