Law360 – Alston & Bird Takes on Trump as a Client, Adding Spears & Imes Partner
By David Thomas | June 10, 2020
Alston & Bird on Wednesday announced it has poached a white-collar litigator who has defended President Donald Trump in a pair of cases in Manhattan federal court, including an ongoing civil racketeering case.
Joanna Hendon is joining Alston & Bird as a litigation partner in the firm’s New York office after more than seven years at Spears & Imes. And she’s bringing the president with her. Court filings made Wednesday show Hendon updating her firm information while her co-counsel from Spears & Imes are withdrawing.
Hendon is currently representing Trump, three of his children and his company, the Trump Organization, in a lawsuit alleging they defrauded investors by promoting doomed products and services. In April, a federal judge ruled that the Trump could not force the plaintiffs into arbitration, a blow to Hendon and her clients.
“Joanna brings a tremendous career marked by an impeccable track record, brilliant experience, and sound counsel in the most sensitive matters,” Richard Hays, the firm’s chairman and managing partner, said in a press release. “She is one of the very best in the country, and her joining continues our long tradition of leadership at trial and in white-collar defense.”
Hendon also represented the president in the fight over the records the FBI seized from the office of Michael Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer and confidante.