Press Releases

"Legends in Law" Named By Burton Awards Program

May 8, 2007 - New York, New York: The Burton Awards has named five "Legends in Law" in the category of General Counsel for its 2007 program. The awards program is run in association with the Library of Congress and the Law Library of Congress, and will be presented at the Library of Congress, in Washington, D.C., on June 4. Nominations were received from Managing Partners in the top 1,000 law firms. The winners, who were all from corporations with revenues in excess of $1 Billion dollars or more, are:

James. T. Hale, General Counsel, Target Corporation
Nominated by Faegre & Benson LLP

Michele Coleman Mayes, Senior Vice President and General Counsel, Pitney Bowes, Inc.
Nominated by Proskauer Rose LLP

Timothy Mayopoulos, EVP and General Counsel, Bank of America Corporation
Nominated by Morrison & Foerster LLP

Geralyn M. Presti, SVP, General Counsel & Assistant Secretary, Forest City Enterprises, Inc.
Nominated by Thompson Hine LLP

Richard H. Walker, General Counsel, Deutsche Bank AG.
Nominated by White & Case LLP

The selection was made on the following criteria: reputation in both the legal profession and as a proven authority in a specialized area of law; background and experience; complexity and scope of matters handled; global or national importance of issues confronted; and proven and exemplary leadership.

The 2007 "Legends in Law" awards were judged by William C. Burton, founder and chairman of the program. Mr. Burton was a former Vice President of Continental Insurance and in this position had over 15 years of experience working closely and directly with the General Counsel's office on corporate affairs. In commenting on the award winners, Mr. Burton said: "Each of the leaders selected are preeminent in their specialized fields of law. We applaud their careers and their accomplishments. They deserve the accolades and the attention that will be paid to them, and the special designation that will be conferred."

This year, the organization celebrates its eighth year. The Burton Awards Honorary Board of Directors includes federal appellate judges, state court judges, professors of law from the finest law schools in America and leading partners in the largest law firms. Judge Richard A. Posner of the 7th US Circuit Court of Appeals and Judge Alex Kozinski of the 9th Circuit US Court of Appeals serves on the board as well as Carol Corrigan, who sits on the Supreme Court of California.

The National Contributor of the awards program is LexisNexis.