Mr. Friedman has served as a senior managing director of Blackstone since February 1999 and in addition as Chief Legal Officer of Blackstone since January 2003. From 1974 until the time he joined Blackstone, Mr. Friedman was a partner with Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, a New York law firm. He currently also serves on the board of directors of Axis Capital Holdings Limited and on the board of directors of Northwest Airlines, Inc.