CHICAGO— Jones Day's Chicago-based not-for-profit and healthcare finance group left en masse to join Chapman and Cutler LLP in a move that marks a return home for most of the nine lawyers who made the leap.
The nine lawyers formally joined Chapman this week in what marks a major coup for the firm's not-for-profit and healthcare business given their long list of clients and prominence in the healthcare sector.
Eight of the nine joined Chapman as partners. They are Daniel J. Bacastow, John F. Bibby, Jr., Robert L. Capizzi, Amy Cobb Curran, David J. Kates, Michael J. Mitchell, Megan C. Rudd, and Richard K. Tomei. Latrice M. Phillips joined the firm as an associate.
All of the partners previously worked at Chapman. All but Caprizzi, who is a tax specialist, left Chapman to join Jones Day 17 years ago, following another prominent partner -- who had a lock on local healthcare finance business through a former state conduit agency -- to the new shop.
"We are pleased to welcome such a talented and experienced group of professionals to the firm," said Chapman's chief executive partner, Tim Mohan. "Their addition underscores our commitment to strategic growth and their contributions will further expand our reach into the health care and not-for-profit sectors."
Jones Day could not be reached to comment, but Mitchell stressed that the group left on good terms and had only praise for the firm.
"We were not looking but Tim called and asked what we thought about a move back," Mitchell said. "When we talked about it as a group it sounded like something we should consider."
Jones Day's healthcare finance practice was largely limited to the Chicago-based group, and its members saw the move as an opportunity to join a firm with a primary focus on public finance.
It also presented an opportunity to join another healthcare finance practice that would complement its own, Mitchell said. It also offered additional hands that specialize in tax counsel for the benefit of its clients.
Mohan, who once worked in Chapman's healthcare and not-for-profit practice, said he recruited the group back because of its experience, long tenure as a team, and familiarity with Chapman.
"We've certainly been looking to grow as a firm in areas we are already in and public finance is our core practice area" with an eye on groups "that are culturally a good fit," Mohan said. The law firm opened a New York office in 2009 and a Washington, D.C. office in 2012.
It's expected that many of the group's clients will make the leap with the attorneys given their long-standing relationships. The team will work with Chapman's existing group of four not-for-profit and healthcare finance attorneys. They have long worked together on deals out of the Illinois Finance Authority with Chapman often serving as issuer counsel and Jones Day as bond counsel.
Chapman ranked 2nd last year among bond counsel in the Midwest and 10th nationally. Jones Day ranked 16th in the Midwest and 45th nationally, according to Thomson Reuters.
Bacastow has worked with states, municipalities, hospital systems, universities, underwriters, and project developers and advises on tax-exempt compliance issues. Bibby works primarily on tax-exempt revenue bond financings for health care institutions in both bond counsel and underwriters' roles and has extensive experience on senior living deals.
Capizzi serves as tax counsel for on tax-exempt health care and not-for-profit financings, including advising clients on arbitrage rebate matters and derivative and financial products.
Curran has worked in the roles of bond counsel, underwriter's counsel, and borrower's counsel for health care, senior living facilities, and university transactions and advises on post-issuance compliance. Kates serves as bond counsel, underwriter's counsel, issuer's counsel, borrower's counsel, restructuring counsel, and purchaser's counsel on tax-exempt and taxable financings and on restructuring matters.
Mitchell serves as bond counsel, underwriter's counsel, and borrower's counsel for not-for-profit financings. Rudd serves as bond counsel and underwriter's counsel on tax-exempt and taxable health care financings for hospitals, multistate health systems, and continuing care retirement communities and represents derivative providers.
Tomei serves as bond counsel, borrower's counsel, and underwriter's counsel on tax-exempt and taxable health care financings and counsels on derivatives and other interest rate hedging structures. Phillips has served as a bond counsel, underwriter's counsel, and issuer's counsel in connection with health care and not-for-profit financings.
