Related Practices

• Public Finance

Cohen & Grigsby served as bond counsel on $606.4 million of municipal bond issues last year, the second most in Pennsylvania.  Cohen & Grigsby also served as underwriter's counsel, borrower's counsel and letter of credit bank counsel on other tax-exempt bond issues, but they are not included in the total.

The ranking comes from the industry trade publication, The Bond Buyer (www.bondbuyer.com).  Cohen & Grigsby is the only law firm in Western Pennsylvania to crack the top five in 2000.  For the firm, it is the second time in four years it has placed highly on the prestigious list, placing fifth in 1997.  

Cohen & Grigsby's entire public finance practice group is listed in The Bond Buyer's Municipal Marketplace, commonly known as The Red Book, an industry "who's who" of bond counsel and underwriters.  Those attorneys include Charles Brodbeck, James Chiafullo, Patrick Healy, Christopher Rayl, Evans Rose, Jr., Maureen Jordan and Kelly Vehec.

According to Chuck Brodbeck, former president of Cohen & Grigsby and the head of its public finance practice group, most of the firm's bond deals were for Western Pennsylvania issuers, including Allegheny County, health care and other charitable organizations, universities, and school districts.  The group has been prominent in Western Pennsylvania bond issues for over 10 years.

Cohen & Grigsby has emerged as a leading bond counsel firm over the past several years.  Now in its 20th year, the firm served as co-bond counsel for the $874 million Regional Destination Financing Plan (Plan B).  Cohen & Grigsby has participated in a number of financings which were the first of their kind, including the funding of the City's Economic Development Fund with proceeds from funds backed by a portion of the City's Regional Asset District receipts and the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission's issuance of Oil Franchise Tax Bonds to finance a portion of the Mon Valley Expressway.