US building materials supplier Martin Marietta Materials has hired Cravath Swaine & Moore’s former global M&A co-chair George Schoen as its general counsel, replacing Roselyn Bar who is retiring this year.
Schoen will lead the company’s legal department and support its long-term strategic plan. He brings almost three decades of experience to the role, spanning a range of M&A-related matters including hostile and contested transactions, shareholder activism defence, joint ventures and strategic board-level counselling.
At Cravath he advised on some of the biggest deals of the past quarter of a century, including Disney’s acquisition of 21st Century Fox. He is due to join the company in March.
Raleigh, North Carolina-based Martin Marietta is a supplier of building materials, including aggregates, cement, ready-mixed concrete and asphalt.
Ward Nye, chair and CEO of Martin Marietta, said: “George is an exceptional legal mind and a proven strategic advisor. His extraordinary experience leading major public company transactions, combined with his deep understanding of corporate governance, and his superb advice to Martin Marietta over the years as outside counsel, make him uniquely suited to lead our legal function as we continue advancing our strategic and operational goals.”
Schoen will arrive after roughly 28 years at Cravath, having been there for his entire career. He originally joined after graduating from the University of Chicago Law School in 1998 and made partner in 2005.
He said: “I am honoured to join Martin Marietta and excited for the opportunity to contribute to the company’s continued success. Martin Marietta’s commitment to enterprise excellence, disciplined growth and long-term value creation is well known across the industry and beyond. I look forward to supporting the company’s mission and working with the management team, board of directors and our dedicated employees to advance the company’s strategic priorities.”
Bar, meanwhile, announced her intention to retire back in December. She has been the company’s legal head for more than three decades, joining in 1994 from SunAmerica where she was a corporate counsel. She started her career in private practice, first as a litigation associate at Trubin Sillcocks Edelman & Knapp and then as a corporate lawyer at Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom.
In other building-related in-house moves, in August last year US home construction business Lennar hired Katherine Lee Martin as GC from rental car giant Hertz.
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