Financial Institutions M&A Lawyers Join Covington

WASHINGTON, DC, February 3, 2014 — Rusty Conner and Michael Reed will be joining Covington & Burling as partners and will focus on transactional matters  for banks and other financial institution clients.

“Rusty and Michael are highly regarded in the financial institutions industry and have a significant track record in both M&A and capital markets, areas of renewed focus by the banking industry,” said Scott Smith, chair of Covington’s corporate practice. “Their arrival adds additional depth to our M&A and capital markets practices.”

Messrs. Conner and Reed have worked on more than 500 transactions with an aggregate deal value in excess of $150 billion and have handled more than 300 capital markets transactions. The pair will be resident in the firm’s Washington office.

Messrs. Conner and Reed will work closely with John Dugan, chair of Covington’s financial institutions practice and former U.S. Comptroller of the Currency, and Edward Yingling, the former president and CEO of the American Bankers Association, the largest trade association in the financial services industry.

“Rusty and Michael are a dynamic addition to our corporate practice and a tremendous asset to the firm’s financial institution clients given their deep transactional experience in this heavily regulated industry,” Mr. Dugan said. “Post-financial crisis, the combination of deal and regulatory expertise is especially critical.”

Mr. Conner focuses his practice on public and private mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance and related strategic matters, with a particular emphasis on banks and other financial services companies, and private equity investors in these institutions. He represents both underwriters and issuers in a variety of securities offerings and private placements.

Mr. Reed concentrates on public and private mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance transactions, private investment fund transactions, corporate governance, and disclosure matters. He represents publicly and privately held companies and private equity firms, with an emphasis on financial institutions and diversified companies.

“This is an extraordinary opportunity to combine our practice with one of the nation’s preeminent financial regulatory teams,” Mr. Conner and Mr. Reed said. “We were drawn to Covington's strong reputation in the corporate sector and its track record of success in industries that are regulated or have specialized needs such as financial institutions, defense, life sciences, energy and sports.”

Mr. Conner received his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Virginia. He chairs the board of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority and serves as counsel to the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs. Mr. Reed received a bachelor’s degree from Wilfrid Laurier University in Ontario, Canada; a law degree from University of Western Ontario Law School; and a master of laws from Boston University.