Atlanta Law Firm Beefs Up CMBS Practice

Powell Goldstein LLP, an Atlanta-based law firm, has announced the acquisition of a 13-member capital markets group from Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP that will enhance its depth, especially in the area of commercial mortgage-backed securities.Powell Goldstein said the new team -- two partners, eight other attorneys, and three paralegals -- will join its offices in Atlanta and Washington and anchor the opening of a new office in Dallas. Heading that office will be Robin R. Green, who was a partner at Akin Gump in that firm's real estate and finance practice in Dallas. James J. McAlpin Jr., chairman of Powell Goldstein, said the acquisition and expansion "gives us an entree into a new geographic market, one that we have been looking at for some time." The firm said Ms. Green's practice focuses primarily on real estate finance and CMBS, as does that of the other new partner, Keith A. Dunsmore, who worked at Powell Goldstein from 1984 to 1999. The firm can be found online at http://www.pogolaw.com.