Page 11 - Miami Vol 7 No 2

MIHAI VRASMASU, BILL GERAGHTY, JAMES DANIEL GARDNER AND HUMBERTO OCARIZ | PHOTO BY ROBERT KLEMM
GERI HOWELL, JENNIFER MCLOONE AND ALEXANDRA BACH LAGOS | PHOTO BY ROBERT KLEMM
One of the country’s most prestigious national law rms, Shook, Hardy & Ba- con L.L.P., has roots that span nearly 130 years and extend to a dozen o ces
across the United States and in London. With its own unique origins, Shook Mi- ami has not only embraced the traditions and philosophies of the rm’s founding partners but has distinguished itself by serving some of the world’s leading com- panies and consistently obtaining favor- able results under even the most conten-
tious circumstances.
Built on a solid foundation of tradition
and service, Shook’s attorneys litigate and serve as trial counsel in high-stakes prod- uct liability cases representing pharma- ceutical companies and medical device manufacturers throughout the United States. ese include a signi cant number of Fortune 100 corporations in national multidistrict litigation, consolidated pro- ceedings and mass tort claims.
Now, celebrating its 20th anniversary as a distinguished part of the dazzling Biscayne Bay skyline, Shook Miami can proudly re ect on an impressive record of consummate service to its clients and the community.
THE ORIGINS
Conveniently located in downtown Mi- ami, Shook, Hardy & Bacon has been an
essential and in uential part of the thriv- ing business landscape since 1998.
To bring a bit of Shook’s history to living color, we spoke with two original members of the Miami rm – Managing Partner Bill Geraghty and Administrative Managing Partner Hildy Sastre – whose insights date back to the rm’s beginnings.
“Our roots are entwined with those of the founding partners,” says Sastre. “But, it’s interesting because the Miami o ce was born as the result of a very long trial that went on for well over a year.”
e merger that brought together some of the best legal minds of an established Miami boutique rm – Anderson, Moss, Sherouse & Petros – and those from the rapidly expanding Shook, Hardy & Bacon, appeared to be inspired.
“We took a very traditional, conserva- tive, Midwestern rm from Kansas City and married it with an exotic and hard-to- describe Miami-cultured rm,” Geraghty says.
ere were skeptics. Many within the le- gal community viewed this as an unlikely pairing. Of course, as history bears out, it proved to be a perfect balance.
“Hildy and I were both young attorneys when Shook rst came to Miami,” Geragh- ty says. “Ed Moss was the rst managing partner. Ken Reilly, who came from Kan- sas City, succeeded Ed, trained us both, and we all worked together closely. It was a natural progression and almost a duty to
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