Ms. McClellan has been with the Firm since 1998 and has extensive experience in advising large multinational companies on a broad range of international tax and tax controversy matters, with emphasis on transfer pricing.

In her new role, Ms. McClellan will be responsible for transfer pricing matters, planning, audits and other controversies related to GE Treasury’s intercompany financial transactions.

“We congratulate Holly on her new position at General Electric,” said Len Terr, head of the Firm’s North America Tax Practice Group. “Holly has been an integral member of our world-class transfer pricing team, and we are proud to see one of our own take on such an important position.”

Kirschenbaum is a recognized legal authority in the area of transfer pricing strategy and planning, and related tax controversy resolution. He represents U.S. and foreign-based multinational companies in a wide variety of industry sectors, including software, semiconductor, pharmaceutical, defense, financial services, and retail. A significant part of Kirschenbaum’s practice involves advising high-tech companies based in Silicon Valley. Miller & Chevalier has a long history of advising companies on the West Coast in the tax, employee benefits, litigation, and international trade areas. With the addition of Kirschenbaum and in light of the continued growth of Miller & Chevalier’s client base on the West Coast, the firm is establishing a presence in Palo Alto to provide enhanced service to these clients.

“We are so pleased to welcome Bob Kirschenbaum to the firm,” said Marianna Dyson, Chair, Miller & Chevalier. “He brings a wealth of significant government, industry and private practice experience in the transfer pricing area that will greatly benefit our multinational clients.”

Before joining Baker & McKenzie, Kirschenbaum was Team Leader for the Advance Pricing Agreement (APA) Program of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). At APA, he was Japan Case Coordinator for the IRS Competent Authority negotiations and was responsible for negotiating and consummating approximately 40 unilateral and bilateral APAs.

“Transfer pricing is one of the most significant issues currently facing global enterprises,” said Patricia Sweeney, Chair of Miller & Chevalier’s Tax Department. “Bob is a recognized leader in the field and has an established reputation for his work helping companies to plan and defend their transfer pricing strategies, while structuring their businesses in a tax-efficient manner. In addition, he shares our commitment to exceptional client service, providing practical advice to meet client needs. Bob will be a valuable addition to our skilled team, which includes lawyers who have both senior government and private practice experience navigating complex matters in the international tax area.”

Transfer pricing presents challenging high-stakes tax issues and planning opportunities for multinationals today and is a critical component of proactively managing global tax obligations. It is also an area of intense focus by U.S. and foreign tax authorities, and significant disputes can arise. Some disputes can be prevented through careful planning or through APAs with one or more tax authorities, while others can be resolved through effective negotiation with taxing authorities and the mutual agreement process under tax treaties. Kirschenbaum has extensive experience assisting multinational companies in designing and implementing transfer pricing strategies and in resolving disputes proactively. His prior government experience serves him well in dealing with taxing authorities around the world.

Mr. Stevens’ practice involves all areas of federal taxation, focusing on the US and international tax aspects of acquisitions and dispositions, post-transaction integration of acquired businesses and intellectual property licensing and planning. In addition, he has advised foreign entities on the tax efficient structuring of their investments in the US, including issues such as withholding tax, FIRPTA, treaty analysis, and compliance with US reporting requirements.

Mr. Stevens also has extensive experience in advising on multi-jurisdictional affiliated group restructurings, foreign earnings repatriation, subpart F and PFIC planning, foreign tax credit utilization, supply chain restructuring, cross-border tax arbitrage and other global tax minimization strategies.

“Jonathan has a strong skill set to further our core competency in tax and to expand our capabilities in areas of significant interest to our multinational clients, especially in international tax planning and tax planning for mergers and acquisitions,” said Len Terr, Chair of the Firm’s North American Tax Practice.

Commenting on his move, Stevens said, “Baker & McKenzie’s global tax practice will provide an excellent platform from which to discharge my work with multinational clients.”

Prior to joining Jones Day, Mr. Stevens was Senior Manager in the International Corporate Services Group with KPMG LLP in New York. He received a J.D. from Temple University in May 1997 and a B.S. in Business Administration (magna cum laude) and B.A. in History (cum laude) in May 1994 from the University of Richmond.

“We welcome Jonathan to the Firm,” said New York Managing Partner James C. Colihan. “His strong technical background and extensive experience advising on and executing international and transactional tax-related projects for major multinational companies fit well within the Firm’s core strategy.”

Recently, Baker & McKenzie’s New York office has added a three-person outsourcing team of lawyers led by Edward J. Hansen and including D. David Jackson and Jessica Lipson. Mr. Hansen has nearly two decades of experience representing clients in complex information technology and business process outsourcing transactions. The Firm also expanded its arbitration and commercial litigation capabilities with the joining of Junghye June Yeum as a partner.

Mr. Chang Camacho practices tax and customs law and has worked at Chevez Ruiz Zamarripa y Cía. S.C. as an associate in its international trade practice and at Deloitte & Touche, where he opened the firm’s Guadalajara foreign trade and customs practice. He was also national managing partner for the customs and trade practice at national level at BDO Hernández, Marrón y Cía. as well as managing director for the firm’s Guadalajara office.

Mr. Chang Camacho graduated from Universidad de Guadalajara.

Ms. Hubbard has extensive experience in advising local and multinational companies on a broad range of US domestic tax matters. Ms. Hubbard is the Vice Chair for Government Relations of the American Bar Association Section of Taxation. Prior to joining Baker & McKenzie, she served as Tax Legislative Counsel at the US Department of Treasury.

In her new role, Ms. Hubbard will be responsible for providing legal advice to Fannie Mae on all tax matters. This includes matters relating to Fannie Mae’s corporate tax return, portfolio holdings, debt and equity issuances, derivative transactions, mortgage products, mortgage-backed securities and structured transactions, compensation practices, employee benefits, tax reporting obligations, state and local sales and use taxes, and state unclaimed property laws.

“We congratulate Helen on her appointment to Fannie Mae,” said Leonard Terr, head of the Firm’s North America Tax Practice Group. “Helen is a respected and talented team member, and we eagerly anticipate the impact of the addition of someone of her caliber to Fannie Mae.”

The team further strengthens Baker & McKenzie’s trade & customs and tax law capabilities in Amsterdam and globally, particularly in the areas of customs classification and valuation (including transfer pricing), tax and customs efficient supply chain structuring (including sourcing strategies and rules of origin) as well as EU export controls and sanctions.

“The addition of Jasper and this team builds on an already strong tax practice,” said Mike Jansen, Managing Partner of Baker & McKenzie, Amsterdam. “We are committed to strengthening our overall market position in order to provide our clients with full, seamless service in tax and legal matters here and abroad.”

Mr. Helder focuses his practice on customs and international trade, export controls and economic sanctions and product regulatory advice. He has extensive experience advising on customs classification, customs valuation and transfer pricing, rules of origin, the use of customs approved treatments, general customs compliance and the application of EU export controls and economic sanctions.

“The Amsterdam tax practice offers Dutch and foreign multinationals independent local and cross-border tax advice of the highest level. With trade and customs matters becoming more important for our clients, Jasper and his team will be able to complement our fully integrated practice, working in close collaboration with our VAT and transfer pricing teams as well as our commercial group,” said Herman Huidink, head of Baker & McKenzie’s Tax practice in Amsterdam.

Koen Vanhaerents, Chairman of the Firm’s Europe, Middle East and Africa region, added: “Now more than ever it is important for us to add value to our clients, and Jasper and the team will provide a full suite of international tax and customs services, which will be beneficial to clients.”

Mr. Helder graduated from Rotterdam Erasmus University in 1992. He then worked for Dutch firm Trenité Van Doorne, which later merged into Simmons & Simmons, before joining Bird & Bird LLP in 2007.

“Baker & McKenzie has a fantastic international network and its renowned tax, customs and trade practices cover multiple key markets across the world,” said Mr. Helder. “Our team’s knowledge and experience easily fits with this Firm, enabling us to provide clients with high-quality, multijurisdictional advice.”[/private]

“We are excited to have someone of John’s stature in the international tax community join our North American Tax Practice Group in Houston,” said Len Terr, Chair of the Firm’s North American Tax Practice Group. “John is a seasoned professional with an established track record of attracting and discharging sophisticated international tax work. He will be an important player on a team that already includes nationally recognized international tax experts Melinda Phelan and Susan Stone, among others. John will assist us in strengthening and expanding our capabilities, including in the oil and gas and related areas of tax practice.”

For the last 20 years, Couch has represented multinational corporate clients engaged in a variety of cross-border transactions, corporate tax planning, organization, reorganizations and finance. He has experience working with and in tax regimes of more than 45 countries in Europe, the former Soviet Union, Asia and South America and has in the past represented instrumentalities of the governments of Kazakhstan, China, Venezuela, Mexico, Brazil and Chile. In addition to his law firm experience, Couch has senior in-house tax experience in the oil and gas industry, and has participated in the reorganization, acquisition, financing and divestment of upstream and midstream assets and companies.

“John is a well-respected and highly effective attorney whose addition to our tax practice complements an already established practice and will further its successes here and globally,” said Lisa Meyerhoff, Managing Partner of Baker & McKenzie LLP Houston. “We are extremely pleased to have John join the Firm.”[/private]

The newly elected Partners are:[private]

• Erik Christenson is a Partner in the San Francisco / Palo Alto office and a member of the Tax Practice Group. Mr. Christenson has more than nine years of experience representing multinational corporations – both US and foreign-based – in business taxation matters. He received his JD, cum laude, from Hastings College of the Law and his BA, cum laude, with Honors, from Dartmouth College. Mr. Christenson joined the Firm in 2005.

• Salim Rahim is a Partner in the Washington, DC office and a member of the Tax Practice Group. Mr. Rahim has been involved in projects involving transfer pricing of tangible products, intellectual property and services, global restructurings, effective tax rate minimization, tax treaties and tax controversy matters. His practice principally involves assisting companies with planning and defending transfer pricing strategies, negotiating Advance Pricing Agreements and advising on global transfer pricing documentation requirements. He received his JD from George Washington University and his BA from the Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. Mr. Rahim joined the Firm in 1995.

• Todd Schroeder is a Partner in the Dallas office and a member of the Tax Practice Group. Mr. Schroeder’s practice runs the gamut of tax work, with a particular emphasis on domestic and international structuring and tax planning for corporations, partnerships, limited liability companies and other pass-through entities. He received his JD, summa cum laude, from the University of Alabama School of Law and his BS, summa cum laude, from Auburn University. Mr. Schroeder joined the Firm in 2004.

• W. Michael Snider is a Partner in the Houston office and a member of the Tax Practice Group. He represents a wide variety of multinational clients, ranging from oil and gas companies to high-tech firms. He has a broad range of experience in all areas of federal income tax law, with an emphasis on international tax planning and corporate, partnership and natural resources taxation. Mr. Snider received his JD from the University of Colorado Law School, his LLM in Taxation from the New York University School of Law and his BS from the University of Georgia. He joined the Firm in 2006.[/private]

Nigel joins the Firm after spending nearly ten years at [private]Ernst & Young in London, where he led the development of the transfer pricing team’s offering for intangible assets. His experience focuses on the transfer pricing of intangible assets across a range of industries, including planning, implementation and tax authority negotiations. He also has significant experience of supply chain re-organisations, the development and implementation of transfer pricing policies and the transfer pricing of financial transactions.

Commenting on the appointment, Baker & McKenzie’s UK Head of Transfer Pricing Richard Fletcher, said: ”Nigel adds to the experience and skills of our international network and the London office, and increases our finance and economics capabilities to over 40 professionals within our wider global transfer pricing practice.”

”His appointment further strengthens our capabilities in providing combined legal, tax and advisory services in the intellectual and intangible property area,” he added.[/private]

The Baker & McKenzie Transfer Pricing practice helps clients navigate complex transfer pricing issues and implement transfer pricing strategies. The practice has been global leaders in managing major tax issues for almost 50 years, giving it unique insights into anticipating and preventing tax risks.

Raymundo Enriquez
Enriquez was recently the Managing Partner of the Firm’s Mexico offices. He focuses on tax and antitrust and unfair trade practices. Enriquez joined the Firm’s Mexico City office in 1988.[/private]

Baker & McKenzie’s Executive Committee is the leadership body of the Firm. Its responsibilities include: developing and executing the Firm’s Strategy; client development and service; practice development; financial performance of the Firm; quality maintenance and improvement; external relations, marketing and communications strategy; and Partner relations.

Other members of the Committee include Peter Engstrom (San Francisco), Alan Harvey (Dallas), Jeremy Pitts (Tokyo) and Poh Lee Tan (Hong Kong).

Felipe Alonso will join the firm in September 2009 as managing partner of the Tax Department of CMS Albinana & Suarez de Lezo, working in coordination with Santiago Diez and a team comprising of 16 professionals between the Madrid, Seville and Marbella offices.

For the new managing partner, the integration in CMS Albinana & Suarez de Lezo will become a new phase and a new challenge after his experience of almost a decade in the international firm Baker & McKenzie in which he has worked during the last nine years.

Felipe Alonso possesses a wide experience in taxation.  Among other acknowledgments, he is listed in The European Legal 500 and the Chambers Global, where he is recognised as “a tax expert providing high quality advice in procedures regarding procedural tax law”. Alonso is a Tax Inspector currently on leave of absence (1989) and has performed the position as general sub director of legal ordinance and legal assistance to the Spanish General Directorate for Tax
Inspection and Treasury Department.

“Personally it is an enormous satisfaction to form part of CMS Albinana & Suarez of Lezo, where we will contribute a strategic impulse to the area of taxation and, more concretely, to that of tax litigation, in a moment in which the business requires a greater specialization in a context of increase in the activity”, underlines Felipe Alonso.

For Cesar Albinana Cilveti, managing partner of CMS Albinana & Suarez of Lezo “for us it is a great pride to include Felipe Alonso and his group of professionals because they are the best option for our office; with him we incorporate a magnificent, highly qualified team with great experience and capacity to give our future and current clients more complete, in-depth advice”.

CMS Albinana & Suarez de Lezo in figures.  In 2008, CMS Albinana & Suarez de Lezo invoiced EUR 19.65 million in transactions, which represents an 11.6% increase compared to the previous year, and shows the firm’s growth tendency in a year that was marked by economic difficulties.

The firm, led by Rafael Suarez de Lezo and Cesar Albinana Cilveti, is currently comprised of 80 attorneys, 18 partners, and –since 2005- is a member of CMS, the international organisation of the major European law firms, and the most important independent network in Europe. [/private]

Commenting on the Steven Sieker’s appointment, Michael Olesnicky, Head of the Firm’s Asia-Pacific Tax Group, said, “We are pleased to have Steven back with us. Steven’s extensive experience and knowledge of Hong Kong complements the skill-set within the team. Steven has an excellent reputation, representing a wide range of corporate and individual clients in a number of leading tax matters in Hong Kong and the region. He also brings a wealth of experience in tax litigation and wealth management matters, which further augments our capabilities and profile in this area. Steven’s appointment reflects the continued growth of our Tax practice in Hong Kong and China, providing us with a solid platform to assist our clients with the challenges they are facing in the current economic environment.”

Steven is recognised as a leading expert on Hong Kong tax matters by Chambers Asia 2008. He has written and contributed to a number of publications in Hong Kong, Canada and internationally, and is the author of the Hong Kong volume of the CCH series “Tax Planning and Compliance in Asia”. Steven is a past member of the Hong Kong Inland Revenue Department Board of Review, has been a part-time instructor in Tax and Revenue Law at Hong Kong University and City University of Hong Kong. He is a member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP) and is a former executive director of STEP and the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong.

Steven is a Baker & McKenzie alumni, having worked as an Associate from 1998 till 2004 and as a Partner from 2004 till 2007 in the Tax Group in the Hong Kong office. He returned to Canada in 2007.

Steven graduated from the University of Alberta with Bachelor of Arts (Honours) First Class and from Dalhousie University with an LL.B. He is admitted as a solicitor in Hong Kong and England and Wales, and as a barrister and solicitor in Alberta, Canada. Upon graduation, Steven was a law clerk to the Supreme Court of Canada.[/private]

Baker & McKenzie’s dedicated Tax Group in Hong Kong and China is consistently acknowledged as the leading law firm-based practice. The team has been awarded the Tax & Trusts Law Firm of the Year at the ALB Hong Kong Law Awards continuously for the last eight years in a row and is ranked Tier 1 for Hong Kong and China in the World’s Leading Tax Transactional Firm – International Tax Review 2009 and 2008.

They join the tax team created by Emmanuel Chauve and Alexandre Blestel (partners) and are thus going to reinforce the tax practice of the firm, comprising of 4 partners. They have created the Banking Finance Company Team (“Equipe Banque Finance Entreprise”) intended to combine the tax knowledge with the legal expertise to best serve the interests of their clients, mostly French banks, CAC 40 firms and large Anglo-Saxon groups.

Bernard Boutemy specializes in corporate, banking and finance taxation. He advises banking and financial institutions together with their clients, listed companies and large Anglo-Saxon groups on their administrative pre-litigation and litigation tax matters as well as on financing and monetization of debt status. He focuses on assisting his clients in facing their tax audits all along the controls, negotiating global solutions on their behalf with the French tax administration and, where applicable, introducing and following tax litigation actions.
Admitted to the Hauts-de-Seine Bar in 1996, Bernard Boutemy joined the firm in 2009 as partner after working at the Paris offices of Baker & MacKenzie (2006-2009), Deloitte & Touche which became Taj (2002-2006) and Andersen (1996-2002). He previously used to be tax inspector and “administrateur civil”, i.e. head of litigation office, at the French Direction Générale des Impôts and acted as judge before administrative courts.
He has published numerous articles in specialized tax reviews: La Revue de Droit Fiscal, Les Petites Affiches or in publications of Editions Francis Lefebvre.

Sarah Espasa-Mattei specializes in corporate, banking and finance taxation. She advises banking and financial institutions together with their clients, listed companies and large Anglo-Saxon groups on their administrative pre-litigation and litigation tax matters as well as on financing and monetization of debt status. Her clients benefit from her professional experience of auditing large groups. She also assists them in implementing their strategic operations.
Admitted to the Paris Bar in 1996, Sarah Espasa-Mattei holds a postgraduate degree (DESS-DJCE) in business and tax law from the University of Montpellier (1995). She joined the firm in 2009 as partner after working as local partner at Baker & McKenzie (2006-2009) and as associate at Arthur Andersen and Ernst & Young (1996-2006).

Hélène Petard-Montredon specializes in corporate, banking and financial taxation. Her practice mainly focuses on litigation matters, mergers-acquisitions and restructurings of listed companies and industrial groups.
Admitted to the Paris Bar in 1999, Hélène Petard-Montredon holds a postgraduate degree (DESS) in business and tax law from the University of Paris II Panthéon-Assas (1998). Before joining the firm in 2009 as senior associate, she worked at Baker & McKenzie (2008-2009), where she participated in the setting-up of the Banking Finance Company Team (“Equipe Banque Finance Entreprise”). She previsouly used to be Senior Manager of International Tax Services teams at Ernst & Young, Société d’avocats (2001-2008) and was seconded to the French Desk of Ernst & Young New-York (2003-2004). She started her career as associate at Stibbe, Simont, Monahan, Duhot et Giroux’s corporate & individual taxation department (1999-2000).[/private]

Jose Jaime V. Cruz of the Tax Practice Group joined QT in November 1998 and is the most senior of all associates before being elected to local partnership.  Jim’s practice focuses on general tax planning, tax advice for mergers & acquisitions and corporate restructuring, and VAT and indirect taxes.  He also performs tax advocacy work in controversies involving protested tax assessments and claims for refund or tax credit certificates that are disputed at the administrative level and subsequently litigated before the Court of Tax Appeals and Philippine appellate courts.  Jim graduated with a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of the Philippines College of Law in 1998 and is also a Certified Public Accountant.[/private]

Maria Kostenko has been working in the Moscow office of Baker & McKenzie since 2001. Her practice focuses on Russian and international tax law, including tax due diligence and structuring of M&A transactions, tax planning and structuring of inbound investments and operations in Russia, and tax controversies. Prior to joining Baker & McKenzie she worked as a tax consultant at a major international audit firm and then as a deputy director of the law department of the Moscow tax inspectorate for major taxpayers.

Maria Kostenko graduated from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO) in 1997 and received her PhD in tax law at the Institute of State and Law of the Russian Academy of Sciences in 2002.

“We are delighted to have Chris join our team. His arrival is timely, given the fact that Canada is one of the most active transfer pricing markets,” said Duane Webber, Chair of the Firm’s North American Tax Practice Group. “His commitment to client service and his extensive experience in transfer pricing will greatly complement our existing practice. By adding talent like Chris to our practice, we continue to build on our capabilities to be well placed in the market, offering our clients a complete suite of tax and economics services here in Toronto and around the world.”

Mr. Raybould, most recently from Deloitte & Touche LLP, spearheaded and was responsible for all aspects of a wide variety of transfer pricing projects, including compliance studies, planning studies, business conversions, audit defense representation, appeals, competent authority requests, and advance pricing arrangements. He has experience in a number of industry sectors including manufacturing, specifically automotive, consumer business with an emphasis on franchising, and technology. Prior to Deloitte, he was at Arthur Andersen LLP from 1999 to 2002.

Mr. Raybould joins a network of over 150 specialty practitioners in the Firm’s Global Transfer Pricing practice worldwide. The practice is comprised of lawyers, tax advisors and economists that provide comprehensive economic and valuation services in connection with transfer pricing planning, documentation and controversy resolution and other international tax planning matters involving similar economic issues.

Commenting on Mr. Raybould’s joining, Jim Holloway, Managing Partner of the Firm’s Toronto office, said: “We welcome Chris to the Firm. His deep economics skills and broad experience will be an asset to our established tax and transfer pricing practice in Toronto, and expand the range of tax services we offer to clients here and abroad.”

Mr. Raybould received his MA in 1999 and his BA, with honours, in Economics in 1997 from Queen’s University.

The new partners include a number of tax lawyers:

Jakarta
Mochamad Fachri (Tax and Trade)