Butler Snow LLP has added 22 lawyers and an office in Huntsville, Alabama, its third in the state, to expand on economic growth there, the firm’s chair said.
Butler Snow is “striving for strategic expansion” into an area brimming with new economic activity, Chair Christopher Maddux said in an interview.
The Huntsville office is the firm’s third in the state after Montgomery and Birmingham. Its 22 new attorneys bring with them experiences from across several key disciplines in public finance, real estate development and commercial financing, something that will secure the firm “a great spot in all of the growth that’s happening in Alabama,” Maddux said.
“Geographically it’s a perfect spot in our footprint, not only because Huntsville is a thriving dynamic business community, but also because it enhances our Alabama presence, pushing us up to over 50 lawyers in the state,” Maddux said.
“There’s a lot of economic development activity in north Alabama and the new team members that we’ve brought on have had front-row seats for many major economic development projects that’s taken place in the last 10 years and this presents the opportunity to expand that practice even more to Alabama,” Maddux said.
Specialists brought on with experience in public-private development and real estate financing include Daniel Wilson, who in 2018 represented the joint interests of Toyota and Mazda during negations with Alabama over a $1.4 billion plant outside of Huntsville.
“We have a unique culture of collegiality at Butler Snow and this group fit hand in glove with that part of our culture,” Maddux said. “We just had a great rapport with them from that standpoint and we think that these are some dynamic practices to add.”
The firm counts 404 lawyers nationwide with its expansion into Huntsville and Maddux said more growth is expected as they continue to zero in on areas of opportunity in northern Alabama and Tennesee focused on defense and space contracting along with other technological ventures.
“Stay tuned, because there will be some more,” he said.