ATLANTA, Aug. 12, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- EMS Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq:ELMG) today announced Vice President and General Counsel, and 23-year counsel to the company, William S. Jacobs, will retire from full-time employment and that Timothy C. Reis will succeed him, overseeing all EMS legal matters. Reis's appointment as Vice President and General Counsel is effective immediately.
Jacobs, 59, joined EMS in 1993 as General Counsel after serving as the company's principal outside counsel for more than 10 years.
"Bill Jacobs' many outstanding contributions to EMS's legal strategy, policies and business execution during the past 23 years have had a significant impact on our business," said Alfred G. Hansen, EMS president and CEO. "His dedicated and extensive career as principal outside counsel and General Counsel to EMS has been a tremendous asset to the company. Bill is handing over to Tim a state of legal affairs that is on a solid footing and the transition to new management under Tim Reis will be a smooth one. Bill will remain available as Senior Legal Advisor to Tim and to senior management and the Board of Directors, as well as Secretary of EMS, through and after the transition."
Jacobs was a key contributor to the successful growth of EMS since the 1980's, handling financings, mergers and acquisitions important to the company's growth. Before joining EMS, Jacobs was a founding partner of the Atlanta law firm of Trotter, Smith & Jacobs, after having begun his Atlanta legal career as an associate at the predecessor of Alston & Bird; before entering private practice, he had served as law clerk to both Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Griffin B. Bell and U.S. Supreme Court Justice William H. Rehnquist.
Reis, 48, joined EMS in 2001 as Assistant General Counsel. Prior to joining EMS, he was Counsel for four years at King & Spalding and Morris, Manning and Martin, in Atlanta, after serving as in-house counsel for 16 years at UPS, in Atlanta and Greenwich, Conn., and at Manufacturers Hanover Trust Company, in New York, N.Y.
Reis received his law degree from Vermont Law School in 1982, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and Economics from Fordham University in New York in 1979. He was admitted to the New York Bar in 1983 and to the Georgia Bar in 2002. Reis is a member of the Georgia Bar Association and of the Association of Corporate Counsel.
"I am proud to have the opportunity to continue Bill's legacy of serving as both a steward of legal affairs for the company, and as a counselor to EMS corporate management and divisions as we move forward in our growth strategy," says Reis.
About EMS Technologies, Inc.
EMS Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq:ELMG) is a leading innovator in the design and manufacture of wireless, satellite and defense solutions, and focuses its unique range of advanced technologies on the needs of broadband and mobile information users. The Company is headquartered in Atlanta, has approximately 1,800 workers worldwide, and operates manufacturing facilities in Atlanta, Montreal, Ottawa and Brazil.
Editor's Note: Editors can download photos of Bill Jacobs and Tim Reis at: http://www.ems-t.com/emspressroom/images/jacobs.tif and http://www.ems-t.com/emspressroom/images/reis.jpg.