Dinsmore & Shohl LLP has brought on R. Wade Norris, one of the founding members of the now-dissolving Norris George & Ostrow PLLC, to join its Washington, D.C., office as a partner. The move follows the recent departure of Norris’ former partners, Ryan L. George and Ethan Ostrow, along with several attorneys and staff, to Robinson & Cole LLP, prompting the dissolution of their previous firm.

Norris officially joined Dinsmore on September 29, the firm announced Thursday. His practice centers on affordable housing finance and multifamily housing bond finance, where he brings nearly five decades of experience in structuring complex tax-exempt bond and loan transactions.

According to Dinsmore, Norris has been instrumental in shaping several key affordable housing financing mechanisms in the United States. He played a pivotal role in developing the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Section 11(b) refunding program, advising HUD on its multifamily mortgage portfolio and bond refunding policy. Additionally, Norris helped design several of the country’s leading multifamily private placement programs, including the Freddie Mac Tax-Exempt Loan (TEL) and Fannie Mae M.TEBs structures.

In a statement, Norris said his decision to join Dinsmore was motivated by the opportunity to leverage the firm’s extensive legal resources for his clients.

“We interact with, and rely on, bond counsel for a lot of the substantive legal analysis that goes into structuring these deals,” he said. “Having colleagues we can call on when developing new structures is a huge asset for our clients.”

Dinsmore highlighted that Norris and his incoming team possess deep expertise in the 4% Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program and specialize in structuring tax-exempt private activity bond transactions that qualify for those credits.

“There’s no secret that there is an affordable housing crisis in the United States,” Norris said. “We take great satisfaction in knowing that what our clients and we do in these financings helps meet a critical social need.”

Joining Norris at Dinsmore are his son, Reginald “Reggie” Norris, who will serve as associate of counsel in the firm’s Denver office, and Quinn Bero and Melissa Harvison, both joining as public financial analysts.

Meanwhile, Robinson & Cole LLP announced on the same day that it had added Ryan L. George and Ethan Ostrow—the other two named partners from Norris George & Ostrow—along with another partner, three associates, three paralegals, and an administrative assistant. George, Ostrow, and partner Catherine E. Woltering confirmed in September that their firm had begun the process of dissolving.