Press Releases

Cadwalader Attorneys Add More Burton Laurels

New York, NY, June 7, 2004, Once again, attorneys from Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP have claimed a prestigious Burton Award for Legal Achievement. Partner Jonathan D. Polkes and associates Adam S. Lurie and Sean Toomey were recognized for their article entitled “White-Collar Crime: Obstruction of Justice Nexis Requirement Unclear in New Statutes,” which was published in the New York Law Journal. This achievement marks the third time Cadwalader attorneys have been so honored. The firm also will be recognized for having members who have won a Burton Award for three years.

“Using clear, plain and effective language is good for lawyers, clients and the legal profession. We are proud that our attorneys consistently produce excellent written materials and are honored to have been recognized for this achievement,” said Robert O. Link, Jr., Chairman and Managing Partner of Cadwalader.

Mr. Polkes, a partner in Cadwalader’s Litigation Department resident in the New York office, is a former federal prosecutor who principally handles regulatory, criminal and civil matters for clients in the financial services industry. He has represented prominent institutional clients and executives in virtually every major legal event to have affected Wall Street in recent memory. Mr. Lurie, an associate in the firm’s Washington Litigation Department, focuses his practice on complex civil litigation and white collar criminal defense. Mr. Toomey is a litigation associate in New York who represents both individuals and corporations in a wide range of complex civil and criminal matters and in regulatory investigations involving the financial services industry.

The Burton Awards for Legal Achievement, a nationally recognized program now celebrating its fifth year, recognizes excellence and clarity in legal writing. Presented in association with the Law Library of Congress, the awards ceremony will be held on June 14 in the Great Hall of the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. The keynote speaker will be Paula Zahn, CNN host and moderator. The Burton Awards honor 20 winners from nominations received from the top 500 law firms and 10 winners from leading law schools across the nation. Managing partners of law firms and law school deans nominate the submissions, which include articles written in journals, law reviews and publications from the previous year. The entries are judged by an academic board led by Virginia Wise, a renowned teacher at Harvard Law School; Anne E. Kringel, a widely acknowledged expert in legal writing at the University of Pennsylvania Law School; Grace Tonner, a prominent professor from University of Michigan Law School; a distinguished judge from California’s Superior Court; and William Ryan, a direct descendent of Noah Webster.

About Cadwalader
Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP, established in 1792, is one of the world’s leading international law firms, with offices in New York, London, Charlotte and Washington. Cadwalader serves a diverse client base, including many of the world’s top financial institutions, undertaking business in more than 50 countries in six continents. The firm offers legal expertise in securitization, structured finance, mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, real estate, environmental, insolvency, litigation, health care, banking, project finance, insurance and reinsurance, tax, and private client matters. More information about Cadwalader can be found at www.cadwalader.com.

About the Burton Awards
The Burton Foundation is a not-for-profit, cultural and academic organization devoted to promoting the legal profession. It is the first national program dedicated to refining and enriching legal writing by lawyers and law school students. The program is held annually and rewards authors who use plain, modern language and avoid archaic, stilted legalese. The founder of the program is William C. Burton a partner in the international law firm of D’Amato & Lynch and former New York State Assistant Attorney General. Mr. Burton is the author of the authoritative reference book, Burton’s Legal Thesaurus, published by McGraw-Hill. He is also the co-founder of the Holmes Debates, a program devoted to examining critical issues facing the judiciary.