Baltimore, May 16, 2000 --- Venable is pleased to announce that Otho M. Thompson has joined the firm as a partner in the Litigation Practice Group. Thompson will focus his practice on general civil and federal litigation, state and local legislative representation, as well as administrative trials and appeals.
"We are pleased to bring aboard one of Baltimore's longstanding advocates," said Jim Shea, Venable managing partner and member of the Litigation Practice Group. "Otho will be a valued colleague, complementing our group's vast experience in litigation matters."
Thompson has been a member of the Maryland Bar for more than 28 years, spending the last 25 as an attorney in the Department of Law, Baltimore City Solicitor's Office, where he handled a wide variety of matters on behalf of the city of Baltimore. In 1975, Thompson joined the Department as an Assistant Solicitor and managed several divisions in the Solicitor's office, including 13 years as head of the Trial Division. He was selected Deputy City Solicitor in 1993 and appointed City Solicitor by Mayor Kurt I. Schmoke in 1996.
During his tenure, Thompson has represented the City of Baltimore in Federal and state courts at the trial and appellate levels, while also providing advice and counsel to elected and appointed officials on issues affecting municipal government. As sole counsel for the city, Thompson secured many successful judgments on a broad range of matters, including multi-million dollar lawsuits, complex actions under Fair Labor Standards environmental and compliance cases, to name a few. Thompson also sat on a variety of Boards and Commissions, such as The Board of Estimates, The Board of Ethics, The Planning Commission and the Settlement Committee.
Thompson earned his B.A. from Morgan State University and his J.D. from the University of Maryland School of Law. He is admitted to the Maryland Bar, the United States District Court for the District of Maryland, the Fourth Circuit United States Court of Appeals and the United States Supreme Court. Thompson is also a member of the Maryland State Bar Association, the Monumental City Bar Association and the Anne Arundel County Bar Association.
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