Seward & Kissel LLP announced today that counsel Danielle Lemberg, Brian Maloney, Kurt Plankl, and David Stutzman have been promoted to partner, effective July 1.

“Danielle, Brian, Kurt, and David are exceptional lawyers who bring diverse skills, experience, and perspectives to our clients,” said Seward & Kissel managing partner Jim Cofer. “They have all spent their formative years as attorneys at Seward & Kissel, and we are proud to welcome them to the partnership.”

Lemberg, a core member of the Business Transactions Group, advises on business transactions, equity financings, and general corporate matters. She co-founded and heads the Seward & Kissel Women’s Initiative and has been recognized as a leading lawyer by Chambers, with clients and peers remarking that “she is incredibly responsive and hard-working” with “excellent technical and market knowledge.” She has been honored as a “Rising Star” (Legal 500), a “Woman Worth Watching” (Profiles in Diversity Journal), and an “Emerging Leader” (M&A Advisor). Lemberg received a B.A. from The William E. Macaulay Honors College at Baruch College, summa cum laude, and a J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, where she served as an executive editor of the University of Pennsylvania Journal of Business Law.

Maloney, a commercial litigator at heart, brings experience across sectors from banking to maritime to the firm’s Litigation Group. He regularly advises clients on economic sanctions administered by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control and has led a recent string of maritime-sanctions matters involving parallel proceedings with criminal, regulatory, and civil exposure. Maloney has written and spoken extensively on shipping litigation and contributes to Seward & Kissel’s Maritime Blog and Marshall Islands Law Blog. He has been recognized as a “Rising Star” (Legal 500) and a “Litigation Trailblazer” (The National Law Journal). Maloney received an A.B., cum laude, from Dartmouth College and a J.D., cum laude, from Boston College Law School.

Plankl, a core member of Seward & Kissel’s Maritime and Transportation Practice, leads teams working on finance, private equity, joint venture, vessel purchase and sale, and other corporate transactions. He brings significant experience on all vessel operational and technical matters as well as the Jones Act (U.S. cabotage law) and the American Fisheries Act. He is qualified to practice in New York and the Marshall Islands, and contributes to Seward & Kissel’s Maritime Blog. Plankl graduated from SUNY Maritime College with an Unlimited Tonnage Oceans Third Mate’s License. Afterward, he worked as an able-bodied seaman at Weeks Marine and as the vice president of maritime operations at one of the largest ship registries in the world. Plankl received his J.D., magna cum laude and Order of the Coif, from Fordham University School of Law.

Stutzman, a core member of the firm’s Trusts and Estates Practice and for over 30 years, has focused on complex estate, trust, and charitable planning and administration for high-net-worth individuals and families. His clients range from fund managers, executives, and family business owners, to inheritors, art collectors, musicians, and sports figures. He co-authored Bloomberg BNA’s Tax Management Portfolio, Planning for Authors, Musicians, Artists, and Collectors, No. 815-3rd (Estate Planning Series), an interdisciplinary guide to representing artistic creators and collectors. He received Bloomberg Tax’s 2018 Outstanding Portfolio Author of the Year Award for outstanding authorship in estates, gifts, and trusts, and is a fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC), the nation’s preeminent association of trust and estate attorneys. He served for many years as chair of the Estate and Gift Taxation Committee of the New York City Bar Association, is a full member of STEP (formerly Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners), and is an active member of Seward & Kissel’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee.

About Seward & Kissel LLP

Seward & Kissel LLP, founded in 1890, is a leading U.S. law firm with offices in New York City and Washington, D.C., with particular expertise in the financial services, investment management, banking, and shipping industries. The firm is well known for its representation of investment advisers and related investment funds, broker-dealers, major commercial banks, institutional investors, and transportation companies (particularly in the shipping area). Its practices primarily focus on corporate, M&A, securities, litigation (including white collar), restructuring/bankruptcy, real estate, regulatory, tax, employment, and ERISA for clients seeking legal expertise in these areas.

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