Perkins Coie's Private Equity Group Welcomes New Partner and Senior Associate

DENVER (September 19, 2005) – Perkins Coie announced today that John L. Ruppert and Michele J. Rowland have joined its national private equity practice group as partner and associate respectively. Mr. Ruppert and Ms. Rowland, formerly with Brownstein Hyatt & Farber, will practice in Perkins Coie's Denver office.

Mr. Ruppert's practice emphasizes mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, commercial finance, restructurings and workouts, partnership finance, and federal income tax. Mr. Ruppert is listed as one of America's Leading Lawyers in America and is currently a member of the Colorado Bar Association and the American Bar Association. He received his law degree from the University of Denver, School of Law and his LLM in Taxation from New York University School of Law.

"John will be a great addition to our business group. His knowledge and expertise will be a great enhancement to the growing national business and private equity practice group at Perkins Coie," Jeffery Cowman, Denver Office Managing Partner. Ms. Rowland's practice focuses on mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, commercial finance, and restructurings and workouts. She currently serves on the board of Denver SCORES and is a member of the New York Bar Association, Colorado Bar Association and the American Bar Association. She is also a member of the Denver Women's Restructuring Professionals Group. Ms. Rowland received her law degree from Brooklyn Law School.

Mr. Ruppert and Ms. Rowland join a national private equity group that has extensive experience in all types of private equity transactions, from industry consolidations to leveraged buyouts of private and public companies. In addition, the team has a substantial practice dedicated to structuring and forming private equity funds and advising fund sponsors.