Associate Deputy Attorney General Catherine O'Neil Joins King & Spalding as Partner

15 March 2006

King & Spalding, a leading international law firm, announced today that Catherine O'Neil, who most recently served as an Associate Deputy Attorney General for the U.S. Department of Justice, has joined the firm as a partner in its business litigation practice.

O'Neil was the principal staff person to Deputy Attorney General James Comey and Deputy Attorney General Larry Thompson on matters involving domestic and international drug enforcement, drug policy, anti-money laundering strategy and asset forfeiture. She will use this experience to counsel the firm's clients involved in complex civil litigation and government investigations.

"Catherine's leadership while at the Department of Justice and her experience as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia combine to make her a strong force on our litigation team," said Daniel J. King, leader of King & Spalding's business litigation practice group. "We are pleased to have such an experienced leader and seasoned trial lawyer join the firm, and we look forward to seeing her put her skills to work for our clients."

While at the Department of Justice (DOJ), O'Neil served as the department's liaison to the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (Criminal Enterprise Section). She also served as the director of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Program and played a key role in developing and implementing DOJ's domestic drug enforcement strategy. In recognition of her work, O'Neil received one of DOJ's highest honors: the Attorney General's Award for Excellence in Management.

Before working at DOJ in Washington, O'Neil served from 1995 to 2002 as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia. O'Neil tried a significant number of federal jury trials, including a precedent- setting case against a distributor of precursor chemicals used in the manufacture of methamphetamine for which she received DOJ's Director's Award for Superior Performance as an Assistant U.S. Attorney. Ms. O'Neil also handled complex grand jury investigations, litigated hundreds of evidentiary hearings and successfully argued cases before the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals.

O'Neil received a B.A., with highest distinction, from the University of Virginia. She received a law degree, cum laude, from Harvard Law School. She also holds a Masters in Public Policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard.

"King & Spalding has a wealth of legal talent, and I am excited to become a part of the firm's litigation team," said O'Neil. "My years of public service have been extremely gratifying, but I am looking forward to a new chapter in my legal career -- helping clients successfully resolve their litigation matters and meet their business goals."

About King & Spalding LLP

King & Spalding LLP is an international law firm with more than 800 lawyers in Atlanta, Houston, London, New York and Washington, D.C. The firm represents more than half of the Fortune 100, and in a Corporate Counsel survey in September 2005 was ranked one of the top ten firms representing Fortune 250 companies overall. For additional information, visit http://www.kslaw.com.

Contact: Jessica Schnack

King & Spalding LLP

Ph (212) 556-2226

jschnack@kslaw.com

Source: prnewswire

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