Global law firm Goodwin announced that Barbara J. Shander joined the Private Equity practice as a partner.

Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP announced that five new partners - Ray Shirazi, Steven Lofchie, Dorothy Mehta, Nihal Patel and Jason Schwartz - are joining the firm. Collectively the group, each of whom has been recognized in Chambers and other leading publications, brings with them a depth of financial services transactional and regulatory experience, including in financial regulation, fund formation, investment funds, derivatives and financial products, broker-dealer and swap dealer regulation, digital assets and tax.

Winston & Strawn LLP is pleased to announce the addition of Jarrid King as a partner in the firm’s New York office and as a member of the firm’s Real Estate practice.

Global law firm Ropes & Gray announced that Bianca Levin-Soler has joined the firm as a partner in its private equity practice. Bianca will be based in Ropes & Gray’s new Los Angeles office. 

With significant experience in all facets of private equity and corporate finance, Bianca brings deep knowledge and a commercial approach to her practice. She has represented private equity firms and their portfolio companies in a variety of transactions, including leveraged buyouts, public and private mergers and acquisitions, SPACs and restructurings. 

Barron Avery, a leading government contracts lawyer, joins Morgan Lewis today as a partner resident in Washington, DC. Barron, who will lead the firm’s government contracts practice, advises clients across industries on federal contracting disputes, rules, and regulations. He arrives from BakerHostetler, where he led the government contracts practice and the aerospace and defense industry team.

Sidley is pleased to announce that Frank Favia, former general counsel at Guaranteed Rate, a leading financial services company that is one of the largest retail mortgage lenders in the U.S., has rejoined the firm’s Litigation group as a partner in Chicago. Most recently as general counsel, Mr. Favia led a legal department of over 200 lawyers, compliance professionals and staff, and was a member of the company’s executive leadership team.

Mayer Brown announced that experienced trial lawyer Brandon F. Renken joined the firm’s Houston office as a partner in the Litigation & Dispute Resolution practice. He joined the firm from Locke Lord.

Finance partner Matthew Smith and Restructuring partner Bevis Metcalfe will join the firm in London.

Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP is expanding its European Leveraged Finance and Private Credit team with the addition of Finance partner Matthew Smith and Restructuring and Special Situations partner Bevis Metcalfe.

Smith and Metcalfe will join Cadwalader in April from Baker McKenzie, where they worked closely on private credit and other matters.  

Baker McKenzie continues the rapid growth of its Hong Kong transactional practice with the hire of senior capital markets specialist Thomas Tarala as partner. Thomas brings a wealth of transactional experience to the Firm and will be advising clients on public offerings, private placements of debt and equity securities, secondary offerings, and securitization. This latest hire builds on the recent appointment of Capital Markets partner Victoria Lloyd in July 2021 and virtual asset specialist Joy Lam in January 2022.

Womble Bond Dickinson announced that Cynthia Spieth Morton has rejoined the firm as a partner based in the Charleston, S.C., office.

In practice for over twenty years, Morton advises clients on commercial real estate acquisitions and development matters. As counsel for lenders, owners, and developers, she has been involved in many multi-million dollar residential and office developments in South Carolina, both as lead counsel and local counsel for out-of-state lenders and borrowers.