Recent Press Releases
May 14, 2009
Frost Brown Todd forms task force to focus on automotive industry and aid industry clients
Keeana
Sajadi
Boarman,
Christy
Lyn
Hruska,
Douglas
L.
Lutz,
Robert
V.
Sartin,
Joseph
B.
Wells
Lexington, KY – May 14, 2009 – As the economic downturn puts increasing stress on the auto industry, Midwest law firm Frost Brown Todd is assembling an auto “task force” to monitor the industry and help manufacturers, suppliers and related businesses stay abreast and meet the challenges of the rapidly changing marketplace.
Because it can be difficult for clients to keep up with developments, the Frost Brown Todd Auto Task Force will serve as a clearinghouse for information about the industry and issue Legal Updates to clients, helping clients respond quickly and decisively to the marketplace. At the same time, the firm is strengthening connections among its practice groups to provide a full-range of services for clients facing bankruptcies and financial restructuring, plant and business closings, workforce reductions, vendor defaults, supply-chain disruptions and more.
“We’ve always prided ourselves on cross-discipline collaborations for the benefit of our clients,” said Robert Sartin, a member in FBT’s Lexington office. “But the current crisis in the automotive industry demands that we formalize some of those collaborations to ensure that our clients have all the information, insight and resources they need to address immediate problems and prepare strategically for the future.”
Sartin, and Doug Lutz, a member in the firm’s Cincinnati office, will oversee the task force, with support from Lexington associates Keeana Boarman and Christy Hruska, and Cincinnati associate Joseph Wells. Sartin works with FBT’s Automotive Industry Team, and Lutz works with the Bankruptcy and Restructuring Group. Both have extensive experience in restructuring, insolvency, bankruptcy, mergers-and-acquisitions and tax and corporate law, and can provide the legal insight corporate leaders often lack.
“A lot of the people leading automotive firms are entrepreneurs who either started their own companies or were hired to lead and grow businesses,” Lutz said. “Now they’re facing a different landscape, as their emphasis shifts from competing to simply surviving. We want to provide the resources they need to confront today’s problems, manage for survival and structure their businesses to grow when the industry recovers.”
With more than 20 attorneys dedicated to the automotive industry, and hundreds more ready to provide support in related areas of law, Frost Brown Todd has been serving automotive clients for 20 years from its base at the center of the U.S. automotive manufacturing sector. With offices in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Tennessee and West Virginia, Frost Brown Todd can provide quick, attentive service; with contacts around the globe, the firm can work on projects in Europe, South America and Asia.
Additionally, Frost Brown Todd has automotive industry experience and wisdom in labor and workforce, environmental and international law, as well as contract negotiations, supply chain agreements and tax law. The firm has provided support for foreign and domestic mergers, acquisitions and divestitures, as well as distribution agreements, bank relationships and litigation. By leveraging its membership in legal networks such as U.S. Law Firm Group and Multilaw, and through strategic alliance with the Stuttgart-based law firm Wahlert Rechtsanwälte, Frost Brown Todd attorneys can meet the needs of firms doing business or based outside the United States.
“At times like these, people need the right answers right now,” Sartin said. “By establishing a team focused on the current needs of automotive businesses, we can offer the capacity, resources and breadth of experience clients need to respond quickly and decisively to questions and challenges.”
About Frost Brown Todd LLC
Frost Brown Todd is a full-service law firm serving some of America’s top corporations and emerging companies. With attorneys regularly identified by clients, peers and industry organizations as leaders in their practice areas, the firm advises and protects clients in business transactions and litigation in industries including insurance, banking, financial services, manufacturing, transportation, real estate, construction, energy and healthcare. Its attorneys in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Tennessee and West Virginia provide unparalleled service to meet clients’ needs; deliver the insights and solutions available only from a diverse group of professionals; and support the communities in which it operates. The firm has been recognized with numerous awards, and was recently named to the “BTI Client Service A-Team,” meaning clients from large and Fortune 1000 companies credited Frost Brown Todd with delivering superior client service. To learn more, visit www.frostbrowntodd.com.
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