(Washington, DC) – Akin Gump is pleased to announce that employee compensation and benefits attorney Rebecca S. Coccaro has joined the firm as a partner in their Washington, DC office. Ms. Coccaro joins Akin Gump from Sullivan & Cromwell.
Ms. Coccaro advises clients on executive compensation and employee benefits in corporate transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, initial public offerings, and financial restructuring matters. She also advises public companies on daily executive compensation and employee benefits, e.g. B. relating to related securities, taxes, and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), and correspondence and filings with the Internal Revenue Service and the Department of Labor.
“Our executive and employee benefits team is already known for its ability to advise on complex transactions, and Rebecca adds a tremendous amount of talent to this group,” said Kim Koopersmith, chairwoman of Akin Gump. “She will play a key role in meeting the needs of our clients, particularly with regard to corporate transactional and financial restructuring. I am very happy to welcome you to the company. “
In addition to her significant, high-level executive compensation and transactional experience, Ms. Coccaro has extensive experience of SEC reporting and disclosure, including extensive annual proxy creation and review, and 8-K and other advisory reports on SEC reporting. She also has extensive experience with all types of compensation agreements and plans, such as: B. Share incentive and management incentive plans, recruitment of executives, retention, separation and modification of control plans and agreements.
“Large, complex transactions can create a number of significant executive compensation and benefits issues, and having someone with Rebecca’s vast experience to steer them is invaluable,” said Jeffrey Kochian, director of corporate practice by Akin Gump. “Our clients, especially mutual funds and public companies, will benefit immensely from their skills and I look forward to their many contributions to the team.”
Ms. Coccaro added: “I am delighted to be part of Akin Gump, who has a strong reputation for tax, corporate transactions and financial restructuring and is helping to expand the reach of its executive compensation work. The company’s platform is a perfect match for my strengths and I look forward to working with my new colleagues. “
About Rebecca S. Coccaro
Ms. Coccaro serves on the American Bar Association’s Business Law Division and Joint Employee Benefits Committee, the New York State Bar Association’s Commercial Law Division, and the DC Bar Association’s Tax Division. She has conducted in-house training programs on aspects of executive remuneration and employee benefits in corporate transactions, compliance with federal securities law and tax law in connection with executive remuneration and performance plans, and ethical considerations in executive compensation and employee benefits practice .
Ms. Coccaro received her JD magna cum laude from the American University Washington College of Law and her BA summa cum laude from the State University of New York, Oswego.
About Akin Gump Executive Compensation, Employee Benefits and ERISA Practice
Akin Gump’s compensation and employee benefits team advises mutual funds, corporations, financial institutions, individual executives, and individual and corporate trustees on employee benefit plans on issues such as executive compensation agreements, fiduciary responsibility and planned investments, non-qualified deferred compensation agreements and incentive programs. The group also advises clients on the latest legal and legal developments affecting compensation structures and the tax implications of changes to loans and withdrawals from retirement plans, most recently due to the Coronavirus Aid, Aid and Economic Security Act (CARES).
In addition, the group’s attorneys support strategies to address the drive for compensation transparency and increased scrutiny from the Securities and Exchange Commission, proxy advisory firms, and activist shareholders. They also advise clients on the application of ERISA’s prohibited transaction and fiduciary responsibility rules.
Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP was founded in 1945 and is a leading international law firm with more than 900 attorneys in offices in the United States, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
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