Paul Hastings Expansion Continues With Opening of Chicago Office

November 21, 2006

Paul Hastings Expansion Continues With Opening of Chicago Office

Chicago, IL (November 21, 2006) - Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP today announced the opening of an office in Chicago. The new office will continue to broaden the firm's vibrant transactional and litigation capabilities, particularly bankruptcy and restructuring, private equity, and litigation. The new office will be the firm's 18th global location.

The firm also announced the arrival of two new partners. Steve Catlett, a litigator whose expertise ranges from traditional litigation and class action to complex ERISA and trade secret cases and Rick Chesley, a bankruptcy and restructuring expert with over 20 years experience. Both join from Jones Day. Mr. Chesley will assume the position of Office Chair.

"We are executing a very specific strategy to expand in key regions around the globe to further serve our international clients and deepen our transaction and litigation capabilities. Opening an office in Chicago, headquarters for many of the world's leading corporations, aligns perfectly with that strategy," said Seth Zachary, Chairman of Paul Hastings. "The new Paul Hastings office solidifies our presence in the U.S. and will be a bridge between Chicago-based companies, and business opportunities in Asia, particularly China, and in Europe, allowing us to further capitalize on our market leading positions in these regions."

"Steve Catlett and Rick Chesley are leading practitioners who have strong ties in the business community in Chicago," said Zachary. "We intend to relocate several other Paul Hastings' attorneys to the office and aggressively recruit additional talent in order to build a substantial, full-service presence in Chicago. We expect to have significant announcements in this regard shortly."

Steve Catlett, a former law clerk to Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor and U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Kenneth Starr, conducts a nationwide litigation practice, from traditional litigation and class actions to complex ERISA, trade-secret and contract-based cases. Steve practices nationally in all phases of litigation, from pre-litigation counseling to discovery, trial and appeal. He is experienced in leading large teams of lawyers in substantial class-action and multiple plaintiff cases.

Rick Chesley was Co-Chair of Jones Day's Business Restructuring and Reorganization Practice, and has a broad range of experience in both U.S. and international restructuring matters, frequently serving as restructuring counsel to debtors, creditors and other parties in high profile chapter 11 proceedings. In addition, Mr. Chesley has litigated numerous complex bankruptcy issues in courts throughout the United States. Mr. Chesley served with Jones Day from 1985 until 2001, and again from 2003 prior to joining Paul Hastings. From 2001 through 2003, Mr. Chesley was with Houlihan Lokey Howard & Zukin, where he served as a Senior Vice President and General Counsel to the investment bank's Financial Restructuring Group.

Paul Hastings Janofsky & Walker LLP, founded in 1951, is a leading international law firm with over 1,100 attorneys in 18 offices. The firm serves a diverse client base including many of the top financial institutions and Fortune 500 companies, supports clients in all of their legal needs and offers deep capabilities in Banking and Finance, Capital Markets, Corporate/M+A, Litigation and Dispute Resolution, Intellectual Property, Project Finance, Investment Management, Real Estate, Labor and Employment and Tax Advisory Services. For additional information, please visit our website at www.paulhastings.com.