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Epstein Becker & Green PC, an international law firm with over 325 lawyers, announced that it will be closing its Miami, Florida office after managing partner Michael Casey, plus five other top lawyers left the firm to transfer to Duane Morris LLP 
, a Pennsylvania-based law firm. The other lawyers who will join Casey are Richard D. Tuschman, Kevin E. Vance, Hector A. Chichoni and associates Teresa M. Maestrelli and Mark J. Beutler. Casey said that more lawyers from Epstein Becker’s Miami headquarters will join him soon.
Jim Haggerty, EBG’s spokesman, confirmed that the main reason for closing down its Miami office is due to Casey’s departure. “In coordination with Mike Casey’s departure, we have decided to wind down the operations of our small Miami office. Over the years, it became clear that our Miami outpost didn’t quite fit with the firm’s overall strategic platform for growth. EBG has a strong national brand in areas that include labor and employment and health care and life sciences, and we look forward to strengthening this brand further in 2011.”
Casey explained that he has been negotiating with other firms over the past years but he opted to be part of Duane Morris because of the firm’s corporate culture and financial strength. “I like the size. I like where their offices are – I particularly like their financial strength. They make budget year after year. They are continuing to expand and they are a growing operation.”
Casey attributed his departure to the stagnant development of EBG. He said that the firm hasn’t expanded to other parts of the globe such as Central and South America region as originally planned and has been focused mostly on labor and employment and health care law practices. “That was the plan, but it didn’t work out, mainly because EBG didn’t move into corporate law and the things we needed to open to South America. Duane Morris has those capabilities and is also interested in South America, particularly Brazil.”
