BOSTON, June 14, 2004 — Richard M. Strassberg, partner at Goodwin Procter LLP, and Sarah E. Walters, former associate at Goodwin Procter LLP, have been selected to receive the prestigious Burton Award for Legal Achievement, which honors excellence in legal writing.
Strassberg and Walters won this award for an article they co-authored for The New York Law Journal last July called “Is Selective Waiver of Privilege Viable?” The article discussed the controversial issue of selective waiver of the attorney client and work product privileges. The decision whether to waive the privilege in the context of a governmental investigation, and the repercussions of any such waiver for later civil proceedings, was analyzed, particularly in light of the history and treatment of selective waiver in the Second Circuit.
Based in New York, Strassberg is a partner in Goodwin Procter’s Litigation Department and Chairman of its White Collar Crime and Government Investigations Practice. He specializes in white collar criminal defense, corporate internal investigations, corporate regulatory practice, and complex business and financial litigation. Prior to joining the firm, he was the Chief of the Major Crimes Unit in the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. He currently is involved in the Martha Stewart case, representing Peter Bacanovic, Ms. Stewart’s former Merrill Lynch financial advisor.
Walters was an associate in the Litigation Department of Goodwin Procter for approximately seven years before recently joining the firm of Nutter McClennen & Fish in Boston. While at Goodwin, Walters maintained a white collar criminal defense, securities and complex business litigation practice.
The Burton Awards are dedicated to the refinement and enrichment of writing in the legal profession. The program honors lawyers and law students who write clearly, concisely and precisely. The submissions, nominated by managing partners of law firms and law school deans, include articles published over the past year. The program this year selected 20 recipients of the award from submissions received from the top 500 largest law firms in the country.