ARTICLES

Howrey Adds Trio of Veteran Litigators to N.Y. Office

Anthony Lin
New York Law Journal
January 11, 2007

Washington, D.C.'s Howrey has added three veteran litigation partners in New York. Michael F. Armstrong, 74, was most recently a partner in the New York office of Cooley Godward Kronish. A onetime Southern District of New York Assistant U.S. Attorney and a former Queens district attorney, Armstrong became well known as chief counsel to the Knapp Commission that probed police corruption in the 1970s, and he was recently appointed by Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg to chair the city's commission on police corruption. In his private practice, he has led internal investigations at the former Warner Communications and the American Broadcasting Corp. Armstrong will be joined at Howrey by Paul K. Rooney, 69, who has practiced at his own firm since 1970.

Also a onetime federal prosecutor, Rooney served as an associate counsel to the Knapp Commission. Since then, he has defended a number of high-profile cases. William O. Purcell, 65, is joining Howrey from the New York office of K&L Gates, where Armstrong was also previously a partner. The two men also practiced together at the now-defunct Lord Day & Lord, Barrett Smith.

Howrey, which has 600 lawyers worldwide, opened a New York office late last year with the acquisition of eight-lawyer litigation boutique Engel McCarney & Kenney.