McGuireWoods today announced the appointment of Cecil E. Martin III, a preeminent energy and corporate attorney, as the firm’s new office managing partner in Baltimore.
Martin succeeds Ava E. Lias-Booker, who has served as office managing partner since 2010 and now joins the firm’s seven-member Associates Committee involved in the development and promotion of associates to partnership where she will focus on associate development and enhancing diversity and inclusion initiatives.
“Cecil has demonstrated his leadership in many ways, whether it is leading teams of McGuireWoods lawyers in securing a favorable outcome in a complex matter for a client or volunteering for nonprofit groups in Baltimore that improve the lives of children,” said McGuireWoods Managing Partner Thomas E. Cabaniss.
“That makes him a great successor to Ava, who also distinguished herself both as a leader within the firm and in the civic and charitable community in Baltimore. We thank Ava for her many contributions leading our Baltimore office and look forward to her contributions on the Associates Committee,” Cabaniss said.
As head of McGuireWoods’ Energy Markets team, Martin represented some of the country’s largest utilities and retail energy suppliers in numerous mergers and acquisitions, and wholesale and retail energy transactions, including some of the most sophisticated deals in the industry. He is the 2016 winner of Lexology’s Client Choice Award for Maryland Corporate Law. His community work includes collaborating with McGuireWoods client Exelon Corporation and the Baltimore City Bar Association to create regional pro bono legal clinics that help underprivileged seniors plan their estates and prepare wills, advanced medical directives and financial powers of attorney.
Martin is a member of the boards of directors of both Young Audiences, a national organization that promotes arts in public schools, and the Maryland Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts, an organization of attorneys who provide pro bono legal services for the state’s arts community.
“This is a challenging assignment, following someone as distinguished as Ava, and I am honored that the firm placed its confidence in me,” Martin said.
Lias-Booker is a member of the firm’s board of partners and heads its Baltimore litigation practice group. With more than 25 years of litigation experience, she represents clients in a range of industries in complex commercial and civil litigation in state and federal courts.
In recognition of her professional achievements and community involvement, the Maryland State Bar Association’s Litigation Section named Lias-Booker its 2015-2016 “Litigator of the Year”. She also was named to The Daily Record’s 2016 list of Maryland’s Top 100 Women and inducted into its Circle of Excellence, an honor exclusive to three-time honorees. She also serves on the board of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.
“Serving as office managing partner in Baltimore has been an honor. I am excited to be contributing to the firm in new and different ways,” she said.