The Deal

HCI Equity co-founder and chief investment officer Doug McCormick discusses the firm's approach to buy-and-build strategies in large, fragmented and stable markets as well as navigating the challenging M&A environment in 2025. 

Rob Kindler, an M&A partner at Paul Weiss, discusses his career as an M&A lawyer and banker, doing deals at Morgan Stanley and the importance of lifelong connectivity. 

When corporations install anti-activist poison pills they are less likely to implement new share buybacks and their operationally-focused capital expenditures tend to be higher, UC Berkeley School of Law professor Ofer Eldar explains.

Joele Frank discusses how she came to public relations and her approach to growing her own firm.

Solomon Partners head of business services Tim Shea discusses private equity's growing interest in residential and facilities services and dealmaking activity in the market in 2025. 

Bruce Goldfarb, CEO and president of Okapi Partners, discusses launching the proxy solicitor in 2008 and how the client service skills he learned working in his father's dry cleaning business are relevant on Wall Street.

Kimberly Petillo-Decossard, the co-head of M&A at White & Case, discusses building her career, her decision to change firms and how her husband's willingness to retire from his career as a banker has been pivotal to her success. 

TSG managing director Pierre LeComte dives into the consumer-focused firm's investment strategy.

William Regner talks about legal amendments enacted last month and what he learned from Debevoise's Meredith Brown.

A disclosure regime set up for hostile takeovers and tender offers needs to be completely revamped for today's modern activism campaign environment, defense adviser Keith Gottfried explains.

Managing director Guy Barudin of Chardan Capital Markets discusses how the investment bank has navigated the SPAC sector. Guest hosted by Bill Meagher, senior reporter.

Scott Luftglass, an M&A litigator and vice chairman of Fried Frank, talks about mentorship, how he developed a specialty in Delaware corporate litigation and the proposed changes to the state's corporate law.

Mark McMaster, the global head of M&A at Lazard, discusses his career as a banker and his work with several companies that have created significant value by breaking themselves up. 

Richard Mansouri, who recently joined Arkhouse, discusses the phenomenon of companies replacing problem directors only when activists show up and why board members often just aren't independent.

Sam Danon, the managing partner at Hunton Andrews Kurth, talks about the importance of firm culture, what associates want out of a law firm and how building his litigation practice helped him establish credibility as a manager. 

Searchlight Capital partner Andrew Frey discusses the firm's investment in Ziply, its preference for backing existing telephone companies over greenfield fiber and trends in telecom deals.

American Securities president and managing director Scott Wolff dives into the firm's approach to investments and value creation, its specialty chemicals platforms and the industrial sector's slow recovery.

Carmen Lu, a partner focused on activism defense at Paul Weiss, discusses why one should never assume multiclass share companies are 'bullet proof' from activists, and she offered views on M&A and tech activism, plus white squire defenses.

Michael Gerstenzang, managing partner at Cleary Gottlieb, believes generative AI will fundamentally change the practice of law. Our conversation with Michael is the second in a four-podcast miniseries with law firm leaders.

Brightstar founder and CEO Andrew Weinberg discusses the firm's investment strategy for family- and founder-owned businesses and its focus on resilient industry verticals. 

Neil Barr, chair and managing partner of Davis Polk, talks about the logic behind the firm's 2020 change from lockstep compensation, his work for Comcast and why being a tax lawyer helped prepare him to run his firm. Our conversation with Neil is the first in a four-podcast miniseries with law firm leaders.

Franchise Equity Partners founder and co-managing partner Michael Esposito dives into the investment firm's growth since its launch in 2021; its investments in restaurants, residential services and the auto aftermarket; and M&A expectations for 2025.

Sanjay Murti, an M&A partner at Freshfields in New York, discusses how he approached being an associate, the grueling year before making partner and his decision to lateral to Freshfields from Cravath. 

Sagar Gupta, who oversees Anson Fund's activism activities, discusses why sector specialization is vital for an activist, and he also talks about recent campaigns at Twilio, Globalstar and Lionsgate.

John Bessonette, a partner at Kramer Levin in New York, talks about how he developed a practice that includes both M&A and restructuring and his firm's pending merger with Herbert Smith Freehills. 

Stephen Brown, senior adviser and managing director at KPMGa's Board Leadership Center, covers a number of topics, including why he thinks there could be unintended consequences to new limits on activist shareholder proposals.

Dave Perkins, the co-head of PE at Cravath, talks about being called up from the U.S. Army Reserve to serve in Afghanistan as a young associate and how he approached building a PE practice at his law firm.

Aaron Suh, an M&A and PE partner at Morgan Lewis and managing partner of the firm's Philadelphia office, discusses how he approached changing firms and cities and the deep influence his father has had on his approach to his career.

Founder and president John Ferrara dives into the middle market investment bank's growth over two decades and his expectations for dealmaking in 2025. 

Joel Friedlander talks about how he came to focus on plaintiff-side work in the Delaware courts and the enjoyment he gets from writing about and teaching law as well as practicing it. 

Corporate defender and Skadden partner Elizabeth Gonzalez-Sussman discusses what motivated her decision to move away from defending activists, as well as tactics that backfire, settlement subcommittee pros and cons and governance vulnerabilities.

Houlihan Lokey global head of outdoor, active lifestyle and tactical industries Nathan Pund discusses his expectations for M&A in the categories in 2025.

Keith Townsend, an M&A partner at King & Spalding and co-head of its corporate practice, discussed how he developed business development skills as a young partner and how his firm thinks about its practice mix.

Expert network platform Inex One owner Max Friberg discusses why activists and others retain expert networks ahead of insurgency campaigns. 

Katten's Mark Solomon discusses the evolution of family offices over the past generation and how the Dallas economy has changed since he started practicing law in the city in 1985. 

Ilan Nissan, head of private equity and M&A at Goodwin Procter, discusses how he developed and maintains his practice and why he enjoys advising PE sponsors on succession issues.

In the most recent episode of Drinks With The Deal, Randi Lesnick, co-chair of the corporate practice, discusses key deals in her career and issues that AI raises both for law firms and for companies doing deals.

Gores Group's Senior Managing Director Mark Stone discusses the private equity firm's approach to the SPAC market and his perspective on recent developments in the sector as well as Gores' very successful de-SPAC of Twinkies maker Hostess Brands.

Olshan Frome shareholder activism practice chair Andrew Freedman offers a postmortem of sorts on why 17 directors in two waves resigned ahead of a Browning West director contest at Canadian clothing company Gildan.

In the most recent episode of Drinks With The Deal, Linklaters global chairman of corporate George Casey discusses a 30-year career centered on cross-border M&A.

Vinson & Elkins activism defense adviser Patrick Gadson explains why economic activists aren't leaning into ESG as much and talks about the upcoming federal election's effect on both M&A and operational activism.

Julie Jones explains why the Sungard buyout was critical for her career, how she approaches firm management and what she's learned from colleagues and business leaders along the way. 

Paul Hastings activist defense adviser Sean Donahue discusses nontraditional activist campaigns seeking to oust directors in uncontested elections, at special meetings and via written consent solicitations.

Willkie's PK Paran discusses moving to New York from London in 2019, changing law firms two years later and insurance industry M&A. 

Kirkland partner Ed Lee discusses his pride in helping take the media and technology company Webtoon public and how the legal industry has evolved over his career. 

Forward Risk co-founder Brendan Foo dismisses assertions that business intelligence advisers to activists are knocking on doors in an aggressive way.

In this week's Drinks With The Deal podcast, Greene-Levin-Snyder's Alisa Levin discusses her career as a legal recruiter and how lawyers and law firms should think about the market for lateral talent. 

On the most recent Drinks With The Deal podcast, Mark Bekheit, the global vice chair of M&A at Latham & Watkins, discusses how his brief time as an in-house lawyer at Sandisk was pivotal both for client development and perspective on his career.

Dan Nardello, the founder of business intelligence firm Nardello & Co., talks about resume inconsistencies, credit card and corporate jet abuse, and vetting directors in the MeToo era amid activist campaigns. 

Stride Consumer's partner Steve Berg discusses the firm's investment strategy and the state of consumer M&A in 2024.

In the most recent Drinks With The Deal podcast, Scott Freling, the vice chair of government contracts at Covington & Burling, talks about the practice and its intersection with M&A and PE.