Shipman & Goodwin
Announces New Hires

Former Murtha Cullina attorney Kelly A. Trahan has joined Shipman & Goodwin as counsel in the firm's Stamford office, working in the firm's real estate and business and finance groups.

Trahan brings a background in commercial financing, representing national and community banks and lenders, insurance companies and pension funds. She has represented lenders for renewable energy projects and U.S. and international investments in natural resource assets, including timber. Her commercial real estate experience includes complex acquisitions and dispositions, sale-leaseback transactions, development and leasing.

Concurrently, Shipman has named 30-year veteran attorney Scott M. Gerard its newest partner, also in the real estate and business and finance groups. Working in the firm's New York office, Gerard represents financial institutions and developers in commercial finance, corporate law and real estate. He has worked on deals involving permanent and construction loans, tax credit financings, hotels, residential projects, health-care and retail projects. He also advises clients on loan restructures and workouts.

Gerard serves as outside general counsel to businesses on matters such as business formation, structuring new business entities and forming joint ventures, with guidance on mergers, acquisitions and the disposition of businesses.

“Over the past decade, our Firm has made significant investments to enhance our national capabilities to provide high-level, value-driven counseling for complex real estate and finance transactions,” said Shipman Managing Partner Alan E. Lieberman. “Through strategic external hiring and internal development and promotion, we have developed a deep team of lawyers in our corporate, real estate, tax, environmental, construction, land use and litigation practice groups.”

Robinson & Cole's Mullin
Joins Discovery Center Board

Robinson & Cole attorney Kathryn N. Mullin has been appointed to the board of directors of The Discovery Center in Woodbridge, a residential and academic youth camp with offices in Hartford.

Mullin's practice is focused on commercial real estate development, general real estate matters, affordable housing and finance. Her clients include businesses, lenders, developers and builders.

Founded by Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward Newman, The Discovery Center is an award-winning educational diversity, team-building, and academic program designed to help close the achievement gap between suburban and urban schools. The program currently serves more than 4,000 students in grades 4 through 8, with more than 20,000 students participating since 2002.

Withers Bergman Promotes
Dougherty, Other Partners

International law firm Withers Bergman has named Greenwich-based attorney James Dougherty a partner, as part of a companywide slate of advancements.

Dougherty advises on estate planning and administration, probate matters and litigation arising from trust and estate succession issues. He is one of eight new partners named in the firm's U.S. and London offices, effective Jan. 1

Also named partner were Lian Fang, Eva Farkas-DiNardo, Theda Fisher, Elliot Galler and Vasiliki Yiannoulis in New York and Stephen Nerland and Jaime McLemore in London.

Withers Chairman Ivan Sacks said he was “delighted that the skills and hard work of these lawyers have been rewarded with these appointments. These talented new partners will help us to continue enhancing the services we offer our clients and growing our business around the world.”

Withers Bergman also appointed eight lawyers in Hong Kong, the U.K. and the U.S. to partner in July 2017.