The mounting Weil woes take bad turn. The crisis at Weil, Gotshal & Manges has taken an extraordinary turn as The Wall Street firm famous for rescuing and restructuring distressed corporate giants has reportedly hired bankruptcy specialists to examine its own future. According to the Financial Times, Weil is working with Brian Resnick, (above) one of Davis Polk's top restructuring partners, on options that include a last-minute merger, a slimmed-down standalone firm or a possible wind-down. Bloomberg Law reports that Davis Polk chair Neil Barr, who advised Weil on its failed merger talks, is also on the team. The Wall Street Journal described a management committee meeting through the weekend to stabilise the firm. For a firm that handled the bankruptcies of Lehman Brothers, Enron and General Motors, the irony is considerable. This time, the restructuring expertise may be needed rather closer to home. The latest developments are considerably more serious than another round of partner departures. Weil's merger discussions with Willkie Farr & Gallagher have collapsed. Ramona Nee, the Boston private equity partner who was due to succeed longtime leader Barry Wolf as executive partner in January, has told the firm she will not take the role. Meanwhile, the departures continue. On Tuesday, Weil's global co-head of private equity, Doug Warner, was reported to be joining Paul Weiss. The same day, Skadden announced it had hired Weil partners Andrew Dean and Christopher Mulligan, both former Securities and Exchange Commission officials. They follow corporate chair Michael Aiello and five M&A partners heading to Cravath. Management committee members Drew Tulumello and Caroline Zalka are expected to join Davis Polk and Paul Weiss respectively, and corporate co-managing partner Lyuba Goltser is expected to join Sidley Austin. The financial implications are becoming harder to ignore. Weil generated roughly $2.1 billion in revenue last year, with profits per equity partner of about $5.6 million, according to American Lawyer data. Yet the firm is reportedly examining significant liabilities, including pension obligations and its lease on some 380,000 square feet of the General Motors Building in Manhattan. That building is named, as it happens, for one of its most famous bankruptcy clients. The firm is also interviewing financial consultancies to go through its books. A business generating billions in revenue and millions in partner profits is now confronting the possibility that its most valuable assets, its lawyers and their clients, could walk out faster than management can replace them. The LawFuel Angle: BigLaw's Most Dangerous Asset Is Its Own Partnership Weil's predicament exposes an uncomfortable truth about the modern law firm. A major firm can have prestigious clients, extraordinary revenues, enviable offices and an illustrious history. None of those things guarantees its survival when its leading partners lose confidence. Unlike most large corporations, a law firm's principal assets can leave the building every evening and decide not to return. University of San Diego law professor David McGowan, quoted by Bloomberg Law, described the danger as a potential run on the bank. Partners stop leaving for better pay and start leaving because they fear being the last ones standing. That is the real threat facing Weil. The question is no longer simply whether it can retain its remaining rainmakers. It is whether the firm can restore confidence before departures become self-perpetuating. The lesson for Weil Gotshal is uncomfortable. A law firm's balance sheet may look perfectly respectable right up to the moment its partnership decides otherwise. And for Weil, the next restructuring mandate could be its most difficult yet. John Bowie is the founder and publisher of LawFuel.com, the leading online source for law firm news established in 2001 and one of the earliest dedicated legal news platforms. With over two decades of experience in legal publishing, he is a recognized authority on law firm developments, including legal technology (legal tech and LawAI), law firm marketing, SEO strategies, business trends, Big Law dynamics, firm rankings, salaries, careers, and innovative disruptions in the legal industry. His insights on law marketing, technology and market shifts have been featured across legal media, and he continues to track and comment on the evolving landscape of law firm operations and growth.

Paul, Weiss adds two private equity M&A partners in London. Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison named Max Oppenheimer and Jamie MacDonagh partners, expanding its private equity M&A group in London. Get the whole story. AW Monthly $39 / Month - Instantly unlock all new and archived articles - Access to AW Research articles & data - Daily, weekly and monthly e-mail newsletters $390 / Year - Everything in Monthly at a 20% discount - Access to AW Research data downloads and annual Manager/Investor Compendiums - Discounts on advertisement rates

Weil PE partner lands at Paul Weiss. You're reading your free article. Your next one is available in 30 days. Log in or subscribe for full access. Paul Weiss has hired private equity partner Max Oppenheimer from Weil in London, the firm has confirmed today (19 October). The firm has hired Oppenheimer, who has been a partner at Weil since 2021, as well as PE counsel Jamie MacDonagh, who joins Paul Weiss as a partner. The news of Oppenheimer's move first broke earlier this month, alongside the move of a four-partner finance team led by London finance group head Tom Richards, set to join Simpson Thacher. Commenting on Oppenheimer and MacDonagh's hires, Paul Weiss vice chair and London office co-head Neel Sachdev said: 'Max is widely regarded as a private equity M&A star, with deep experience advising major sponsors on some of their most significant transactions in Europe.' 'He and Jamie will further strengthen our global M&A platform and add to the 14 M&A partners in London, and we are delighted to welcome them both to the firm,' he added. A Legal 500 next-generation partner for high-value PE deals, Oppenheimer has experience advising clients including General Atlantic, Advent, and HgCapital on a range of transactions. He has also frequently acted for Lone Star Funds, most recently co-leading the team that advised on its €4bn acquisition of material solutions group ContiTech. Last year, meanwhile, he led the team that advised on its $7.39bn acquisition of Novo Banco, with MacDonagh also advising. Oppenheimer's move comes amid a slew of exits from Weil, with the total number of departures firmwide since January now standing at around 50. Oppenheimer marks the first London partner to leave Weil for Paul Weiss. However, the firm has made a number of hires from Weil's New York base, including PE co-head and global leadership and strategy committee Chris Machera. Vice chair of Paul Weiss and global co-chair of the M&A practice, Matthew Abbott, said: 'We are proud of the global private equity platform we have built to bring clients the best advice on their most sophisticated transactions.' 'The addition of Max and Jamie comes on the heels of top-notch partner arrivals in the US and further cements our strength.' Global co-chair of the M&A practice and co-head of the London office, Roger Johnson, added: 'Max and Jamie's sophisticated transactional practice spans the full spectrum of private equity, and public and private company M&A dealmaking.' 'We are thrilled to have them join us in London.' At the same time, Weil has also made a hire from Paul Weiss in New York, bringing in antitrust partner Yuni Yan Sobel. Sobel has been at Paul Weiss since 2019, when she joined as a counsel, and made partner in January 2025. Weil executive partner Barry Wolf said of the hire: 'Yuni is an outstanding lawyer and an important strategic addition to the firm. 'She is a recognized leader in merger control matters, and her experience will strengthen a critical capability for our clients across our integrated global platform,' he continued. The firm has also been rebuilding its PE group, hiring PE/M&A partner Rebecca Ward from Freshfields in London earlier this month.