Month: August 2025

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Revolving Doors: Proskauer takes Schulte partner in post-merger exit as William Fry picks up Eversheds Dublin quartet

Proskauer has hired financial services regulatory partner Anna Maleva-Otto from legacy Schulte Roth & Zabel into its London funds group, in the first departure from legacy Schulte after the 1 August completion of its merger with legacy McDermott Will & Emery.

Maleva-Otto joined Schulte in 2014 from Akin, where she was a counsel, and has a wealth of experience advising clients on a range of matters relating to UK and EU financial services regulation.

Nigel van Zyl, co-head of Proskauer’s private funds group, said in a statement: ‘Anna brings a wealth of expertise in European financial services regulation. Her deep experience will be a real asset to our clients and complements and expands our existing regulatory capabilities, especially those with credit, liquid and public markets and trading strategies.’

Maleva-Otto’s arrival marks the latest in a string of hires Proskauer has made into its private funds group, including Paul Hastings’ funds head Duncan Woolard in April and Skadden European secondaries head Delphine Jaughey in March.

Meanwhile, Quinn Emanuel has rehired Robert Hickmott as general counsel and partner. Hickmott left Quinn in 2023 to work as a consultant, where he continued to work with the firm. He rejoins as a partner, and will combine his role as general counsel with client-facing work in the banking, insolvency, and fraud-based litigation practice areas.

Goodwin has hired debt finance partner Matthew Ayre into its private equity practice. Ayre arrives from Travers Smith, where he was head of leveraged finance, and a partner since 2007.

Ayre is the latest Travers PE partner to move to Goodwin, following Ian Keefe and George Weavil, who joined the firm in April last year.

Meanwhile, DLA Piper has hired PE specialist Chris Field into its corporate practice. Field joined Dechert as a partner in 2017 from Kirkland & Ellis, and served as co-head of both the firm’s private equity practice and corporate group in London.

Commenting on the move, the global co-chair of DLA’s corporate group Jon Kenworthy said: ‘With Chris’s cross-border and sector skillset, our teams will continue to be well-positioned to help our clients with their most complex and important transactions and afford them access to the benefits of our global platform.’

Wedlake Bell has hired two partners into its commercial and residential property teams, bringing the firm’s total partner headcount to 80. James Fry will join the former team from Fladgate, while Emma Sear arrives at the latter team from Trowers & Hamlins.

Finally in London, Collyer Bristow has Carly Russell from Lawrence Stephens, where she was a director, as a partner. Russell will join the firm’s 13-partner private wealth department, and will sit across the tax & estate planning and private wealth disputes teams.

Elsewhere, leading Irish firm William Fry has hired a team of four partners from Eversheds Sutherland’s corporate team in Dublin. Eversheds corporate department head Gerard Ryan is making the move, alongside corporate partners Gavin O’Flaherty, Enda Newton, and Maria O’Brien

The move comes in the wake of failed merger talks between William Fry and Eversheds, which fell through in May earlier this year.

Both Ryan and O’Flaherty are ranked as leading partners in the Legal 500’s Ireland commercial, corporate & M&A rankings. William Fry’s corporate team advised on two deals valued at over €1bn in Ireland in H1 2025, advising DCC on the €1.22bn sale of its healthcare division to HealthCo Investment Limited, a subsidiary of funds managed by Investindustrial Advisors Limited, and the Department of Finance on the completion of a €1.2bn share buyback with AIB.

In France, Orrick has hired energy and infrastructure counsel Hugues Martin-Sisteron as a partner into its Paris team. After a nine-year spell at Clifford Chance, Martin-Sisteron will focus on project development and financings in the natural resources and energy sectors.

Meanwhile, French intellectual property boutique Casalonga has hired a team of three lawyers from Fieldfisher, led by partner Benjamin Grzimek. The team has opened Casalonga’s fifth European office in Düsseldorf as of 1 August.

Also in Germany, BCLP has hired corporate and finance transactions partner Klaus Banke from Simmons & Simmons into its Frankfurt office. Banke brings in-depth experience advising on corporate governance and disputes in the energy, life sciences, and tech sectors.

Greenberg Traurig has added public law veteran Thomas Dünchheim from Hogan Lovells’ Düsseldorf office, where he has been a partner in the environment and natural resources practice since 2009.

In the Netherlands, Taylor Wessing has hired a five-lawyer team of patent litigation lawyers from Simmons & Simmons. Led by long-serving partner Bas Berghuis van Woortman, the Simmons team also includes managing associate Sebastien Versaevel, who will join Taylor Wessing as a partner.

Further overseas, Rhys McWhirter has joined Latham & Watkins’ Hong Kong office as a partner in its data & technology transactions and artificial intelligence practices. McWhirter joins Latham from Eversheds Sutherland, where he has been a partner since 2019.

Finally, Bird & Bird has hired A&O Shearman partner and cross-border arbitration specialist John Rainbird into its Singapore team as a registered foreign lawyer. Rainbird will work closely with the firm’s Tokyo office, bringing expertise in complex commercial disputes across Southeast Asia and Japan.

robert.ford@legal500.com

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Three months to make a $3bn merger: how McDermott sealed the Schulte deal in double-quick time

‘It was from May to July, from discussion to finalisation’, says Ira Coleman (pictured top), chairman of the newly merged McDermott Will & Schulte. ‘That’s amazing. No one has ever been able to pull off a legal merger in that kind of timeframe before.’

The timing is indeed impressive. The merger was first announced in May: an ambitious combination between two US firms, McDermott Will & Emery and Schulte Roth & Zabel, that would produce a firm with $2.8bn in revenue – enough to put it within touching distance of the top ten largest firms in the world.

By the end of June, partners at each legacy firm had approved the deal, voting ‘overwhelmingly’ in support. By last Friday 1 August, the tie-up was live.

The pace is extraordinary when compared to other recent comparable mergers, such as Kramer Levin’s tie-up with Herbert Smith Freehills, which took seven months from initial announcement to completion. For Coleman, this rapid execution serves as a statement of intent.

‘Everybody talks about how important speed and accuracy of decisionmaking will be, across a range of industries,’ he says. ‘We’re demonstrating how well we can do that in law.’

It is also a sign of a process built on trust and a mutual willingness to take risks, according to Coleman. ‘The negotiations before the initial announcement were very short’, he explains. ‘It wasn’t even really a question of negotiation. We spent a little time getting to know each other, and very quickly we said, “Is this something you guys would be interested in doing?”.’

This approach also means that, aside from Coleman retaining his position as firmwide chair, many other details are still being worked out. Among them are the positions of Schulte co-managing partners Marc Elovitz and David Efron – in a statement, the firm said that Schulte partners ‘will assume key roles across the management, executive and compensation committees and will serve as co-leads for the firm’s New York and London offices.’

‘It’s not about hierarchy. It’s about clarity of vision’ – Aymen Mahmoud, McDermott Will & Schulte

In London, leadership of the combined firm’s office will now be shared between McDermott London head Aymen Mahmoud and Schulte London co-head Josh Dambacher.

The duo will serve as London co-managing partners working along private equity partner Graham White, who is retaining his legacy McDermott role as London senior partner.

‘These things are decided as you go’, says Mahmoud (pictured right). ‘We wanted to make sure the Schulte folks felt an alignment to us, and we felt an alignment to them. And that’s not just happening in London, but other offices where we are combining.’

Coleman concurs. ‘People look at this combination and say, “You guys are so much bigger, you’re going to swallow them up.” But we’re being really careful not to do that, and to lean into the best of both firms, in London and beyond. Josh and Aymen, working with Graham, will be able to do that.’

Mahmoud argues that sharing leadership in this way breeds not just collegiality but dynamism. ‘If you look at our partnership in London, there are tons of folks who have been the leader at other points in their career,’ he says. ‘It’s not about titles. It’s about getting a bunch of people around the table who can see a strategy and execute it.’

‘It’s not about hierarchy. It’s about clarity of vision for what we are building and how proud we are of the way we’re doing it.’

This approach extends beyond the partnership. Coleman explains: ‘When it comes to our C-suite, there’s no, “You’re a McDermott person so your role is enshrined”, or, “You’re a Schulte person so you’re safe.” It’s about having the best of the best moving forwards. There’s no distinction in where that talent could come from, whether it’s McDermott, Schulte, or somewhere else.’

To this end, the firm has installed an ‘integration management office’, with which it is encouraging open communication among staff from a range of business functions, considering ideas on everything from tech to benefits and talent management.

‘Process and paperwork were probably the last thing that we cared about. You don’t draw up contracts for marriages’ – Ira Coleman, McDermott Will & Schulte

There are obvious synergies in the merged firm; for example, between Schulte’s strength in funds and private capital on the one hand, and McDermott’s sector expertise in healthcare and life sciences on the other.

In terms of office crossover, Schulte’s three locations – New York, London and Washington DC – are unsurprisingly cities where McDermott also has a base, and so decisions on combining staff under one roof will need to be thrashed out.

The combination creates significant strength in New York in particular, bringing the firm to a total of almost 230 partners and more than 550 lawyers, according to the two legacy firms’ websites before the merger went live.

‘The London market’s not slowing down, and it’s no secret to anyone that our firm has been making big investments in London and New York’, says Mahmoud. ‘We’re aiming for growth across the entire platform. The aim is to add everything we don’t have and strengthen everything we do have, so we can become an elite legal services provider.’

For Coleman, the success of the deal will be determined by the two legacy institutions’ willingness to work together.

‘We really leaned in on the people-first, client-first parts of it’, he says. ‘Process and paperwork were probably the last thing that we cared about. You don’t draw up contracts for marriages. You can do prenups and postnups, and I get that. But the love and compassion and partnership in a relationship isn’t something that fits neatly into a contract or an agreement.

‘Yes, you want to know what the parameters around it are, what you agreed to. But more than that, you want to be partners.’

Both Coleman and Mahmoud are confident that the results will speak for themselves. Asked for a final statement on the completion of the merger, Coleman says just three words: ‘Watch us grow.’

alexander.ryan@legal500.com

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‘We’re not out of the woods yet’ – partners size up EU-US trade deal

‘It’s worse than it was 12 months ago, but it’s better than it was two weeks ago,’ says Jason Hungerford (pictured right), head of international trade at Mayer Brown’s London office, following the conclusion of EU-US trade negotiations.

Announced at the end of July, the agreement will impose a 15% tariff on the majority of European imports to the US, meaning the EU will avoid the much higher tariffs roiling global markets, including 35% for Canada and 39% for Switzerland.

But while the deal has been met with relief in many quarters, questions remain over how binding the framework actually is, as well as what its impact on global markets will be.

‘More like appeasement than an actual deal’

One emerging viewpoint among trade lawyers is that the deal can be more accurately described as a political resolution to avoid further tariff increases and quell market volatility.

Aline Doussin, head of international trade and investment at Hogan Lovells, characterises the deal as a political declaration. ‘My immediate reaction is that this is not a binding legal agreement,’ she says. ‘The legal reality has not changed as yet on the EU trade law side.’

‘The ink isn’t even dry, but there’s no ink because it hasn’t even been written yet,’ says Dr Totis Kotsonis, head of subsidies, procurement, trade agreements and remedies at Pinsent Masons. ‘The question is: have we moved on from the unpredictability, and have we given businesses the stability that they require in order to operate and to plan ahead? I don’t think that we have.’

‘My first impression is that it feels more like appeasement than an actual deal. There was a threat, and the EU has at least for a time neutralised it.’ adds Hungerford. ‘A common refrain amongst trade lawyers working on free trade agreements is that |nothing’s agreed till everything’s agreed”, and I think everything being agreed is still at some undetermined point in the future.’

‘Non-standard economic coercion’

Kotsonis points to the need for security in agreeing the deal: ‘The EU was effectively stuck – they had no other viable choice but to accept what was on offer,’ he says. ‘The elephant in the room here is the fact that Europe and the EU are dependent on the US for their security.

‘There’s a lot of unpredictability, but the last thing the EU wanted is escalation – nobody can afford the EU and the US starting a full-on trade war that could escalate into other areas like security.’

Doussin (pictured right) points to the need for stability and reassurance in the market. ‘The key message that everyone in the EU agrees on is that certainty is definitely welcome – both clients and the market were very very nervous of the 1 August deadline to make a deal. So putting a pause on that is very much welcome by the market.’

Referring to the atmosphere of volatility around global trade since US President Donald Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs announcement on 2 April, Hungerford says that the US administration had been using ‘non-standard economic coercion’ to achieve their aims. ‘We haven’t really seen that use of those kinds of provisions before,’ he says. ‘It feels like everything’s on the table when it comes to the US achieving its aims.’

The deal also carves out exemptions from the 15% tariff, with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen noting that tariffs would be cut to zero on products including aircraft and component parts, certain chemicals, and critical raw materials.

Hungerford welcomes this aspect of the agreement, but cautions that challenges remain. ‘It’s got the EU past a difficult position, and there’ll be some immediate relief which will be of great consequence to certain sectors such as aerospace – but we’re not out of the woods yet,’ he warns.

And there are areas of the framework agreement that raise as many questions as they answer.

‘Some aspects of the deal just seem unrealistic to implement or enforce, such as the obligation of the EU to purchase oil and gas in a value of €750m over three years,’ says Baker McKenzie Amsterdam tax partner Nicole Looks, . Capacity in the US is not yet there to satisfy such high demand, and the infrastructure is not there to transport these volumes of LNG from the US to the EU.’

Doussin highlights another legal concern: ‘The big question is whether the deal is compatible with World Trade Organization law, and whether the EU will now be required to open its market to all trading partners on the same terms as those agreed with the US.’

‘Positive mood music’

Jessica Adam (pictured right), co-head of corporate and M&A at Macfarlanes, acknowledges that while uncertainty around the deal remains, dealmakers are taking a pragmatic view: ‘We have to work with the information we have today. Things may change in the future; however, there is always going to be a degree of uncertainty and that needs to be priced in.’

Key metrics from the European Commission’s business and consumer survey results reflect the tentative optimism building in the markets throughout July. The Economic Uncertainty Indicator increased by one point to 17.3, while the the Economic Sentiment Indicator picked up in both the EU (+1.0 points to 95.3) and the euro area (+1.6 points to 95.8).

Speculating on the market impact of the agreement from a business perspective, Adam strikes an optimistic chord: ‘I think we will see an uptick in deal volumes. We’ve already started to see private capital funds gearing up processes to kick off in Q3 and Q4, and doing prep work with a view to launching in Q1 2026.’

And while the UK is not party to the deal, the resulting shift in relative tariff burdens could have knock-on effects: ‘Conversations with private capital funds focused on the UK suggest an increasingly positive outlook, with the UK potentially being seen as a more attractive place for investments compared to the EU, given the 5% tariff difference. There is definitely more positive mood music.’

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‘You don’t want to be the test case for this offence’ – firms face ticking clock as new fraud regime draws near

With the UK’s new corporate criminal offence of failure to prevent fraud coming into force on 1 September, firms that are not fully prepared for the new regime are running out of time to get their house in order.

The offence, introduced under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act, marks a major shift in corporate accountability, placing legal responsibility on organisations that fail to prevent fraud committed by ‘associated persons’ for their benefit – unless they can demonstrate they had reasonable procedures in place.

At Enterprise GC earlier this year, general counsel and other in-house lawyers tackled this subject in a breakout session led by Grant Thornton, and in this Legal Business podcast, financial crime head Tom Townson and business risk director Emma Young reflect on what came out of those discussions, and how businesses are navigating the countdown to compliance.

While some companies, particularly those in heavily regulated sectors, are ahead of the game with their preparations, others still have work to do – and as Townson warns: ‘you don’t want to be the test case for this offence.’

The full discussion is below – the podcast is also available via Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

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McDermott and Schulte partners to share London leadership as $2.8bn merger goes live

The London office of the newly merged McDermott Will & Schulte will be co-led by partners from both legacy firms, it has emerged, as the $2.8bn tie-up goes live.

McDermott London managing partner Aymen Mahmoud, who has headed up the firm’s City base for just over a year, will now share leadership of the office with Schulte Roth & Zabel London co-head Josh Dambacher.

The duo will work alongside London senior partner and private equity veteran Graham White, who joined McDermott last March, having previously held senior roles at Fried Frank and Kirkland & Ellis.

While McDermott has around 90 lawyers in London, just over 30 of which are partners, Schulte’s City office is home to just 24 lawyers, including ten partners, according to the firm’s website.

Funds partner Dambacher, who has been at the US firm since 2006, has in recent years co-led the office alongside Christopher Hilditch, who co-founded the base in 2002. Both are ranked in Legal 500’s Hall of Fame for hedge funds.

Leveraged finance partner Mahmoud took the reins of McDermott’s London office last June, succeeding Hamid Yunis, who has since left for Pillsbury.

His time at the helm has seen the firm make a slew of hires, including CMS international private equity co-head Jason Zemmel and Eversheds Sutherland data centre specialist Sebastien Bonneau, both of who joined last autumn. These hires came on top of the additions of Legal 500 acquisition finance Hall of Famer Chris Kandel, who joined from Morrison Foerster in May just before Mahmoud stepped into his role as London head, and Legal 500 mid-market private equity transactions leading partner Fatema Orjela, who joined from Sidley in April 2024.

McDermott and Schulte announced the plan to merge in May, with the combination receiving ‘overwhelming’ partner support in a June vote. The new firm will go by the name McDermott Will & Schulte, with total revenues of more than $2.8bn.

McDermott recently filed its UK LLP accounts for 2024, showing a 33% increase in turnover from £78.7m to £104.7m, breaking the £100m mark for the first time. The results also showed an increase of almost 41% to average member remuneration, from £1.23m to £1.73m.

alexander.ryan@legal500.com

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The path to partnership less travelled: Travers Smith’s Elissavet Grout

While the standard partner track is familiar to most, not all of those who make it follow the conventional route. In this new series, Legal Business shines a light on lawyers with a unorthodox tale to tell about how they got there, starting with Travers Smith tax partner Elissavet Grout, who was made up this year after qualifying at the firm back in 2003.

Why did it take longer than average for you to become partner?

I became a senior counsel some time ago, which gave me the autonomy to work alongside the partners, and to build my own client relationships. That worked really well for me for a long period, particularly as I had a young family. I felt I could give 100% to my role within those parameters, while still maintaining a semblance of a successful family life.

Very early on, it was made clear to me that senior counsel wasn’t a barrier to partnership, nor was it an alternative. So in the back of my mind, I knew that becoming partner was always a possibility, and it was something I started to work towards as I became more of a ‘senior’ senior counsel, and I started to understand what I wanted to get out of the rest of my career.

When did you first start thinking seriously about making partner?

I think there was naturally a change as my children got older. Then came COVID, which gave me more time to think about what I wanted to do. It was a very busy period workwise, but it also gave me space to reflect.

And I just started to feel this shift. I love my clients. I love the technical side of my job. But I began to want to be more involved in decision-making, to be at the table where those decisions are made — to look behind the curtain and be the one making the final calls and shaping the business.

Was partnership always the goal for you, or did it evolve naturally as your career progressed?

I don’t think I had the confidence early on to say, this is what I’m going to do: ‘I’m going to do X, Y and Z by these points in time’. What I did know was that I really enjoyed the job. I enjoyed working in the law. I liked the people I worked with, and I understood the structure of the firm.

Who, and what, has shaped your career the most?

It’s not the same for everyone, I know, but for me, work has always been something that centres me — especially when things in my personal life feel off balance. It’s a space where I’ve always felt confident in what I’m doing.

Mahesh Varia, who headed up the tax incentives and remuneration team until November last year, has probably been the biggest influence on my career, alongside our excellent knowledge counsel Kulsoom Hadi, and all the other tax partners still here, including practice head Russell Warren and Hannah Manning.

Before that, I had the great pleasure of working with Victoria Nicholl, who used to lead our team and was a big mentor to me. At that time, having female partners looking after others wasn’t as common as it is now, so she really stood out.

Then there was Kathleen Russ, who became senior partner but started as a partner in the tax department. She was a formidable lawyer, and I learned so much from her. Siân Keall, who also became senior partner and still works in our employment team, is amazing too.

What matters stand out from your career so far?

Early on, after I was made up to senior counsel, I worked on the Pets at Home IPO — that was just over 10 years ago now — and they’re still a really close client. Similarly, I’ve worked with SSP Group for around a decade. Those kinds of enduring relationships have helped me believe, yes, I can be a partner, because I’ve built relationships that last.

How did it feel when you became a partner?

My family were very proud. But really, it’s just business as usual. I’ve been doing this job for a long time, and I’ve been senior for a long time, so I don’t think it’s felt quite as momentous as it might for some others.

That said, I did have to give my car back — we have a salary sacrifice scheme for employees here, which is excellent, but of course, partners aren’t employees. Honestly, that might have been the saddest moment of my time at the firm. Everyone here knows how much I loved that car, so it became a bit of an in-joke: ‘Who’s going to be the one to tell Elissavet she has to give the car back?’ If there’s been any darkness in the whole transition, that’s probably it.