WASHINGTON—July 7, 2006—A magnificent legal career has reached the 50-year mark. Washington deal-making legend David Osnos joined Arent Fox July, 9, 1956, after graduating from Harvard Law School. In the succeeding half-century, his legal brilliance, charismatic personality and perpetual good humor made him into one of most respected and successful lawyers in the Washington metropolitan region. In recognition of his achievements, the firm held a surprise party for David on June 27, attracting 200 friends, colleagues, former legal adversaries and business, political and civic leaders.

Coming on board Arent Fox as counsel, his principal areas of activity included real estate, tax, securities, corporate, estate planning and sports law. He was made partner in 1962 and, in 1978, was named the original chairman of the Executive Committee, serving 20 years in that role. Under his leadership, the firm grew and overhauled it governance and compensation systems so that younger partners had a far greater say in how the firm was run.

His style was to rule by consensus. “My gut feeling, he says, “has always been that you have to be cooperative rather than confrontational.” But his low-key management style obscured the muscle behind the manner: his remarkable law practice. His major clients were and continue to be iconic real estate developer-turned sports entrepreneur Abe Pollin and A. James Clark, chairman of CEI Construction Inc. (now Clark Construction Group), which owned two of the largest contractors in the Washington area, George Hyman Construction Company and Omni Construction Inc.

In the late 1990s, in perhaps his signature deal, David led more than a dozen Arent Fox lawyers working on the development of the MCI Center, the District of Columbia sports and entertainment complex developed by Pollin, owner of the NBA Wizards. He helped negotiate myriad contracts and land-acquisition issues with the District of Columbia. The remarkable Pollin/Osnos pairing has endured for nearly 50 years.

As one of Washington’s most savvy real estate lawyers, David has performed work for office buildings, hotels, shopping centers, industrial properties and multifamily and single-family developments. He has represented both landlords and tenants on a variety of leasing matters and has extensive experience in all types of finance. David also performs client work in the areas of federal income tax as well as gift and estate tax. He also is experienced in federal securities law work and general corporate work.

Among his significant corporate transactions, David recently guided Clark Construction Group in converting from a C corporation to an LLC. In his sports law practice, David represents teams such as the Wizards and the WNBA Mystics as well as sports arenas on a wide range of issues including player contracts, executive employment contracts, media contracts (broadcast, television, cable and radio), and advertising and promotional contracts.

David is a rabid Wizards and Capitals fan. His otherwise nondescript office is stocked with sports paraphernalia, and he attends many games. As NBA Commissioner David Stern once said, “He’s quite sure that he is the supreme authority on refereeing.”

He is an active member of the District of Columbia Bar Association and serves as director or trustee of numerous organizations, including EastGroup Properties, VSE Corporation, Washington Wizards Basketball Club and Washington Real Estate Investment Trust. In December 2004, the Legal Times recognized him as the leading real estate attorney in the District of Columbia.

After 50 years, David Osnos still comes to work, having built an unsurpassed legal career.

• Read the Washington Post Story
• Read Representative Van Hollen’s Speech to the House of Representatives | View in the Congressional Record
• View the invitation to the Osnos Celebration

About Arent Fox

Arent Fox, a full-service law firm with offices in Washington, D.C., and New York, is recognized as a leader in areas including international trade, intellectual property, real estate, health care/life sciences and litigation. The firm has a wide range of expertise in corporate securities and transactions, financial restructuring and bankruptcy, government relations and regulation, labor and employment law, finance, tax, corporate compliance and the global business market. Arent Fox provides services to Fortune 500 companies, government agencies, trade associations, foreign governments, long-term care facilities, start-up companies and other entities.