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ISSN 1941-3572
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BUSINESS EDITION 2013
a good way to learn how things are done,”
she told us. Fast-forward to 2013, and she’s
working on what may be the biggest legal
matter of her career: merging Office Depot
and OfficeMax. Best Buy’s Keith Nelsen
discussed what it takes to lead a legal
department during times of change and
difficulty, two themes he knows well. In our
story, he chronicles the stages of his career,
highlighted by a battlefield promotion, an
unsuccessful national retail effort and the
abrupt resignation of a CEO. Finally, when
Alex Green stepped into the GC role at
CareerBuilder in 2004—following tenures
in the legal departments of McDonald’s
Corporation and Household International—
he wasn’t even 40. He talked to us about
CareerBuilder’s quest to build its identity,
and his belief in the company’s core
mission. “At its base level, we’re trying to
help people find jobs,” he told us. “That just
feels right.”
I hope you enjoy this year’s Super Lawyers
Business Edition and find value in the insights
you gain from the profiles as well as the
lists of attorneys and law firm rankings. If
you have suggestions that might make this
resource more valuable, please let us know.
Kindly,
FROM THE PUBLISHER
Welcome to the annual Super Lawyers
Business Edition, featuring the top
attorneys in commercial practices across
the nation and London. In this definitive
guide you will find lawyers from more
than 8,500 firms who have mastered
their skills in business and transactional
work; construction, real estate and
environmental; employment; IP; and
business litigation. Each attorney featured
here, whether from a powerhouse firm or
a solo practitioner, exhibits excellence in
the practice of law and has been included
on a Super Lawyers list in 2012 or 2013. In
addition, you will find lists of leading law
firms of all sizes that we have ranked as the
top in these business practice areas.
This year we are honored to profile the
general counsels of some of the world’s
most recognized and trusted brands,
including Charles Schwab, Fannie Mae,
Office Depot, Best Buy and CareerBuilder.
Despite the diverse challenges these GCs
face while running their legal departments,
they share some common traits, including
in-depth knowledge of their industries
and the ability to be tough-as-nails while
still connecting with people in a way that
garners respect and loyalty.
We sat down with Charles Schwab’s
Carrie Dwyer, for whom the financial
services behemoth created a unique top-tier position in 1996. Since then, she has
become Charles “Chuck” Schwab’s first filter
of anything of business importance. Brad
Lerman, GC at Fannie Mae, was brought
in to helm the agency as it navigated the
challenges set into motion after the housing
bubble burst—he was made to order for the
job. On Elisa D. Garcia C.’s second day in
the GC chair for Office Depot in 2007, the
company received a letter from the SEC
saying it had commenced an investigation
about a possible violation of Fair Disclosure
regulations. “Investigating the business is
VICE PRESIDENT & GENERAL MANAGER
Barb Lammers McGivern
SENIOR DIRECTOR Heather Walker
PUBLISHER Cindy Larson
EDITORIAL
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Erik Lundegaard
EDITOR Amy Kates
MANAGING EDITOR Ross Pfund
CONTRIBU TING EDITORS Beth Taylor, Emily White
EDITORIAL ASSISTANTS Lauren Peck, Jessica Tam
PHOTOGRAPHY Gregory Cowley, Corey Hengen,
Steve Niedorf, Stephen Voss, Scott Wiseman
CONTRIBU TING WRITERS Bill Glose, Timothy Harper,
Carlos Harrison, William Wagner, Adam Wahlberg
RESEARCH
RESEARCH DIRECTOR Julie Gleason
RESEARCH TEAM LEAD Laura Roepke
RESEARCH EDITORS Chris Cheng, Caroline Daykin,
Johanna Grosse, Wendy Lees, Jill Steward
DATABASE OPERATIONS
DIRECTOR OF DATABASE OPERATIONS Evan Kentop
DATA ADMINISTRATORS Traci Davey, Cale Millberry,
Laura Smith
DATA SPECIALISTS Beth Callentine, Mary Cheam
PROFILE PRODUCTION SUPERVISOR Michael Pease
PROFILE PRODUCTION Alison Iwata, Rachel Miller
PROFILE PROOFING COORDINATOR
Erika Skornia-Olsen
ONLINE OPERATIONS
DIRECTOR OF ONLINE OPERATIONS Garth Gillespie
ONLINE APPLICATION DEVELOPER David Malouf
PRODUCTION
PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Linda Eklund
SENIOR PRODUCTION MANAGERS Tina Justison,
Barbie Lefrancois
PRODUCTION MANAGERS Alicia Collins, Todd Proud
MANAGER OF ART & PRODUCTION Erica Sorrentino
GRAPHIC DESIGNERS Emily Christensen,
Rich Ganzman
PRODUCTION Victoria Balque-Burns, Tim Knecht,
Amy Sherren
MARKETING & PRODUCT
MARKETING & PRODUCT DIRECTOR Mary Williams
SENIOR PRODUCT DEVELOPER Justin Blase
ADVERTISING & MARKETING Ashley Armstrong,
Rebecca Hanoski, Mari Henderson, Caroline Moran,
Jennifer Sandvig
ADVERTISING
REGIONAL SALES MANAGER Steve Stauff
SENIOR ASSOCIATE PUBLISHERS Richard Ausman,
Dave Burris, June Ford, Nick Hansen, Matthew Kusilek,
Camille Lane, Amy Omenn, Rob Poncin, Kathy Schwab,
Jessica Vanderzanden
ASSOCIATE PUBLISHERS Christopher Castleberry,
Dunia Chatham, Brett Fritsche, Dan Lehman
CINDY LARSON
