Bingham Dana and McCutchen to Merge; Combined Firm Expands to More Than 800 Lawyers, Creating National Legal Powerhouse.

Business Editors & Legal Writers

BOSTON & SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 30, 2002

Bingham Dana LLP, a 500-attorney firm with offices in Boston, New York, Washington, Los Angeles, Hartford, London and Singapore, and McCutchen, Doyle, Brown & Enersen LLP, a 320-attorney firm with offices in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Silicon Valley and Walnut Creek, California, have announced that they plan to merge, effective July 1, 2002. The combined firm, to be known as Bingham McCutchen LLP, will rank as approximately the 20th largest in the United States and immediately take its place among a small number of top-tier national law firms.

Each of the two predecessor firms already has a national reputation in its own right. Bingham Dana, with its roots in Boston, has been one of the country's fastest growing firms in recent years. Long known for its strength in finance and litigation, Bingham Dana has built one of the world's strongest global insolvency practices, as well as nationally recognized practices in the areas of corporate and commercial technology, private equity and investment management. The firm also has one of the country's largest Japanese practices.

McCutchen, one of the West Coast's premier litigation firms, is well known for its strong national practices in a number of key strategic areas including antitrust, environmental, securities, patent litigation, intellectual property and technology transactions.

According to Jay S. Zimmerman, Bingham Dana's Managing Partner, who will serve as Chair of the combined firm, the merger makes sense for several reasons. "McCutchen is one of the leading litigation firms in the country, with a blue-chip national client list," he said. "The combined firm brings together an extraordinary blend of synergistic and complementary practices to create a powerful new firm with nationally recognized practices in a large number of business and litigation areas."

Donn P. Pickett, McCutchen's Chair, who will serve as Vice Chair of the combined firm, echoed Zimmerman's enthusiasm. "It's no secret that we've long been interested in pursuing a merger to better serve our clients, and it's been well worth the wait. Bingham Dana turned out to be our ideal merger partner. Our personalities, cultures and core values are very similar. Both firms are known for providing the highest level of client service and being committed to continued strategic growth, innovation, diversity and a variety of pro bono activities. As competition among law firms increases, our new firm is in an ideal position to meet our clients' needs for more specialized legal services across the board."

Zimmerman also pointed out that this merger was the next significant step in implementing Bingham Dana's strategy of client, practice and geographic diversification. "With our geographic strength on the eastern seaboard from Boston to Washington -- including a significant presence in New York -- our goal was to find a merger partner that was a leader on the West Coast," Zimmerman said. "This will be the first combination involving two firms with major presences in the Boston and northern California markets, and we believe that will put us in a unique position to serve our clients. In addition, the new firm will be in an even stronger position to develop strategic initiatives that will take our existing offices to new levels."

When the transaction is completed, Bingham McCutchen will have more than 800 lawyers working out of eight U.S. and two international offices.

Photographs of Jay Zimmerman and Donn Pickett are available upon request. Please contact Hank Shafran at [phone] or [e-mail] or Vickie Spang at [phone] or [e-mail].

Background Notes on Bingham Dana:

1. Over the past seven years Bingham Dana has more than doubled in size, going from fewer than 200 lawyers in 1995 to more than 500 lawyers now.

2. In 1995, Bingham Dana had approximately 20 lawyers located in three offices outside of Boston; after this transaction closes, the firm will have more than 500 lawyers located in nine offices outside of Boston.

3. In 1997, the Japanese practice of Marks & Murase, one of the country's leading Japanese law practices, joined Bingham Dana, which provided the firm with offices in New York and Los Angeles.

4. In 1999, Hebb & Gitlin, a firm known for its premiere position in financial restructuring and insolvency, joined Bingham Dana. The firm then opened an office in Singapore.

5. Also in 1999, Bingham Dana established two non-legal businesses:

Bingham Consulting Group is headed by former New Hampshire Governor Stephen E. Merrill, and provides national, international and state-by-state strategic consulting services in the areas of governmental relations, financial services, telecommunications, energy and healthcare.

Bingham Legg Advisers is a joint venture with Legg Mason, one of the country's leading investment firms with more than $90 billion in assets under management. This venture marks the first time that a major law firm has partnered with a global investment firm to offer a full range of investment and trust administration services to high net-worth individuals.

6. In 2001, Bingham Dana established its third non-legal business, Bingham Strategic Advisors, a wholly owned subsidiary that provides strategic financial and other business advice on mergers & acquisitions, joint ventures and business restructurings.

7. Also in 2001, Richards & O'Neil, a leading mid-sized New York firm with a sophisticated corporate transactional practice, as well as real estate and litigation practices, joined Bingham Dana.

Background Notes on McCutchen:

1. McCutchen has offices in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Silicon Valley and Walnut Creek, California, and an affiliate office in Taipei.

2. Over the past three years, the firm has grown by 17% (250 attorneys in 1999; now has 300).

3. Vault's "Guide to the Top 100 Law Firms" ranks McCutchen one of the "100 Most Prestigious Law Firms in the Country" (Winter 2001).

4. Fortune magazine lists McCutchen as one of "The 100 Best Companies to Work for in the U.S." (February 2002, January 2001).

5. The firm was ranked #1 for having the largest percentage of female attorneys (and the second highest percentage of female equity partners) among the top 250 law firms in the country (National Law Journal, December 2000).

6. McCutchen was ranked #2 in California and #5 nationwide for the highest percentage of minority attorneys (Minority Law Journal, Spring 2002).

7. The firm was ranked #1 in California and #9 in the country in AmLaw's Annual Associate Survey (American Lawyer, October 2001).

8. McCutchen was ranked #2 in California and tied #9 nationwide in AmLaw's Annual Summer Associates Survey (L Magazine, November 2001).

9. McCutchen was ranked the #1 law firm in California and #5 in the U.S. for its commitment to pro bono work among the top 200 law firms (American Lawyer, January, 2002).

10. McCutchen's Environmental Group is ranked among the top three in the nation (American Lawyer, October 2000).