Charlotte, NC – Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP is pleased to announce the firm's International Practice Group is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. In 1984, Parker Poe was the first Carolinas-based law firm with a dedicated international practice group advising global companies on inbound and outbound investments and transactions.
With a vision of the impending wave of foreign direct investment (FDI) into the U.S., the firm led the way. In the early years, companies from Europe and then Japan entered the U.S. market. Today the firm supports clients from around the globe. Over the course of the past four decades, Parker Poe also has supported clients with their internal legal needs, including outbound acquisitions, facilities, and commercial transactions. We are excited to work with our clients as they expand their U.S. and global businesses.
The International Practice today has a range of clients, from publicly traded companies to small and large private companies who are leaders in their industry segment. These clients turn to Parker Poe for strategic counsel across the spectrum of their legal needs, with lawyers in the firm collaborating to provide effective solutions to their biggest challenges. We take pride in offering personalized services for each client while having the breadth and capability (when needed) of over 275 lawyers firmwide.
Through the firm's Business Expansion & Location Solutions (BELS) Team, for example, the collaboration also integrates site selection and economic incentives services from Parker Poe Consulting LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of the law firm. The BELS Team has collectively executed hundreds of corporate investment projects, many of which are by foreign-owned companies. This has helped to create tens of thousands of new jobs throughout the United States. The BELS Team's cultivation of international commerce also includes serving local governments and economic development organizations (EDOs). Attorneys and consultants advise local and regional leaders on how to attract and grow international business in their communities.
The firm's attorneys have played a variety of leading roles in the Southeast's international affairs. Today, these roles include honorary consul of Germany for South Carolina and Georgia, advisor in economic diplomacy for Belgium, president of the Charlotte Taiwanese American Association, and director of the Charlotte Chapter of the American Council on Germany. Attorneys also serve on the board of directors and other leadership positions with the German American Chamber of Commerce of the Southern United States (GACC South), the N.C. Zeitgeist Foundation, the South Carolina Economic Developers' Association, the World Affairs Council of Charlotte, and other organizations.
Parker Poe's team also has deep personal connections in a variety of the countries our clients call home, enabling us to provide advice based on our intimate understanding of cross-border business and cultural differences. Team members originate from or have lived in Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, England, Japan, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Mexico, Panama, Ecuador, Venezuela, and other countries. They speak languages such as German, Spanish, French, and Mandarin.
In addition, Parker Poe is a member of two leading international legal networks. The firm was a founding member of the Employment Law Alliance (ELA) 24 years ago and today is its exclusive member in North Carolina and South Carolina. The firm is also the exclusive North Carolina member of TerraLex. Parker Poe's clients benefit from these networks through the relationships the firm has built with other member firms across the U.S. and around the world. Parker Poe routinely partners with other ELA and TerraLex members to help businesses navigate the local nuances of various jurisdictions. In addition, other ELA and TerraLex members, and their clients, turn to Parker Poe for legal solutions.
Parker Poe's International Practice will celebrate its 40th anniversary with select clients and friends of the firm on October 22 at the Sullenberger Aviation Museum in Charlotte. If you're interested in attending, contact us here.
About Parker Poe
Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP has more than 275 lawyers in eight offices in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Washington, DC. The firm provides legal counsel to many of the largest companies and local governments in the Southeast.