BRADENTON, Fla. — Ballard Spahr LLP has added its first public finance attorney to the law firm’s Atlanta office.
Han C. Choi, a partner, specializes in governmental and private-activity bond issues.
Choi’s hiring is part of the firm’s effort to expand into new regions nationally, according to William Rhodes, who became chairman of the public finance department Jan. 1.
“Our public finance practice is national in scope, but until now we haven’t had a member of the team resident in our Atlanta office,” Rhodes said.
“We are fortunate to have a deep bench of talented young partners, such as Han, and I am confident that our clients will quickly grow to appreciate his talent and experience,” he added.
Choi most recently worked in the Atlanta office of Schiff Hardin LLP. His experience includes all types of fixed- and variable-rate municipal bond transactions as well as derivatives and post-issuance compliance matters.
He has also represented clients in tax controversies, and worked with the rapidly growing Korean business market in the Southeast, the firm said.
In addition to being a partner in public finance, Choi also is a member of Ballard’s practices focusing on health care, housing, higher education, public-private partnerships and infrastructure, securities, and transactional finance.
After receiving a bachelor’s degree from Northwestern University, Choi earned a law degree from Emory University. He is a member of the National Association of Bond Lawyers.
A national law firm based in Philadelphia, Ballard Spahr has more than 500 lawyers in 13 offices. Of that total about 60 are public finance attorneys.
“We plan to continue to add quality bond lawyers in some of our other offices and in new regions of the country,” Rhodes said.
The firm said that it has participated in the issuance of more than $250 billion of tax-exempt obligations in the United States and its territories since 1987.
Ballard has been ranked the 13th bond counsel firm nationwide for the past two years.
In 2011, the law firm was bond counsel on 91 transactions with a par amount of $4.26 billion, according to Thomson Reuters.
