Financial Lawyer Cynthia Harkness Joins Foley
Foley Gardere LLP announced that Cynthia Harkness has joined the firm’s Finance practice as Of Counsel in the Austin office. Harkness joins Foley from Haddad Legal Group, P.C. where she was the head of the Business Transaction practice.
In a release, the firm said that, for more than 30 years, Harkness has counseled global businesses ranging from start-ups to large corporate entities in financial and structured transactions, mergers and acquisitions, dispositions of assets and entities, and creating and dismantling business entities. She also has experience counseling clients with regard to corporate bankruptcies, restructurings, risk management, licensing, and compliance and employment arrangements. Harkness advises clients in domestic and international financial and capital markets, as well as in the corporate, real estate, consumer and energy sectors.
Before entering private practice, Harkness was the general counsel of the Gapstone Group LLC; general counsel of The Weston Group; and senior vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary of Fieldstone Investment Corporation/Fieldstone Mortgage Company. She also has worked in varying in-house positions at Constellation Power Source, Inc., Enron Broadband Services, Enron Wholesale and Crédit Agricole Indosuez.
“Cynthia’s diverse transactional practice paired with her extensive in-house counsel experience provides our team with a unique perspective as we help our clients tackle some of today’s toughest issues,” said Laura Bilas, chair of Foley’s Finance practice.
The firm said Harkness also has business management experience and has been called upon to help clients build legal, compliance, human resources and quality control departments. As it relates to aiding human resource departments, Harkness has experience drafting and implementing policies and procedures, online training and online performance-management systems.
“Cynthia will be a great addition to Foley Gardere and to our Austin office as we expand our capabilities and services in the private equity and corporate practices,” said Kimberly Yelkin, managing partner of Foley Gardere’s Austin office.
Harkness also is a qualified as a FINRA Non-Public arbitrator.
