Miles Stockbridge

Miles & Stockbridge, a Baltimore-based law firm employing 200 lawyers, announced internal changes yesterday that it said will yield a more "business-oriented" organization.Chief among the moves is the promotion of Joseph S. Welty, managing principal of the firm's Frederick office, to the position of president and managing principal of the entire firm.Mr. Welty will handle day-to-day management.James R. Eyler will remain in charge of the firm as chairman of its board and chairman of its executive committee.

Transamerica Tower in downtown Baltimore now has Transamerica employees working in it - with more to come. After months of preparation by the insurance and financial services company, 340 workers arrived Monday for their first day at 100 Light St. following a whirlwind move of their computers, telephones and other office necessities from Mount Vernon over the weekend. More workers will follow in two weeks, bringing the total to about 800. For Transamerica, the mostly short-distance move is an opportunity to bring all its Baltimore workers under one roof in its headquarters town - and to put its name on the top of one of the city's tallest buildings.

Lowell R. Bowen, a fixture in Baltimore's legal community, is stepping down as chairman of Miles & Stockbridge and will be replaced by James R. Eyler on Jan. 1, the law firm announced yesterday.Mr. Bowen, 60, the firm's top lawyer for the last 17 years, said the transfer of power has been under way since January, when Mr. Eyler, 49, was made vice chairman."I was managing partner when I was a lot younger than Jim, so I think it's time for the younger folks to have a chance at it," said Mr. Bowen, who is a corporate lawyer.

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. plans to move its Greater Maryland regional headquarters from the Charles Center to the Inner Harbor by mid-2012, real estate brokerage CB Richard Ellis announced Tuesday. Bank officials have signed a lease that calls for PNC to occupy 119,000 square feet at One East Pratt St., the brokerage reported. PNC will move from the office tower at Two Hopkins Plaza beginning in July 2012. In addition to upper-level office space, the Pratt Street lease includes 7,000 square feet on the building's first floor to house a PNC Bank branch.

Miles & Stockbridge is extending its reach southward with the announcement this week that the Baltimore law firm has absorbed Levan, Schimel, Belman & Abramson, a firm with offices in Columbia and Greenbelt.Levan has 12 lawyers and concentrates in business law, administrative and labor relations law and civil litigation."We are increasing our presence by adding well-established, local firms and lawyers to our organization," said Miles & Stockbridge Chairman Joseph S. Welty. "With this combination, we have strengthened our firm by adding a group of outstanding lawyers."

The law firm of Miles & Stockbridge said Thursday that it will move its Baltimore office to the Transamerica Tower by early 2013. The relocation will keep 275 employees in the city's central business district. Miles & Stockbridge is the latest of several large firms to lease space in the 35-story structure, originally constructed for USF&G Corp. and one of downtown's most prominent buildings. Its owner, a subsidiary of Lexington Realty Trust of New York, has spent approximately $45 million on upgrades for new tenants since Legg Mason moved from the building to Harbor East in 2009.

Miles & Stockbridge and Venable, Baetjer and Howard, two of Baltimore's most venerable law firms, announced new leadership yesterday. Miles & Stockbridge reached within its ranks and named John H. Murray of the law firm's Easton office as president, succeeding Joseph S. Welty. Welty, president for 6 1/2 years, will resume his full-time law practice and continue to serve on the board of directors. He said of Murray: "John's professional knowledge and years of managerial experience will prove successful for the firm."

Neal M. Janey, the cautious and deliberate top lawyer for Baltimore, is leaving after nearly eight years on the job to return to private practice with the prestigious Miles & Stockbridge law firm.One of the first members of Mayor Kurt L. Schmoke's Cabinet, the city solicitor earned a reputation for thoroughness in his legal work and firmness in his post on the Board of Estimates, the panel that reviews almost every aspect of city business.As the solicitor, Mr. Janey directed an office that grew from 63 lawyers to 78 and oversaw more municipal legal work being contracted out to private firms.

In a move to strengthen its product liability and mass tort litigation practices, Miles & Stockbridge PC said yesterday that it has agreed to acquire Baltimore law firm Church Loker & Silver. The smaller firm's 10 lawyers will join Miles & Stockbridge on May 1, bringing the number of attorneys at the combined firm to 179, including a 40-member litigation team. Church Loker & Silver, established in 1989 as Church & Houff, specializes in defending companies in asbestos cases, as well as in tobacco and lead-paint litigation.

In a boost for Baltimore's traditional business district, Baltimore law firm Miles & Stockbridge PC will embark on a long-term growth plan that includes a $4 million renovation to a landmark downtown building and the leasing of additional space as the firm expands. The firm has signed a 10-year lease renewal in the Bank of America building at 10 Light St. in the city's financial district, with options for an additional six years. The 271 lawyers and other staff at its Baltimore headquarters occupy 126,000 square feet of space on eight floors in the building, considered a prime example of Art Deco architecture.

The law firm of Miles & Stockbridge said Thursday that it will move its Baltimore office to the Transamerica Tower by early 2013. The relocation will keep 275 employees in the city's central business district. Miles & Stockbridge is the latest of several large firms to lease space in the 35-story structure, originally constructed for USF&G Corp. and one of downtown's most prominent buildings. Its owner, a subsidiary of Lexington Realty Trust of New York, has spent approximately $45 million on upgrades for new tenants since Legg Mason moved from the building to Harbor East in 2009.

Lowell Reed Bowen, who was a fixture in Baltimore's legal and cultural community for more than a half-century and a managing partner of Miles & Stockbridge, died Tuesday of septic shock at Greater Baltimore Medical Center. The Cockeysville resident was 80. "Lowell was an extraordinarily gifted lawyer with instincts and judgment that were simply unparalleled," John B. Frisch, chairman and chief executive officer of Miles & Stockbridge, said in an e-mail statement to the firm's employees.

President Barack Obama's signing of the most sweeping financial reform in decades was closely watched by banks and financial firms, but perhaps even more so by their lawyers. Law firms in Baltimore and elsewhere have been ramping up to prepare business clients for a radically altered financial landscape, one that still remains largely unknown despite last week's signing of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010. The law is designed to prevent another economic meltdown and will, among other changes, create the new Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection to regulate mortgages, credit cards and student loans.

Michael D. Colglazier, a respected attorney who represented the Ravens and many of Baltimore's financial institutions in his three decades of practice, died of cancer Friday at his Lutherville home. He was 57. Born in Richmond, Va., and raised in Bel Air, he was a 1966 graduate of Bel Air High School. He earned a degree in political science at Amherst College, where he played on the football and rugby teams. He later served there as an assistant dean of admissions. He received his law degree from the University of Virginia.

Michael S. Scher, a partner in the Baltimore law firm of Miles & Stockbridge who specialized in real estate and housing law, died of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma Saturday at the University of Maryland Medical Center. He was 50 and a resident of the Thornleigh section of Baltimore County. Mr. Scher was born and raised in Pocomoke City, where his parents owned and operated a women's and children's clothing shop. He was a 1972 graduate of Pocomoke High School. "Ever since we were kids, Michael wanted to be a lawyer.

When Scotland native Stephen Cullen arrived in Baltimore in 1989, he was struck by the fact that in the United States only the poorest criminal defendants are entitled to a public defender and that in civil cases almost everyone has to pay for an attorney. Since coming to the United States, the Towson resident has devoted thousands of hours to pro bono, or free, legal work. He is to receive the American Bar Association's Pro Bono Publico Award today in Atlanta for his work on behalf of abducted children throughout the world.

The Carroll County Board of Education voted 4-1 last night to hire a top-flight Baltimore law firm to represent it to deal with several construction problems that have led to lawsuits and a county grand jury investigation.A letter to the board from Miles & Stockbridge -- released last night -- confirmed that the firm will represent the school system "in connection with the review of contracts for the construction of Cranberry Station Elementary School, the wastewater treatment plant for Francis Scott Key High School, and related matters."

While other businesses have abandoned downtown Baltimore for new waterfront offices, Miles & Stockbridge PC instead has spent more than $6 million reshaping space in the Bank of America building that it has occupied for more than 70 years. "You just can't find a building like this," said John B. Frisch, chairman and chief executive officer of the law firm. "It's an extraordinary building. It's got so much soul, and it's right in the heart of the central business district." Downtown business leaders hope the firm's innovative and economical effort will help encourage others to reinvent their homes in the city's traditional commercial district rather than move out. Too often companies assume that older space is too difficult, too costly and too time-consuming to reconfigure, and opt for new space instead, Michele L. Whelley, president of the Downtown Partnership, said yesterday.