Mergers & Acquisitions

Counsel’s ‘Kill Them or Hope They Die’ Comment Blamed for $2.1M Verdict

After a hostile takeover of a direct marketing firm in 2003, corporate counsel William Wachtel reportedly said in a management meeting that the best way to avoid paying severance to previous managers was to “kill them or hope they die.” The words, arguably said in jest, have come back to…

Apr 1, 2009 11:10 AM CDT

Magazine Dubs Sullivan’s H. Rodgin Cohen Dealmaker of the Year

The American Lawyer has chosen H. Rodgin Cohen as dealmaker of the year for his central role advising or drafting deals for some of the nation’s top financial players during the economic meltdown. Cohen, of Sullivan & Cromwell, “was Wall Street’s go-to lawyer during the most important months for the…

Mar 31, 2009 6:04 PM CDT

As Heller Dissolved, Partner Closed Big Deal; But Now What?

As others at the dissolving Heller Ehrman law firm scrambled to find work last year, partner Steven Tonsfeldt found himself in an unusual situation. He had a lot of work to do in a $3 billion deal involving a client’s planned merger with Brocade Communications Systems, Inc. But, due to…

Feb 20, 2009 7:14 PM CST

Cadwalader Partner Recalls Hectic Four Days on Pfizer-Wyeth Deal

A mergers and acquisitions partner at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft describes a hectic four days working on pharmaceutical maker Pfizer’s $68 billion buyout of Wyeth. Dennis Block told the Am Law Daily he worked on and off on the deal for several months until he got a call on Thursday…

Jan 27, 2009 6:21 PM CST

Is Pfizer-Wyeth Deal a Sign that ‘Raving Optimist’ Lawyer is Correct?

Mergers and acquisitions activity plummeted by more than 50 percent in November and December, putting the squeeze on law firms at the same time that their investment banking clients were collapsing. Before 2008, reports The Deal Magazine, big law firms had aggressively expanded, fueled in part by booming M&A activity.…

Jan 26, 2009 12:50 PM CST

Linklaters is Top ‘08 Euro M&A Advisor

Linklaters was the top dealmeister of 2008, advising on 249 announced European mergers and acquisitions including the year’s biggest: the purchase of beermaker Anheuser-Busch Cos.by InBev NV. The London-based magic circle law firm also was the top M&A adviser internationally, according to Bloomberg. In second and third place were two…

Jan 5, 2009 4:32 PM CST

‘Every day was totally pressure-filled, client-filled. There was no break.’

H. Rodgin Cohen, chairman of Sullivan & Cromwell

Jan 1, 2009 10:25 AM CST

‘You can’t calm directors by telling them it’s all going to be OK.’

Robert Joffe, partner at Cravath, Swaine & Moore

Jan 1, 2009 10:15 AM CST

Paul Hastings Associate Accused in $4.8M Insider Trading Scheme

A Paul Hastings tax associate was one of four people charged Thursday with insider trading based on information provided by the husband of a public relations representative who had information on pending deals. Lawyer Eric Holzer, 34, is accused of buying stock based on information provided by former Lehman Brothers…

Dec 19, 2008 12:50 PM CST

Frost Brown Expands to Indiana With Locke Reynolds Merger

Louisville, Ky-based Frost Brown and Indianapolis firm Locke Reynolds have announced they will merge, creating a 450-lawyer firm with offices in five states. The merger is to be effective Jan. 5, according to reports in the Indianapolis Business Journal and Louisville Journal-Courier. Locke Reynolds, which has 79 lawyers, will lose…

Dec 4, 2008 8:34 PM CST

Southern Firms Merge to Create 350-Lawyer Operation

Two southern law firms based in Birmingham, Ala., and Nashville, Tenn., announced today they would merge to create a 350-lawyer firm with offices in four “strategic” states. The merger of Bradley Arant Rose & White with Boult, Cummings, Conners & Berry is expected to be complete by Jan. 1, according…

Dec 4, 2008 8:03 PM CST

K&L Gates and Bell Boyd to Wed in Early ‘09

If all goes according to plan, the world will have a new megafirm with the merger of K&L Gates and Chicago’s Bell, Boyd & Lloyd. The couple announced today that they would merge in the first quarter of 2009, creating a 2,000-lawyer behemoth with 30 offices in the U.S., Europe…

Dec 4, 2008 7:45 PM CST

Powell Goldstein to Merge with Bryan Cave and Give up its Name

The partnerships of Powell Goldstein and Bryan Cave have voted to merge the two law firms, giving Bryan Cave a presence in the southeast and the Atlanta-based Powell Goldstein an international platform. Powell Goldstein’s name will be retained only in the merged firm’s Atlanta office, and only temporarily, according to…

Nov 3, 2008 12:24 PM CST

Wachtell Founder Says Rebound Could Take Up to Five Years

One of the lawyers who founded Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz is predicting a long road to the nation’s economic recovery. Martin Lipton, a mergers and acquisitions lawyer, told students at New York University law school last week that the nation won’t see a recovery until the mortgage and housing…

Oct 27, 2008 12:40 PM CDT

Merger of KC Firms Creates New Member of Top 100: Polsinelli Shughart

The list of the nation’s largest 100 law firms will have a new entrant with the merger of Polsinelli Shalton Flanigan Suelthaus and Shughart Thomson & Kilroy. The merger of the two Kansas City law firms will likely take effect in January, the Kansas City Star reports. The new firm…

Oct 17, 2008 1:30 PM CDT