Miller Canfield hires five public finance professionals from Ice Miller

Miller Canfield has hired five public finance attorneys from Ice Miller, and they will work out of the Chicago office.

The hiring of James Snyder, Austin Root, Mark Huddle, Shelly Scinto and Kathleen Thomas aligns with the Detroit-based international law firm’s growth strategy: in specific practice areas, such as school districts, and a geographic expansion, including into the competitive Illinois market.

“This group, based out of Chicago, fits the mold of our public finance group,” Miller Canfield CEO Mike Palizzi told The Bond Buyer. “We hit it off both in terms of their expertise and practice, and we also hit it off on all cylinders when it came to their culture and approach to things. They’re the same type of people we are. So it was an easy call.”

Miller Canfield public finance group leader Tom Colis said the firm’s goal has always been to strengthen and broaden its presence in the Illinois market.

“A lot of our culture here is, we like to practice together; we don’t like to be on islands,” he said. “So we’re a very collaborative group. And over time, in working on various transactions across the country, we’ve actually worked with a lot of the folks at Ice Miller, and had the opportunity to work with a number of the [people who are] joining us. So we had some familiarity already, with respect to the people and their quality.”

Colis noted Miller Canfield doesn’t think of its public finance practice in terms of an Illinois team and a Michigan team; they’re all one cohesive public finance practice group.

The new hires have already expanded opportunities for other groups in the Chicago office, adding “connectivity and more discussions” beyond what was possible before, Colis said.

“I think it’s really an opportunity to enhance the whole office as opposed to just the group,” he said. “Of course, we’re excited about both opportunities.”

Snyder is a 30-year veteran of the municipal bond market who has served as bond counsel and disclosure counsel to hundreds of Illinois issuers, from school districts to park districts to cities to counties. He has also served as underwriters counsel to all the major municipal bond underwriters. 

A Council of Development Finance Authorities board member and a member of the National Association of Bond Lawyers annual workshop steering committee, he was named 2016 Lawyer of the Year for Public Finance Law by Best Lawyers and a Band 1 Leading Lawyer for Public Finance by Chambers USA. Snyder joins the firm as a principal attorney.

Root has acted as bond counsel and disclosure counsel to a variety of Illinois local governments and as underwriters counsel to various investment banks in the muni market. His specialties include general obligation bonds, revenue bonds, tax increment bonds, industrial development revenue bonds and 501(c)(3) bonds, as well as securities and disclosure law, economic development tools and capital requirements. A 2016 magna cum laude graduate of the University of Illinois College of Law, he also joins Miller Canfield as a principal attorney.

Huddle has acted as bond counsel, underwriters counsel, issuer’s counsel and disclosure counsel for a range of clients. He also counsels those in the P3 space, and has worked on contract procurement, economic development and tax incentive programs, zoning and land use and with nonprofit organizations. He earned his J.D. from the University of Illinois and M.F.A. from the University of Chicago and served as principal staff assistant for environmental and public works matters for former Illinois Gov. Jim Thompson.

Scinto has served as lead counsel on more than 350 bond transactions for school districts, park districts, villages, cities and other governmental entities. She earned her J.D. from Chicago-Kent College of Law and is now a member of the Illinois Association of School Boards Service Associates, the Illinois Association of School Business Officials and the Illinois Association of Park Districts.

Thomas joins Miller Canfield as municipal disclosure administrator for the public finance group. She will be leveraging her experience as a municipal finance advisor and investment banker, with particular expertise in disclosure in municipal bond transactions.