Baker Donelson attorneys Noah Kressler and Layna Cook Rush have been elected Fellows of the American Bar Foundation.
An independent, nonprofit organization for more than 65 years, the prestigious American Bar Foundation is among the world's leading research institutes for the empirical and interdisciplinary study of law. The Fellows comprise a global honorary society of attorneys, judges, law faculty, and legal scholars whose public and private careers have demonstrated outstanding dedication to the highest principles of the legal profession and to the welfare of their communities. Membership in the Fellows is limited to one percent of lawyers licensed to practice in each jurisdiction. Fellows are recommended by their peers and elected by the Board of the American Bar Foundation.
Mr. Kressler, a shareholder in the New Orleans office of Baker Donelson, is an experienced corporate finance and transactional attorney who advises public and private companies across the country on a wide range of business and financing transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, debt and equity financings, securities law and governance matters. He has advised clients on more than $20 billion in capital raises. His clients include multinational corporations, middle market companies, financial institutions, private equity sponsors, investment banks and high-growth startups across numerous industries, including health care, life sciences, technology, financial services, hospitality, gaming, food services, retail, franchisors, entertainment and media.
Mr. Kressler serves as co-chair of Baker Donelson's Louisiana Life Sciences and Technology Group, and is a member of both the Firm's diversity committee and the New Orleans hiring committee. He is currently chair-elect of the Business Financing Committee of the American Bar Association's Business Law Section. A graduate of Tulane University Law School, he has served as an adjunct professor of law at the Law School since 2014. Prior to joining Baker Donelson, Mr. Kressler practiced law in New York and London at a leading Wall Street law firm.
A member of the Firm's Health Law Group and a shareholder in the Baton Rouge office of Baker Donelson, Ms. Rush represents clients in both regulatory and litigation matters. She routinely advises clients on state and federal regulations that affect health care entities and represents clients before a wide variety of regulatory and licensing agencies. Ms. Rush represents managed care organizations and third-party payers in regulatory, compliance and operational issues. She also has extensive experience in health care related litigation, and she routinely advises health care clients on state and federal laws related to privacy and security of personal information, including the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA).
A graduate of the Louisiana State University Paul M. Hebert Law Center, Ms. Rush is a frequent speaker and author on the topic of health care reform as it relates to insurers and health plans. She is a member of the American Health Law Association and the Baton Rouge and Louisiana State Bar Associations.