Kirkland & Ellis Bulks Up M&A and Restructuring
May 27, 2009
Although it is celebrating its centennial this year, Kirkland & Ellis still has some catching up to do. But it's well on its way.
Kirkland recently hired M&A partners David Fox and Daniel Wolf from Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom.
"I had been at Skadden for 25 years; it is a terrific firm and I had a successful career there," Fox said. "I'm tremendously energized to be at Kirkland & Ellis and I'm excited about the future here." Kirkland has fewer M&A partners than Skadden, so "this is a great opportunity to build something," he said.
"We wish them well in this new endeavor to help develop Kirkland & Ellis' M&A practice," a Skadden spokesman said.
At Skadden, Fox joined the policy committee and served as a leader of the corporate group. He represented BHP Billiton on its withdrawn $150 billion offer to acquire Rio Tinto; the board of Toys "R" Us on its $6.6 billion acquisition by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, Vornado Realty Trust and Bain Capital Partners; Realogy Corp. on its $9 billion sale to Apollo Management; and Cendant Corp. on the $3.4 billion sale of its Travelport business and its split into three public companies.
Fox is also considered by some as Wolf’s mentor. "Dan, who was seen as one of the future superstars, was David's protégé, so it was no surprise that he's going too," said a former Skadden employee, who requested anonymity. "They worked on almost all of the same deals."
Fox said of Wolf's protégé label, "He's a superstar, so if I was at some stage a mentor to a superstar, it's an honor. He stands in his own right."
Wolf, who at 30 became one of the youngest Skadden attorneys to make partner, collaborated with Fox on the BHP and Cendant assignments, and he represented Gerson Lehrman Group on its $200 million capital infusion from Silver Lake Partners, and ECI Telecom on its $1.2 billion acquisition by a private equity consortium (the first sizable private equity buyout of an Israeli company).
Fox, 51, and Wolf, 36, share a connection to the Jewish state, but that's not what cemented their bond. Fox lived in Israel from ages 9 to 25 and qualified to practice law in Israel in 1983, one year before passing the bar in New York. Wolf, a Montreal native, served in the Israeli army prior to studying at the London School of Economics, although Fox didn't know Wolf had lived in Israel for the first few years of their working relationship.
A friend of one of Fox's relatives said he's "a real tough cookie. I've only met him on a personal basis, but he's a totally business-focused and very intense guy. His clients love him and he obviously does great work."
The Skadden source added, "I know he was a big earner [at Skadden], and [Kirkland] must have made him some fantastic deal to go because he had been at Skadden for quite a while and was doing really well there. You definitely want him on your side of the transaction, and he wouldn't leave unless he was taking a lot of business with him."
A source close to Skadden said the firm has 140 M&A partners, and given its high deal flow and partner count, the loss of two M&A partners is not considered huge internally. Indeed, Skadden partner William Kunkel led the team which represented Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co. on its $23 billion sale to Mars Inc., and partner Paul Schnell headed the firm's advisory work on behalf of Anheuser-Busch Co. regarding its $52 billion sale to InBev. Skadden advised on 228 announced global deals worth $518.4 billion in 2008 and 41 announced global transactions valued at $161 billion this year to date, according to Thomson Reuters.
Jeffrey Hammes, a Kirkland partner and vice chairman of the firm's worldwide management executive committee, declined to comment on what Kirkland offered Fox and Wolf. "We're excited to have these guys on the team," he said. "By way of their leadership, experience and stature, they enhance our already growing M&A practice globally and in New York City."
The effort to hire Fox and Wolf involved a number of firm professionals, and Kirkland used an executive search firm.
"It's an opportunity for them to help lead and build out our M&A platform, which we've been continuing to invest in. We invest in existing offices and existing practice groups by finding people who can add long-term value to the firm," said Hammes.
In 2008, Kirkland advised on 179 global announced deals worth $73.7 billion, according to Thomson, and 24 global publicized transactions valued at $6.3 billion so far this year. (Attorney fees for M&A transactions can run from 0.5% to 1% of considerations, depending on deal size and complexity, according to Gersten Savage partner David Danovitch). Kirkland now has about 625 corporate lawyers, including M&A practitioners.
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