Meet The Newest Legal, Powerhouse Securities Team Based Out Of South Florida

Three high-powered women lawyers (and longtime friends) join forces at the same firm.

Laurie Green

Laurie Green

“This goes out to all the women getting it in / Get on your grind / To the other men that respect what I do / Please accept my shine.”Beyoncé

In June, Laurie Green joined Kara MacCullough and Flora Perez at Greenberg Traurig LLP (GT). After some time apart, this was quite the reunion.

MacCullough and Perez both attended the University of Miami School of Law, but didn’t meet until they worked together at Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP and then Akerman LLP. Green graduated cum laude from the Shepard Broad College of Law at Nova Southeastern University and spent several years at the SEC before joining the other two at Akerman.

Flora Perez

Flora Perez

Twelve years ago, Perez left Akerman and went in-house, eventually becoming deputy general counsel at Ryder. Nine year ago, MacCullough and Green departed and joined Holland and Knight LLP. Five years ago, MacCullough was the first of the three to join GT. Two years ago Perez joined MacCullough. And in June, Green made this three-wise-women reunion official. Rarely is a career path linear. In the cases of MacCullough, Perez, and Green, their career paths were educational expeditions that eventually served to reunite each other at GT and bring them all back to sunny South Florida.

If you think this introduction was a little hard to follow, try jotting down notes while listening to this team’s fast-paced conversation and witty banter.

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Kara MacCullough

Kara MacCullough

I told them their humor, remarks, and familiarity with each other reminded me of another team out of South Florida, The Golden Girls. But they were quick to point out that they were much much younger than the cast of the 80’s and 90’s hit sitcom. In 2013, the Guinness World Records recognized Betty White, a cast member of The Golden Girls, as having the longest television career for a female entertainer. Like White, I have a feeling the MacCullough-Perez-Green dream team will have a long and successful run before their final curtain calls.

If you’re interested in career advice or why MacCullough’s, Perez’s, and Green’s spirit animals are a dolphin, deer, and dachshund, respectively, be sure to reach out and ask them. In the meantime, here is a (lightly edited and condensed) write-up of our conversation:

Renwei Chung (RC): You all have had the opportunity to reconnect in June and now have five associates as part of your team. What is the best part of working together again and what is your plan for the next five years?

Kara MacCullough, Flora Perez, and Laurie Green (KM/FP/LG): We brought the team back together at Greenberg Traurig because we all enjoy working together. We share the same work philosophy and the same approach to servicing our clients. Since we each have different backgrounds and experiences, we’re able to help and complement each other and provide our clients with a broader range of perspectives and solutions – all of which are a tremendous added value to our clients. As teammates and friends, we fill in for each other and support each other both professionally and personally.

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The strong team concept allows us to balance our work and family lives. Our goal is to continue growing our client base by serving as partners and advisors to both public and private companies. For example, as part of our efforts to better service our clients, we have started a bi-weekly newsletter, GT Insights for Public Companies, that helps keep our clients up to date on recent corporate, securities, governance and accounting issues that are important for public companies.

RC: Many law teams consist of lawyers who started in Biglaw directly from law school. But your team brings a vast amount of outside experience — investment banking, in-house / general counsel, and SEC work. How do your clients benefit from this diverse knowledge?

KM/FP/LG: Because of this diverse background, we are better able to counsel our clients, proactively identify issues and find effective solutions. It is so much more efficient to be able to work with each other and know that we have these resources right here at Greenberg Traurig. We’re able to bring more to the table. With Kara’s banking background [she was an investment banker at Citibank in Latin America for 5 years before law school], Flora’s experience as in-house counsel and Laurie’s tenure at the SEC, we can examine client issues from a variety of perspectives and provide more well-rounded advice.  It’s truly more appealing to our clients knowing that we have such a diverse and experienced team.

RC: Your Ft. Lauderdale-based team works with global companies such as Restaurant Brands International (parent company of Burger King and Tim Horton), SBA Communications, and World Fuel Services. How were you able to establish these type of relationships in South Florida and be so competitive with larger market (e.g., New York-based) legal teams.

KM/FP/LG: We work with sophisticated national and global companies who understand that we are extremely competitive with other legal teams in larger markets. We certainly have the experience and important representations under our belts to represent high-profile clients and provide the counsel and guidance that they require.  Our clients like that they can get the same quality service and expertise as they would in larger markets while benefiting from our hands-on approach to client service. Our clients appreciate the level of responsiveness and commitment that we think is unique to our team. 

RC: What is your favorite aspect of securities law and/or what is the best part of being an attorney?

KM: As an attorney, I really enjoy the opportunity to learn about new industries, and I like to structure and solve problems for our clients. I really get into the details and learn as much as possible about each client so I can provide the most effective and relevant advice and solutions. The work I do for my clients allows me to leverage my banking experience and instincts in helping them solve problems and meet their objectives.

FP: Being in-house, I most enjoyed the collaboration and sense of community in a corporate environment. But now being part of this Greenberg team has allowed me to expand my reach into other industries, issues and transactions while maintaining that same level of teamwork.

LG: I really enjoy the challenging aspects of securities laws – it is constantly changing and never gets boring.  After spending years at the SEC, which I enjoyed very much, I like structuring deals, drafting documents and working with clients to find a practical solution.  I find that I have a more challenging role here as an attorney and this is a great opportunity for me to help grow the practice.

RC: For out-of-state law students and young attorneys who would love to practice in the state of Florida, what advice do you have for them to break into this legal market?

LG: They must have realistic expectations. Their first job may not be their “dream job,” but will provide the skills and knowledge to advance towards ultimate career goals. Working for the SEC was a great experience for me and I would suggest that new law graduates consider working for the government to gain valuable experience which will make them more marketable.

RC:  It was great chatting with all of you. Is there anything else you would like to share with our audience?

KM: It was great chatting with you as well. I want to add that as female attorneys, with demanding careers, children and families, and trying to balance life in general, it’s important for us to help support each other and help each other grow. This is part of what makes our team here at Greenberg Traurig so successful and what motivates us to grow our practice and be a legal powerhouse.

It’s a lot of work, but being able to work with women who are understanding and supportive makes it all possible. Now we are focused on continuing to grow our practice!

On behalf of everyone here at Above the Law, I would like to thank Kara MacCullough, Flora Perez, and Laurie Green for sharing their experience and wisdom with our audience. We wish them continued success in their careers.


Renwei Chung is the Diversity Columnist at Above the Law. You can contact Renwei by email at projectrenwei@gmail.com, follow him on Twitter (@renweichung), or connect with him on LinkedIn.