Ramona Nee, the lawyer who was poised to run Weil Gotshal before the legal powerhouse's collapse, is in talks to join Kirkland & Ellis along with a team of partners. Weil's rapid demise, following a series of high-profile departures, has left more than 1,000 lawyers searching for a landing spot at rivals. The 95-year-old firm's management committee on Wednesday told partners of plans to dissolve the firm.
Nee, the one-time successor to Weil's longtime chair Barry Wolf, is discussing joining Kirkland alongside six other Weil departees, including specialists in mergers and acquisitions, debt finance and executive pay, according to people familiar with the matter. Nee, whose clients include private equity group Advent International, is among the most coveted deal lawyers left at Weil and has been approached by several rival firms in recent days.
The move comes as rivals Paul Weiss, Gibson Dunn and Simpson Thacher have all hired other Weil lawyers in the past 24 hours. Nee had been set to become Weil's executive chair from the start of next year but told the firm's leadership in August that she would no longer take the top job. Weil was famed for its work on the Enron, Lehman Brothers and General Motors bankruptcies, and a succession of high-profile departures plunged the firm into crisis.
Chris Machera, a top private equity dealmaker, left to join Paul Weiss in August. Michael Aiello, Weil's top M&A rainmaker, departed for Cravath, Swaine & Moore a month later along with five partners. Kirkland & Ellis has cemented its position as a legal industry behemoth, generating more than $10bn in annual revenues. Nee had privately expressed that she favoured a move to Kirkland, and it was possible she would agree to join in the coming days, though plans could still change. Kirkland, Weil and Nee did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Source: Financial Times Companies · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing