Although Charleston Partner Anna Dailey has just been announced as Managing Partner of Dinsmore & Shohl’s flagship West Virginia office, she’s hitting the ground running.
Dailey, who was earlier elected to serve on Dinsmore’s Board of Directors, had already indentified ways to spur Charleston’s growth to match the pace of the firm. Since the spring, Dinsmore has merged with the public finance firm Peck, Shaffer & Williams, gaining offices in Chicago and Denver.
“West Virginia companies with a national presence or those wishing to take advantage of opportunities available in other states are able to leverage Dinsmore’s expanded footprint. The firm is growing on all fronts, adding new partners to the Denver office.” said Dailey. “In Chicago, we just tripled the office space to accommodate our new lateral partner hires. I’m looking forward to continuing that trend here in Charleston, but it’s not about just adding to the numbers. I want to make smart moves to find the right people.”
Dailey’s strategy centers on adding attorneys who bring a new offering to the Charleston office and can complement the deep talent currently available throughout Dinsmore’s other offices. She sees partners as the pillars in an office, and the foundation to build on in the future.
“We already have an outstanding group here in West Virginia, many with national practices like Mark Carter and Bob Beatty. Both of them have grown their work throughout the country on the bigger platform that Dinsmore offers its lawyers. That’s one of the many things I highlight when I’m talking to my peers about the benefits of joining Dinsmore,” said Dailey. “I also just point to my story. I came to the firm 11 years ago as a lateral partner, and I am now on the Board of Directors of a 500+ plus law firm and managing an office. Obviously, you can succeed at Dinsmore even if you didn’t start your career here. An added bonus is that the partners in our other offices are both collegial and fun to work with.”
Strategic growth for Dailey means evolving with current trends and leveraging the advantages that you have. With that in mind, she identified three areas to target. Health care law is a specialty that goes well beyond representing medical providers. As the Affordable Care Act continues to mature, opportunities will abound to counsel clients in all industries on compliance with the law. Second, the firm greatly expanded its Public Finance capabilities with the Peck Shaffer merger, paving the way for Dinsmore to offer increased financing services for both public and public/private development projects. Dailey wants to see West Virginia enjoy the kind of growth opportunity that other states are enjoying.
Finally, Dailey wants to expand the firm’s various energy practices. Dinsmore has long recognized that the states that enjoy an abundance of natural resources are the engines for growth in America. This is why Dinsmore has invested resources in big energy-producing states like West Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Illinois and Colorado. The collaboration between those offices is one of the many advantages at Dinsmore. When it comes to leveraging opportunities, Dailey says the firm understands West Virginia has a lot to offer and that will drive future growth in the Mountain State.
“Our goal always is to help West Virginia’s people and businesses grow by leveraging all the resources of the firm. Now that we have even more to offer, I am looking to strategically grow the Charleston office to match the deep bench presented by the firm. This is an exciting time, and I’m honored to lead the great team of people we already have in Charleston to a new chapter for our firm.”
