Leading international law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has expanded its global capital markets and high yield practice by hiring three leading partners in the firm’s New York office. This further strengthens the firm’s US transactional practice following the recent recruitment of partners Mitchell Presser, Jim Douglas, and Peter Lyons to its New York-based team, as well as London-based US capital markets partner Ash Qureshi earlier this year. The three partners, all joining from Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP, are:
* Valerie Ford Jacob, one of the most accomplished capital markets attorneys in the US. Ms. Jacob joins as co-head of the Freshfields’ global capital markets practice. Named “Finance Lawyer of the Year” by Chambers USA in 2012, Ms. Jacob is also regularly recognized by Chambers Global and Chambers USA as a leading attorney in “Capital Markets: Debt and Equity”, and has been named a “Leading Lawyer” by both IFLR1000 and Legal 500 US;
* Paul Tropp, joins as head of capital markets - New York. He was a partner at Fried Frank since 2005, with a practice focusing on corporate finance transactions, including the representation of issuers and underwriters in domestic and international public and private debt and equity securities offerings and related capital markets transactions; and
* Michael Levitt, also joins from Fried Frank where he was a partner since 2001. Mr. Levitt's practice focuses on the representation of issuers, underwriters, and selling stockholders in public and private debt and equity securities offerings and related capital markets, acquisition finance including high yield and private equity transactions.
“Valerie, Paul and Michael complement our leading capital markets teams in Europe and Asia,” said Sarah Murphy, co-head of Freshfields’ global capital markets practice. “The addition of this high-quality team will enable us to service client needs across the balance sheet and across jurisdictions.”
“Freshfields offers us a special opportunity to be part of a global capital markets team,” said Ms. Jacob. “Each of us will value our time at Fried Frank and we wish the firm all the best for the future.”
“This is a critical step for us. We now have the ability to offer the highest level of capital markets and financing advice in the US and, indeed, anywhere else in the world,” said Mitchell Presser, head of the firm's US M&A practice. “Whether it is creative financing for an acquisition or the ability to seek liquidity or a listing on a jurisdictionally agnostic basis, the addition of Valerie, Michael and Paul rounds out Freshfields’ US M&A practice making us world-class caliber.”
In the last month Freshfields has significantly enhanced its US transactional partner ranks, including more than doubling its New York corporate partner team. This growth is reflective of the firm's commitment to providing clients, wherever they are in the world, with a completely integrated global business offering, leveraging innovative practices across the globe, in a deal-making environment where it is essential to be nimble and agile.
“When combined with our M&A and capital markets lawyers across the world, this growth enables the firm to be best placed to advise our clients on the full suite of their deal-making needs," said Matthew Herman, head of the firm's US corporate practice. “These appointments strengthen our capacity and experience in advising our clients, whatever the business issue, wherever it arises.”
Adam Siegel, the firm's US regional managing partner, added, “The pace at which we have grown the team with extremely high caliber people is very exciting. These appointments substantially strengthen both our US team and our integrated international offering and we look forward to working with this superlative team as we build out our US practices.”
Freshfields’ US-based M&A group has advised on more than $60 billion in deals to date in 2014. The firm is consistently ranked at the top of Mergermarket’s league tables for cross-border M&A.
