Global law firm Ropes & Gray announced Jan. 17 that James R. Brown has rejoined the firm’s tax practice as a partner in New York. Mr. Brown previously practiced at Ropes & Gray for 15 years. He rejoins the firm from Willkie Farr & Gallagher in New York, where he was a partner and co-chair of the tax department.
Clients will benefit from Mr. Brown’s more than 25 years of experience as he provides broad-based tax support for hedge funds, private investment funds, and regulated investment companies. He regularly advises fund sponsors on tax structuring and operational issues relating to these funds, including the taxation of registered and unregistered investment funds. He also counsels clients on mergers and acquisitions, recapitalizations, joint ventures, and other types of transactions involving funds, their portfolio investments and their sponsors. Recently, Mr. Brown has acted as special tax counsel to Ares Capital Corporation and Ares Management, L.P. in the acquisition of American Capital Ltd., served as special tax counsel to Eaton Vance in the launch of NextShares, and advised Ivory Investment Management, L.P. in its partnership with Affiliated Managers Group, Inc.
“We could not be more pleased that Jim has decided to return to Ropes & Gray, as he has extensive experience that will allow us to provide additional depth of service to our asset management clients,” said partner Elaine B. Murphy, head of Ropes & Gray’s tax practice. “Jim is an important addition to the firm as we work to meet the increasing demand for tax advice in the hedge fund, mutual fund and private investment fund sectors.”
Mr. Brown is highly ranked for tax in Chambers USA and is active in the New York tax community, serving on the executive committee of the New York State Bar Association Section of Taxation and as co-chair of its Committee on Pass-Throughs. He is also a member of the Investment Companies Committee of the American Bar Association Section of Taxation. He regularly speaks on federal income tax matters and is co-author of a leading Bloomberg BNA treatise on hedge funds.
Mr. Brown received his J.D. from Harvard Law School and his B.A. from the University of Texas.
“I have always had the deepest respect for Ropes & Gray, and I am excited to return to such a dynamic firm that has really made a name for itself in New York,” said Mr. Brown. “The skill of the attorneys in this group is second-to-none, and I look forward to working closely with the firm’s award-winning asset management practice to serve our clients’ needs.”
Ranked among the leading tax groups in Chambers USA, Ropes & Gray’s tax practice focuses on domestic and cross-border tax planning for clients in connection with the structuring of transactions; the organization of debt and equity funds; cross-border tax matters; investments in private funds by institutional investors; developing effective tax strategies; and advising on tax controversy issues.
Ropes & Gray is one of the 20 largest law firms in New York, with approximately 350 lawyers. The firm continues to expand its presence in New York, adding six lateral partners in 2016, including Kristen Chang Winckler in the tax practice as well as David Blittner and Garrett Charon in the private equity practice, Amanda Persaud in the private investment funds group, Gregg Galardi in the business restructuring group, and Michael Littenberg in the securities & public companies practice. In 2015, the firm welcomed four lateral partners in New York: mergers & acquisitions partner John Sorkin, finance partner Joanne De Silva, and business & securities litigation partners David Hennes and Gregg Weiner.
Source: www.ropesgray.com
