FIRM BRIEF

Greenberg Traurig, LLP (gtlaw.com) has more than 2,750 attorneys in 47 locations in the United States, Europe and the Middle East, Latin America, and Asia. The firm is a 2022 BTI “Highly Recommended Law Firm” for superior client service and is consistently among the top firms on the Am Law Global 100 and NLJ 500. Greenberg Traurig is Mansfield Rule 6.0 Certified Plus by The Diversity Lab. The firm is recognized for powering its U.S. offices with 100 percent renewable energy as certified by the Center for Resource Solutions Green-e® Energy program and is a member of the U.S. EPA’s Green Power Partnership Program. The firm is known for its philanthropic giving, innovation, diversity, and pro bono.

Greenberg Traurig Executive Chairman Richard A. Rosenbaum discusses how the firm’s commitment to its core values allows everyone the opportunity to succeed and ultimately contribute to the firm’s tremendous growth:

Wherever we open our doors across the globe, in cities and countries with their own unique culture and customs, one thing is sacred inside Greenberg Traurig: our core values of respect for the individual, integrity, commitment to excellence, and inclusion, remain steadfast. Following these every day, everywhere, is one of the keys to our success because it gives us the powerful advantage of seamless collaboration. Working together across industries, practices, and markets makes each one of us stronger and provides more comprehensive, timely, and valuable service for our clients. Today with more than 2,750 attorneys in 47 locations around the world, we proudly operate as one united family.

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the Notorious R.B.G. (a moniker she embraced) famously said, “Women belong in all places where decisions are being made. It shouldn’t be that women are the exception.”

Here are profiles of four standout leaders who embody our core values and generously and passionately contribute to the success of our firm and the advocacy of women.

Ethel J. Johnson,
Shareholder, Houston Office, Litigation Practice

INTRODUCTION

Ethel Johnson is a trial lawyer with 33 years of experience and notable victories for clients, including some of the world’s largest companies and household names. She has tried nearly 40 civil cases (jury and bench trials), in state and federal courts across the United States. Johnson holds the distinction of being Board Certified in Labor and Employment Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization.

You have achieved great success and notoriety as a trial lawyer in Big Law. How do you advocate for the advancement of women and people of color?

As a woman, I have had to dispel tropes during my career such as the presumption that women lack the time or fortitude for high stakes litigation. My hope is that with over three decades in litigation – having tried nearly 40 civil cases and arbitrated over 100 cases – my example allows other women and people of color to see what is possible.

At Greenberg Traurig, it is understood that we each have the responsibility to be an excellent example by providing the best quality service and value to clients. In addition, we have a personal obligation to take others under our wing to support their path to success. I feel fortunate to have the support of the firm’s leadership in my advocacy for women and diverse attorneys, including my participation in the firm’s mentoring program, the Greenberg Traurig African American Inclusion Network affinity group, and the Greenberg Traurig Women’s Initiative.

Leaders must be generous and intentional in their efforts to recognize and embrace employees’ differences. Therefore, when staffing each team, I make it a priority to surround myself with strong lawyers who have a diversity of lived experiences, backgrounds, identities, and beliefs.

Collective thinking from diverse perspectives drives creativity and innovation, which results in critical problem-solving for clients. Sometimes the mere presence of a woman or person of color makes others feel seen, heard, and accepted. That too drives creativity, innovation, and enhanced problem-solving.

Growing up as a reverend’s daughter, acceptance of all people was ingrained in my core as early as I can remember. I saw how diverse voices of people with different life experiences could be more impactful than any single voice. The fact that diversity is also core to Greenberg Traurig’s origin story makes this firm a great fit for me.

Sarah Mahood, Co-Managing Shareholder, UAE Office, Co-Head, Regional Real Estate & Hospitality Practice

INTRODUCTION

Sarah Mahood has more than 25 years of experience advising master developers, sub-developers, hotel operators, landlords, tenants, lenders, and investors on the legal aspects of development, hospitality, and commercial real estate in both London and the Middle East. She has built a prominent reputation in hotel and branded residences developments – an area experiencing explosive growth in the region – advising on iconic and high-profile projects across the Middle East and Africa including the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), and Egypt. She also advises clients in the United States and worldwide. Mahood was recently recognized by Business Today in its 2023 Lawyer Awards as a pioneering real estate lawyer in the UAE.

The UAE and KSA are experiencing unprecedented inflows of investments, sports and entertainment events, and development. How does this trend affect your work and your decision to join Greenberg Traurig?

We are advising clients who are building major complex and mixed-use communities which include hotels, residential developments, stadiums, infrastructure, and iconic landmarks. We are also assisting with drafting laws to support and accommodate this growth. Our team is privileged to be involved in the shaping of the legal framework for multiple projects which will be the cities of the future and create modern urban areas focused on livability, wellness, tourism, and clean energy. It is an exciting time to be a real estate attorney here.

Joining a top-tier global law firm with a worldwide reputation as a leader in real estate like Greenberg Traurig allows us to expand the firm’s global presence and collaborate with the firm’s talented attorneys across multiple practices and locations and enhance their ability to provide their clients with on the ground support and advice for the entire region.

You are leading groundbreaking projects. How are you helping to ensure others can follow you?

Greenberg Traurig’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiative greatly supports women leaders in the legal profession worldwide. As a lawyer, I have the responsibility to use my position to support those who have not had privileged beginnings or easy paths. In the Dubai office, I am proud to head a unique Middle East Female Leadership initiative focused on gender diversity and career development. I am also committed to promoting awareness of other issues including mental health and social mobility to widen the pipeline for talented attorneys from all backgrounds.

Daniella Silberstein,
Shareholder, Miami Office,
Corporate Practice

INTRODUCTION

When Daniella Silberstein joined Greenberg Traurig in Miami four years ago, she quickly established herself as a leader. She has spearheaded or co-managed complex corporate transactions exceeding $23 billion in value since 2020. Her work spans U.S. and cross-border mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, carve-out transactions, recapitalizations, joint ventures, and spin-offs. In addition to her legal contributions, Silberstein co-chairs the Greenberg Traurig Women’s Initiative locally and dedicates time to organizations empowering women and unhoused individuals.

You have achieved great success as a prolific mergers and acquisitions attorney. What were your early influences, and how do you pay this forward?

I was fortunate to have a strong role model in my mother, who maintained a thriving legal practice while raising five children. I learned skills that I have applied to my own life as an attorney at one of the world’s leading global law firms and as a mom of four young children. I hope that by my own example I can pay the lesson forward that women do not need to make a binary decision between career and family; you can bridge these two worlds successfully.

I regularly put together and lead deal teams on large complex transactions comprising talented attorneys from the firm’s multidisciplinary practices and industries around the country and the world. On quite a few occasions, I have led all women attorney teams. However, it is never about gender; it is about skill sets, relationships, and capabilities when selecting the people who will be the most beneficial.

Greenberg Traurig has an environment in which people are respected for being their authentic selves. The firm is committed to investing in the personal growth of all attorneys and staff through mentorship, collaboration, and professional development programs. I believe that being treated on an equal footing provides everyone the opportunity to advance their own career according to their drive, the quality of their work, and client satisfaction.

I am honored to be a co-chair of the firm’s Miami Women’s Initiative, which focuses on informal, internal mentorship by providing a forum where women bond, collaborate, and support each other. In addition, locally and firmwide, we have a more formal program which helps women hone their skills to develop business and engage in the community.

Greenberg Traurig’s senior leadership takes an active role in making sure that the firm has a strong female representation across all levels and positions. Women head many offices and practices and are included in the firm’s highest governing body. Here, everyone is given both the respect and runway to determine the path of their own career.

Marwa Al-Siyabi,
Shareholder, KSA Office,
Corporate Practice

INTRODUCTION

Marwa Al-Siyabi advises clients across the Middle East on cross-border mergers and acquisitions, equity capital market transactions, joint ventures, and restructuring. Al-Siyabi’s experience includes working with ministries and government entities in the KSA, Oman, and the UAE, advising on legal matters including the structuring and implementation of government initiatives and the legal implications of strategy reforms. For example, she advised a KSA Ministry in relation to transferring companies owned by government bodies falling under the Ministry to the Public Investments Fund as part of KSA Vision 2030.

GCC countries are experiencing a huge movement of investments in and out of the region. How does this trend affect the relevancy of your work?

It is exciting to be a part of the evolving, beneficial, and growing relationship between businesses in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries and the rest of the world. I have advised on legal aspects of projects including the representation of government and semi-government entities, and private GCC investors on sales and acquisitions in energy, real estate, franchises, waste, and mining, to name a few. Now, as part of the Greenberg Traurig family of attorneys – already global leaders in many of the practices which are important to our legal work here – the opportunities to help my clients seem limitless.

As a committed and successful leader in high-profile projects, how do you promote the advancement of women in law?

At Greenberg Traurig, I have the advantage of being at one of the world’s largest global law firms that despite its size and geographic diversity across countries and continents, successfully operates as one united family. Since joining last year, I have seen the firm’s incredibly strong emphasis on collaboration in action across practices and locations. Additionally, the firm invests in its attorneys and staff through a robust, formal professional development program and formal and informal mentorship.

I feel fortunate to be a part of this firm and take advantage of the opportunities here to help my clients and advance my legal career. In this spirit, I also feel a responsibility to help the next generation of future leaders.

Greenberg Traurig, through its DEI efforts, works to ensure equity and inclusion for all. Personally, I am committed to initiatives that support women. I served as a member of Young Arab Leaders, nurturing the entrepreneurial and professional development of Arab youth. My pro bono work has included providing legal support to Evolvin’ Women, a social enterprise that focuses on providing opportunities to women from underprivileged backgrounds in Africa. In addition, I was proud to have spoken at the Global Women’s Forum Dubai organized by Dubai Women Establishment.

I am honored to be practicing law during this historic time.