The number of central Pennsylvania-based firms has decreased in recent years, but firms based in Philadelphia and New Jersey have continued to grow their government-related and lobbying capabilities in Pennsylvania's capital.

The latest is Archer's government and external relations affiliate Archer Public Affairs, which recently opened a new location in Harrisburg and added government affairs specialist Eric Bugaile. The new location will be the headquarters for the Pennsylvania practice of the New Jersey-based firm's lobbying arm.

Originally from Pittsburgh, Bugaile previously served as executive director of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Transportation Committee and is still currently chairman of the Capital Area Transit Authority. The firm said he brings a western and central Pennsylvania perspective, while John Taylor, director of the Pennsylvania practice of Archer Public Affairs, brings a Philadelphia and southeastern point of view.

Taylor, a Republican who retired from the state House of Representatives last year after 17 terms, is also of counsel to Archer.

While he was an elected official, it was tricky for Archer Public Affairs to expand its lobbying capabilities into Harrisburg due to conflicts, Taylor said. After his retirement, the firm started to get a lot of inquiries, he said.

“Now we're ready to roll,” Taylor said.

Competing with firms that are headquartered in Pennsylvania may be a challenge, he acknowledged, but he also expects to work together with some of those firms. Taylor also expects to add to the market, he said, as some of Archer Public Affairs' prospective clients have not sought out government relations services before.

“We're actively in discussions with prospective clients as well as people we would need [to serve those clients],” he said. “I would expect one year from now, we'll be quite larger.”

Central Pennsylvania has seen a few law firms close in recent years. Harrisburg-based midsize firm Rhoads & Sinon saw its end in January 2018, and Lancaster-based Hartman Underhill & Brubaker shut its doors in 2015.

Harrisburg-based McNees Wallace & Nurick and Lancaster-based Barley Snyder are the largest players actually headquartered in the market, and both have grown in recent years.

But other firms with headquarters further east have also been bulking up their presence in the middle part of the state, often bringing on lawyers with deep government or institutional knowledge and experience.

Philadelphia-based midsize firm Post & Schell also added to its Harrisburg presence this year, bringing on principal Tawny Mummah in its health care practice group in March. She came off 20 years in Pennsylvania's Office of General Counsel, most recently as chief counsel for the state's Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs.

Dilworth Paxson brought on partner Victoria Reider in March as well, to split time between the firm's Philadelphia and Harrisburg offices. Before joining Dilworth, she was the the executive deputy secretary and chief operating officer for the Pennsylvania Department of Banking.

Pepper Hamilton announced, also in March, that it would be adding partner Amy Foerster in Harrisburg to co-chair the firm's higher education practice group. She had been the general counsel at Bucknell University before that.

Cozen O'Connor brought on public finance attorney Scott Mehok in January, as a member in its corporate practice, hiring him away from Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott. Mehok had recently helped establish the Pennsylvania Infrastructure Bank, which helps municipalities fund infrastructure projects.

David Zambito, co-chair of the utility, environmental and energy group at Cozen O'Connor, said Harrisburg is a good fit for his firm's strategy of seeking out middle-market work. He said regulatory, public finance, energy and utilities, and labor and employment work are all strong areas of practice in central Pennsylvania. And those practices are strengthened by the firm's lobbying presence in the capital, he said.

“Once you bring in those clients, those clients tend to turn to you for other Pennsylvania work because you're a full-service firm,” he said. He also noted that the firm has offices throughout the state, and needs that connection to the capital to best serve clients handling business locally.

“Cozen being headquartered in Pennsylvania, in Philadelphia, we've always viewed it as important to have a strong Harrisburg presence,” Zambito said. “It really makes for some nice synergies to be east-to-west, west-to-east in Pennsylvania, with Harrisburg in the middle.”

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