Bakers taps international tax partner from Bracewells

Highly regarded international tax lawyer [private]John Couch has joined Baker & McKenzie LLP as a partner in Houston. Couch joins the Firm from Bracewell & Giuliani LLP where, among other activities, he spent significant time assisting clients in the United Arab Emirates and the former Soviet Union.

“We are excited to have someone of John’s stature in the international tax community join our North American Tax Practice Group in Houston,” said Len Terr, Chair of the Firm’s North American Tax Practice Group. “John is a seasoned professional with an established track record of attracting and discharging sophisticated international tax work. He will be an important player on a team that already includes nationally recognized international tax experts Melinda Phelan and Susan Stone, among others. John will assist us in strengthening and expanding our capabilities, including in the oil and gas and related areas of tax practice.”

For the last 20 years, Couch has represented multinational corporate clients engaged in a variety of cross-border transactions, corporate tax planning, organization, reorganizations and finance. He has experience working with and in tax regimes of more than 45 countries in Europe, the former Soviet Union, Asia and South America and has in the past represented instrumentalities of the governments of Kazakhstan, China, Venezuela, Mexico, Brazil and Chile. In addition to his law firm experience, Couch has senior in-house tax experience in the oil and gas industry, and has participated in the reorganization, acquisition, financing and divestment of upstream and midstream assets and companies.

“John is a well-respected and highly effective attorney whose addition to our tax practice complements an already established practice and will further its successes here and globally,” said Lisa Meyerhoff, Managing Partner of Baker & McKenzie LLP Houston. “We are extremely pleased to have John join the Firm.”[/private]