Clifford Chance

Clifford Chance Americas Appoints Five to Counsel

Leading international law firm Clifford Chance today announced that Anja Pfleger Andrade, Patrick Jackson, John Kelley, Michael Kessler and Michelle Williams have been promoted to counsel.

Ms. Pfleger, a São Paulo associate, works in the Capital Markets and Structured Products groups. Pfleger, fluent in German and Portuguese, has built important relationships in the Brazilian market. She works regularly with some of the largest issuers, including Latin America's biggest power utility company – Eletrobras – as well as many private banks in Brazil. She also works with large investment banks in Brazil and Latin America in connection with cross-border financings. Pfleger developed the Firm's relationship over recent years with certain clients, including Brazilian state banks Banrisul and Banco Original (of the JBS group).

Mr. Jackson joined the Firm's Capital Markets practice in the São Paulo office eight years ago. Since arriving, in addition to debt, equity and liability management transactions, he has also focused on U.S. regulatory issues and restructurings in connection with the market turbulence, environmental accidents and corruption investigations that have become well-known in Brazil. This includes ongoing advice and risk assessments for a host of corporates and banks with respect to US-related anti-bribery issues. He leads São Paulo's relationships with Banco do Brasil, BNDES and Samarco. Jackson is fluent in Portuguese and coordinates the pro bono efforts for our São Paulo office.

Mr. Kelley, a New York corporate attorney in the Private Funds group, frequently works on fund formation and investments. He has also worked extensively on investment management matters related to reinsurance start-ups. Kelley, highly regarded for his fund formation expertise, has advised a number of clients on their multifamily funds and separate accounts, and on first institutional fundraising for a private equity fund. He regularly represents a client in connection with its investments in alternative investment funds, co-investments and secondary transactions, including the recent secondary sale of a $2 billion portfolio of multi-denominated interests.

  Mr. Kessler, a New York corporate lawyer in the Capital Markets group, regularly advises private equity firms, hedge fund managers, clean energy companies and real estate businesses in domestic and international capital markets offerings. He works extensively with some of the group's key private equity sponsor clients, such as Colony and Apollo, on their strategic permanent capital strategies. Kessler's experience includes a secondment to our Singapore office where he worked on a number of significant matters for the Firm's India practice. He has served on a committee of the board of a non-profit and has made considerable pro bono service contributions in each of the last few years.

Ms. Williams, a Washington, DC-based lawyer in the Firm's Litigation & Dispute Resolution group, focuses on white collar and regulatory matters. Williams has advised on a number of notable cross-border investigations relating to sanctions and export controls for financial institutions and corporate clients - work that included coordination with US criminal and regulatory authorities. Williams has developed a strong network throughout the Firm. She frequently advises and conducts employee disciplinary reviews and supports clients on remediation exercises. Williams is highly regarded for her expertise in managing internal investigations and respected for her commitment to client service and developing more junior associates.

Evan Cohen, Regional Managing Partner of the Americas, said, "Each of these impressive individuals adds valuable depth to their individual practice areas in the Firm's Americas region. Just as importantly, all five have demonstrated expertise on domestic and international matters, further solidifying the Firm's position as a truly global legal services provider."