BRADENTON, Fla. - Florida-based Bryant Miller Olive LLP announced last week that Robert A. James has been hired to work in the firm's Washington, D.C., office.
James, who has more than 13 years of experience in municipal and public finance law, most recently was deputy general counsel to District of Columbia chief financial officer Natwar M. Gandhi.
"Bob James is a talented lawyer whose great integrity and legal mind have marked him as one of the finest local government lawyers in the Washington area," Randy Hanna, managing shareholder of the firm, said in a statement. "Bryant Miller Olive has tapped his expertise to provide legal and strategic advice to our expanding public finance, state and local government, real estate development, banking, corporate, and procurement client base in the D.C. and Mid-Atlantic region."
In the last eight years while working for the district, James was involved in nearly $3 billion of financings, including the issuance of more than $1 billion of general obligation bonds and GO tax revenue anticipation notes, more than $521 million of tobacco settlement asset-backed bonds, and nearly $212 million of certificates of participation. He worked on tax increment financings for the Gallery Place, the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, the Spy Museum, and the Shakespeare Theater, and he also provided advice on various policy proposals.
James began his legal career as a federal judicial law clerk for Chief Judge Donald E. Ziegler for the Western District of Pennsylvania. He received a law degree from Georgetown University, master's degrees in business and health administration from the University of Pittsburgh, and a bachelor's degree in psychology from Boston College.
In addition, James is the founder and chief executive officer of the Latitudes Group, a Washington-based multicultural nonprofit organization seeking to improve relations between African descendants and Latinos. He also is a member of the Arlington chapter of the NAACP.
In another announcement, Bryant Miller Olive said yesterday that Frederick J. Springer had joined the firm at its Tallahassee, Fla., headquarters.
Springer, who specializes in public contracts and procurement, most recently worked at the Florida Department of Management Services, where he restructured new methods of contract solicitation and management. His positions there included deputy general counsel and director of state purchasing. Last year, Bryant Miller Olive served as special counsel on the department's $120.5 million COP sale.
Hanna said Springer's knowledge of government practices would be valuable to clients who deal with the firm's public procurement, state and local government, and governmental consulting divisions.
Springer began his career in New Jersey as a law clerk to U.S. District Court Judge Garrett E. Brown Jr. and received his law degree from Villanova University School of Law. In 2004, he was elected to the board of directors of the National Association of State Procurement Officials.
Bryant Miller Olive was the fifth-ranked bond counsel in the Southeast last year working on 80 deals valued at $3.12 billion, according to Thomson Financial. The firm also has offices in Atlanta and five other locations in Florida. (c) 2007 The Bond Buyer and SourceMedia, Inc. All rights reserved. http://www.bondbuyer.com http://www.sourcemedia.com
