David A. Katz, Partner of Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, Elected to the Board of Directors of the Partnership for a Drug-Free America

NEW YORK, Sept. 14 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Partnership for a Drug-Free America is pleased to announce the election of David A. Katz to its Board of Directors. Katz is a corporate attorney focusing on mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance, complex securities transactions and crisis management, and has been involved in many major domestic and international corporate mergers, acquisition and buyout transactions, strategic defense assignments and proxy contests.

"We are honored and excited to have David join our Board," said Partnership Chairman, Patricia Russo. "With his impressive background and leadership in the legal community, together with his personal and family commitment to volunteering in support of their local drug and alcohol abuse prevention coalition, he will bring unique perspective and valuable insight to our organization. I am certain David will play a vital role in furthering our mission to help parents prevent, intervene in and find treatment for drug and alcohol use by their children."

Katz is an Adjunct Professor at New York University School of Law, a Senior Professional Fellow at New York University Center for Law and Business and an Adjunct Professor at Vanderbilt University School of Law. He has taught Mergers and Acquisitions at New York University School of Law for more than fifteen years and co-teaches a joint law and business short course on mergers and acquisitions at Vanderbilt University School of Law.  He writes a bi-monthly column for the New York Law Journal on Corporate Governance.

Katz is also a member of the American Bar Association, Section on Business Law, where he is Co-Chair of the Committee on Mergers & Acquisitions Task Force on the Dictionary of M&A Terms and a member of the Committee on Mergers & Acquisitions Subcommittee for Acquisitions of Public Companies.  His memberships also include the ABA Federal Securities Laws Committee, the Society of Corporate Secretaries and Governance Professionals, the National Association of Corporate Directors and the National Soccer Coaches Association of America.  In 2004, he was chosen by The American Lawyer as one of the 45 highest performing members of the private bar under the age of 45; in 2005, he was selected by The American Lawyer as a Dealmaker of the Year; in 2007 and 2009, he was named by Directorship as one of the 100 most influential players in corporate governance; and in 2009 and 2010, he was named Who's Who Legal's Mergers and Acquisitions Lawyer of the Year.

"Parents trust the Partnership to provide them with accurate information and useful resources whether they are striving to prevent drug and alcohol use in their families or help a child struggling through addiction," said Steve Pasierb, President and CEO of the Partnership.  "David is personally committed to this mission. His expertise in the corporate boardroom to being a parent and to helping his own community will make our life-changing work on behalf of families even stronger."

"I am very excited to be joining the Board of the Partnership at this important time and look forward to making a meaningful contribution," said Katz.  "My wife, Cecilia Absher, who is very involved in these issues on the local level, and I feel very strongly that parents need to be provided the tools to help them prevent and intervene in situations where children are constantly exposed to drug and alcohol use.  This epidemic must be tackled at both the local and national level by equipping parents with the necessary tools and education so that they can be 'first responders' when dealing with this critical issue."

Katz is a graduate of Brandeis University and New York University School of Law.

About The Partnership

The Partnership at Drugfree.org is a nonprofit organization that helps parents prevent, intervene in and find treatment for drug and alcohol use by their children. Bringing together renowned scientists, parent experts and communications professionals, the Partnership translates current research on teen behavior, addiction and treatment into easy to understand resources at drugfree.org.  Through its nationwide PACT360 Community Education Programs, the Partnership educates and mobilizes local community efforts to address drug threats at the grassroots level, including methamphetamine and prescription drug abuse, and also provides parent training and teen programs that help prevent teen substance abuse. The Partnership depends on donations from individuals, corporations, foundations and government. The Partnership thanks SAG/AFTRA and the advertising and media industries for their ongoing generosity.

SOURCE Partnership for a Drug-Free America