Succession Plan Completed at Cozen O’Connor

It was announced on Monday that the law firm of Cozen O’Connor finished its succession plan. The plan is for the current CEO, Thomas A. Decker, to step down from his current position and begin working as the vice chairman on January 1. Taking over as chief executive officer will be Michael Heller. The plan began back in 2007 when founding member Stephen Cozen and Patrick O’Connor announced that they were going to reorganize the firm. The two announced that they wanted to hire a CEO for the firm. That CEO was Decker, who was employed by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Commission at the time.

“We are not going to forget where we came from,” Heller said.

The firm was founded in 1968 by Cozen. O’Connor and Cozen were in control of the majority of shares of the law firm until the leadership change took effect in 2007. The ownership of the law firm was spread amongst more senior lawyers when the change occurred. There are 173 shareholders, also known as partners, at the firm. The firm employs 549 lawyers and 610 staff members in 18 offices in the United States. There are also offices in Toronto and London. The firm has grown over the past decade because of lateral recruiting.