Blank Rome announced that the firm has expanded its national platform with the opening of a new office in Boston, anchored by 13 partners with leading corporate, finance, mergers and acquisitions (“M&A”), tax, litigation, and cannabis practices. Joining the partners are 12 associates and several business professionals. The premier team of nationally recognized attorneys, led by partners Frank A. Segall and Josef B. Volman, join from Burns & Levinson LLP where for more than 25 years they served as chairs of the Corporate, Finance, and Cannabis Practice Groups.  

Joining as Boston Office Co-Chairs:

• Frank A. Segall, Partner and Co-Chair, Cannabis Practice, a renowned corporate lawyer known as the ultimate deal maker and a pioneer within the cannabis industry, negotiates complex business deals, including mergers, acquisitions, sales, syndications, loans, restructurings, and equity investments.
• Josef B. Volman, Partner, a go-to dealmaker in the middle-market community, advises clients with respect to M&A, and represents entrepreneurs, venture capital funds, and other investors through all phases of the fundraising process including public offerings.

Joining as Partners:

• Michael S. Andreasen focuses on general corporate, M&A, finance, securities, venture capital, and private equity matters.
• Caitlin E. Barrett represents lenders and borrowers in a variety of commercial finance transactions and advises both purchasers and sellers in the structuring and negotiation of mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures.
• Rodney A. Bedow focuses his tax practice on planning and transactions involving C corporations, S corporations, and partnerships, and has extensive background in U.S. international taxation.
• Max M. Borg focuses his cannabis practice on M&A, securities offerings, debt financings, restructurings, securities laws compliance, corporate governance, and related commercial transactions.
• Gil Breiman represents investors and entrepreneurs launching, growing, and exiting innovative businesses in a broad spectrum of high technology and life sciences fields.
• Alison R. Harrall advises clients on transactional matters and practices in the areas of corporate governance, private equity, venture capital financing, debt and equity financing, and M&A.
• Mark W. Manning serves as a legal and business adviser across a wide array of practices, including M&A, growth capital, and intellectual property.
• Scott H. Moskol, Co-Chair, Cannabis Practice, is nationally recognized as a trailblazer in the cannabis industry and counsels clients in the cannabis and other industries with respect to all legal issues that may arise in restructurings, workouts, bankruptcies, receiverships, and other insolvency-related matters, including distressed M&A.
• Robert A. Petitt focuses on capital markets, securities law, M&A, and corporate governance matters for both public and private company clients.
• Chad J. Porter handles a range of business law matters including M&A, commercial financing arrangements, private equity transactions, and securities transactions and compliance.
• Thomas T. Reith litigates and manages nationwide complex commercial litigation for clients ranging from Fortune 100 companies to family-owned businesses.

Joining as Associates: Austin M. Abir, Lauren G. Barrett, Naveed Cheraghchi, Lauren Medeiros Forster, Carmen F. Francella III, Benjamin I. Holman, Michael J. Moyer, Marc A. Polito, Donald J. Slater, Jr., Kaitlin T. Spurling, Michael W. Stack, and Gustav Stickley V.

“We are thrilled to welcome this outstanding group of corporate and finance attorneys—one of the leading corporate teams in the market—to Blank Rome and have them establish our presence in Boston,” said Grant S. Palmer, Blank Rome’s Chair and Managing Partner. “Guided by our strategic plan, we seek measured growth opportunities that support our national profile, enable our attorneys to serve our clients at the highest levels, and strengthen our culture, which is critical to our success. Our new colleagues are renowned practitioners and great people who are a perfect fit. Additionally, this powerhouse team is nationally recognized for their corporate, finance, M&A, securities, and litigation work, as well as their market-leading transactional cannabis practice, which Blank Rome has been looking to develop nationally. This is a very exciting development for our firm and, under the leadership of Frank and Joe, we look forward to expanding our presence and capabilities in Boston to continue to meet the sophisticated business and legal needs of our clients.”

“There are remarkable synergies between our practices and Blank Rome’s national platform, making it a natural fit to join the firm and open its Boston office,” said Frank A. Segall, Partner and Co-Chair of the Boston Office and Cannabis Practice. “Blank Rome has tremendous experience in practices and industries where our clients need expanded counsel, including banking, bankruptcy and restructuring, fund formation, real estate, tax, cybersecurity, technology, and life sciences, to name a few. Working in collaboration with our new, talented colleagues across the firm, we can help our clients see around corners, mitigate risk, and capture new opportunities.”

Corporate and Finance Practice

The corporate and finance attorneys joining Blank Rome counsel clients across a broad range of legal services including acting as corporate counsel, and advising on mergers, acquisitions, securities law, private equity, venture capital, and finance. They serve an expansive range of clients including local, national, and international corporations in a wide variety of industries from emerging businesses to established commercial entities. More specifically, the team works with public companies, middle-market companies, closely held private businesses, family-owned enterprises, financing sources, entrepreneurial start-ups, and individuals to help them create and achieve their business goals in an ever-changing environment. The team also represents many financial institutions including banks and private credit funds in sophisticated lending transactions. They are committed to building strong relationships with their clients, being responsive to client needs, and providing the highest quality legal services.

“We are thrilled to bring our entire corporate and finance team of 25 attorneys to Blank Rome and have the opportunity to support our clients from the firm’s national platform with offices in key markets,” added Josef B. Volman, Partner and Boston Office Co-Chair. “It is rare to have a team like ours that has practiced together for 25 years. We are proud of the family like atmosphere we have fostered among our team and are fortunate to have found an Am Law 100 firm that has the same collegial culture and values. We look forward to collaborating with our new colleagues to serve our clients and community.”

The corporate and finance team has received countless awards for their work. For example, Frank, Josef, Caitlin, Alison, Mark, and Chad were recently named to the 2024 Lawdragon 500 Leading Dealmakers in America list, and Frank and Josef have been recognized as Go To Business Transactions Lawyers by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly.

“Adding an office in Boston with this highly skilled corporate and finance team, which includes several lawyers representing a number of common banking and finance clients, adds exceptional depth and talent to our leading national Finance practice,” said Lawrence F. Flick II, Blank Rome’s Vice Chair and Chair, Financial Services Industry Team.   

Cannabis Practice

The cannabis team joining Blank Rome was among the first in the Country to develop and utilize its extensive corporate and finance experience to create a practice specifically targeted to the cannabis industry. Today, the attorneys advise clients navigating the complex legal and business framework surrounding the rapidly growing cannabis industry. They offer unrivaled experience and a full scope of services including cannabis business formation and legal and regulatory compliance; corporate structuring; joint ventures; M&A; fund formation; debt and equity financing; real estate acquisitions and leasing; restructurings, workouts, and receiverships; labor and employment issues; intellectual property protection; 280E taxation issues; and, if necessary, litigation services.
In recognition of their leading position in the cannabis industry, the team has received numerous accolades, including Law360’s prestigious 2023 Cannabis Practice Group of the Year, which was presented to only five groups nationwide. Additionally, Frank was named the 2022 Cannabis MVP of the Year by Law360. Over the years, the team and its members have also been recognized for leadership in the field of cannabis law, earning titles such as New England Trailblazer by The American Lawyer and Cannabis Trailblazer by The National Law Journal.

“Blank Rome is committed to establishing and supporting a national Cannabis practice, which aligns with what Frank and I and our dedicated cannabis team have built over the last 12 years,” said Scott H. Moskol, Partner and Co-Chair of the Cannabis Practice. “We have been at the forefront of the industry and as the cannabis market continues to mature, cannabis businesses, investors, and ancillary companies that sell products and services to the cannabis community will need increasingly sophisticated corporate, M&A, tax, regulatory, finance, restructuring, and litigation counsel in key markets across the country. At Blank Rome, we look forward to expanding the legal and business support that we provide to clients operating in the cannabis space to help them succeed in this constantly shifting maze of rules.”