United States > Finance > Capital markets: equity offerings > Law firm and leading lawyer rankings

The editorial for this section is in alphabetical, as opposed to ranking order, sue to two ranking tables.

Baker Botts L.L.P. leverages its market-leading oil and gas practice to specialize in energy-related capital markets deals, where it is widely considered among the leaders in the space. Houston-based David Kirkland jointly leads the firm’s corporate practice and acted with Andrew Ericksen to advise Cabot Oil & Gas on its $1bn share offering. Kirkland also teamed up with Felix Phillips to act for the underwriters in Newfield Exploration’s $790.3m public offering. Elsewhere, the firm advised the underwriters on Pioneer Natural Resources’ $1.4bn public offering. Other clients inlcude CenterPoint Energy Houston Electric, Enbridge Energy Partners and NextEra Energy Partners. In early 2017, a team including Douglass Rayburn and others departed for Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP's new Houston office. In early 2017,Hillary Holmes departed for Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP's new Houston office.

Bracewell LLP is well known for advising energy companies on capital markets transactions and its issuer-focused practice also shines in financial services deals. Practice co-chair William Anderson and Troy Harder recently advised Great Plains Energy on a $750m preferred stock investment by the Ontario Employees Retirement System. Charles Still leads the department alongside Anderson, and recently acted with Emily Leitch to advise O’BENCO IV, and its general partner, on a $25m private placement. Other clients include Kinder Morgan, Magnum Hunter Resources and Prosperity Bancshares. All named individuals are based in Houston.

Although better known for its debt - particularly high-yield debt - expertise, Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP’s share of equity transactions continues to grow. Among its recent work, Daniel Zubkoff and Douglas Horowitz advised JP Morgan, Deutsche Bank Securities, Wells Fargo Securities and BMO Capital Markets as joint book-running managers on QEP Resources’ $422m share offering. Meanwhile, James Clark, William Miller and Marc Lashbrook acted for the underwriters in Gaming and Leisure Properties’ $862.5m common stock offering, which was used to fund the acquisition of Pinnacle Entertainment’s real estate assets. Other key names in the ‘excellent’ New York-based team are William Hartnett, John Tripodoro and Jonathan Schaffzin.

Financial services powerhouse Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP is regarded by many as a ‘go-to firm for equity deals’ due to its ‘strong senior lawyers’ and ‘top-level market knowledge’. Its pre-eminent reputation attracted a steady flow of offerings during 2016. Most notably, the New York-centered team advised on the $1.1bn IPO of Japan-based global messaging platform Line Corporation, which was the largest technology IPO of the year; Craig Brod and Jeffrey Karpf acted alongside the Seoul office to advise the issuer. Among the firm’s underwriter-side work, the ‘absolutely excellent’ David Lopez acted for Barclays, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Citigroup and Morgan Stanley in Teva Pharmaceutical’s $6.7bn offering of American depositary shares. In another headline deal, Sung Kang advised the underwriters on New York Community Bancorp’s $650m follow-on offering. Other key names include Leslie Silverman and senior counsel Alan Beller.

Clifford Chance’s New York-based team leverages its market-leading US REITs practice to offer specialist expertise in that space, and it is also recommended for its strong experience in cross-border deals. Among the firm’s recent work, Jay Bernstein and Jake Farquharson advised Retail Opportunity Investments on three equity offerings worth a combined $361m, and department co-chair Kathleen Werner assisted Corporate Property Associates 19 with preparations for its IPO, which could be worth up to $2bn. Jonathan Zonis is one of the Americas capital markets group heads and has an impressive record in Latin American transactions. Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital and Quotient are also clients.

Cooley LLP’s entrepreneurial practice is widely regarded as ‘the first port of call for start-ups’ and it secures an impressive share of technology and life sciences deals. In 2016, Palo Alto-based partners Frank Rahmani and John McKenna advised Myovant Sciences on its $217.5m IPO, which was the largest biotech IPO of the year. Other highlights saw the team assisting AveXis with its $95m IPO and then in its subsequent $168m follow-on offering. The firm continues to strike a good balance between issuer and manager-side work, and it also handled several sizeable deals for underwriters. Most notably, San Francisco-based global capital markets co-head David Peinsipp teamed up with San Francisco’s Andrew Williamson and Palo Alto’s Eric Jensen to advise the underwriters on Atlassian’s $531.3 IPO. San Diego-based department co-chair Charlie Kim is also recommended.

Covington & Burling LLP’s equity practice specializes in underwriter-side mandates. The firm continues to secure a significant amount of work in the life sciences sector but also routinely handles deals in other regulated industries such as healthcare and financial services. From New York, Donald Murray heads the group and acted for Jefferies and Baird in Exact Sciences’ $145m follow-on offering. Department vice-chair Eric Blanchard is also recommended in New York and advised Jefferies and Barclays on a $42m follow-on offering by Alcobra. Among the team’s work for issuers, Washington DC-based Kerry Burke acted for Omeros during its $40m offering of common stock. Washington DC-based vice-chair Keir Gumbs is also a key name.

The ‘first-class’ group at Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP is widely lauded as ‘one of the best firms for underwriters’, but the New York-based team is also noted for advising issuers and continues to build on its company-side presence. Finance co-chair William Fogg is an ‘immensely talented lawyer’ and highly sought after by underwriters; he and Johnny Skumpija acted for the sales agents both in Freeport-McMoRan’s $1.5bn at-the-market offering, and in its $540m secondary at-the-market offering. North America capital markets head Andrew Pitts had a banner year and led on a slew of issuer and underwriter-side mandates, including advising Valvoline on its $759m IPO. Up-and-coming partner Scott Bennett also put in a strong performance; he acted with Pitts to advise the underwriters, led by Barclays, on Phillips 66 Partners’ $663m offering. Stephen Burns, LizabethAnn Eisen and William Whelan are also recommended. Kris Heinzelman retired in 2016.

DLA Piper LLP (US)’s ‘tailored approach’ and ‘strategic and thoughtful advice’ helps clients to achieve ‘very positive outcomes’. The group was significantly strengthened in 2016 through the arrivals of Baltimore-based Michael Stein, who was formerly deputy general counsel at Everi Holdings, and Kerry Johnson, who joined in New York from Hunton & Williams LLP. In addition, Melissa Bengtson and Scott Cowan were promoted to partner in Phoenix and New Jersey respectively. New York-based national capital markets chair Christopher Paci ‘effectively combines deep technical knowledge and extensive experience with a practical approach’; he advised Kadmon on its $75m public offering. In Chicago, Gregory Hayes acted for Equity Residential in its $881.2m at-the-market offering. Other key names include US corporate chair John Gilluly, who splits his time between Austin, Dallas and Houston, and Peter Astiz and Curtis Mo, who are both based in Silicon Valley.

Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP’s enviably balanced equity practice impresses both in issuer and underwriter representations, and it is regularly called upon to advise on some of the largest and most complex deals in the equity space. Michael Kaplan is ‘simply phenomenal’ and assisted the underwriters with Molson Coors Brewing’s $2.5bn common stock offering. Another high-profile name, Richard Sandler acted with John Meade to advise the lead dealer managers on GE’s offer to exchange up to 705 million shares in Synchrony Financial for outstanding shares of GE common stock, in a deal worth $2.6bn. Among the firm’s work for issuers, Menlo Park’s Alan Denenberg advised Equinix on its $862.5m follow-on offering, while Deanna Kirkpatrick acted for Bats Global Markets in its $290.6m IPO. Richard Truesdell is ‘unquestionably a leader in his field’, and Joseph Hall and Menlo Park-based Bruce Dallas are also names to note. Named partners are based in New York, except where otherwise stated.

The ‘fantastic’ team at Debevoise & Plimpton LLP ‘could not be bettered’, according to some. In a major headline, capital markets co-head Steven Slutzky led the firm’s advice to US Foods Holding in its $1bn IPO, which was notably the fifth-largest IPO in the US during 2016. Matthew Kaplan jointly leads the New York-based practice and has handled a string of landmark equity deals recently, including acting for BoozAllen Hamilton Holding in a series of secondary offerings totaling $2bn. Peter Loughran is also an active member of the team and advised SiteOne Landscape Supply on its $241.5m IPO. Among the firm’s manager-side work, Loughran advised Barclays and Credit Suisse as lead underwriters on the $169m IPO of GMS.

Dechert LLP is well known for its specialist experience in life sciences and permanent capital vehicles and it garners a significant volume of deals in these areas, as well as from the healthcare, private equity and financial services sectors. Highlights saw Philadelphia-based senior corporate specialist James Lebovitz advising the underwriters on Advance Accelerator Applications’ $172.5m offering of American depositary shares, and Boston-based department co-chair Thomas Friedmann acting for the underwriters in Monroe Capital’s $48.1m share offering. On the issuer side, Philadelphia-based Stephen Leitzell advised B&G Foods on two public offerings of shares worth a combined $331.9m. In New York, group co-chair David Rosenthal advised Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, as sales agent, on Inovio Pharmaceuticals’ $50m at-the-market equity offering.

Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP’s niche expertise in acting for business development companies in capital market matters continues to pay dividends and it routinely advises major names in the industry on IPOs, follow-on offerings, at-the-market offerings and other equity transactions. Among the group’s recent work, Lisa Morgan advised Fidus Investment on its $43m follow-on offering. Steven Boehm and Stephen Roth jointly head a Washington DC-based team that also includes Harry Pangas, who has a strong record in corporate governance and compliance issues, and Cynthia Krus.

‘The best issuers’ counsel, bar none, for technology IPOs’, Silicon Valley-headquartered Fenwick & West LLP is ‘peerless in the technology space’. In addition, the capital markets team is a top choice for clients in the life sciences sector, and it also continues to grow its underwriter-side practice. Department co-chair Jeffrey Vetter and James Evans, who splits his time between Seattle, Silicon Valley and New York, advised the underwriters on Nutanix’s $238m IPO. The same team also assisted the underwriters with Impinj’s IPO. Among its company-side work, Horace Nash and Gordon Davidson teamed up with the firm’s Shanghai office to advise Gridsum on its $100m IPO. Also recommended is San Francisco’s Robert Freedman, who jointly heads the securities and corporate practice. Named partners are based in Silicon Valley unless otherwise stated.

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP continues to build up its reputation as a sound choice for underwriters’ counsel, following the arrival of highly rated global capital markets co-head Valerie Ford Jacob in 2014. Paul Tropp heads the New York capital markets practice and recently advised underwriters Deutsche Bank Securities and Goldman Sachs on the $500m IPO of special purchase acquisition company Silver Run Acquisition. Tropp also assisted the underwriters with American Farmland’s $48m IPO and Saban Capital Acquisition’s $250m IPO. Michael Levitt is another name to note.

In a significant coup, Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP’s growing equity practice won a lead role on the third-largest IPO in the US during 2016; a team led by capital markets co-head Daniel Bursky and up-and-coming partner Mark Hayek advised the underwriters on Athene Holding’s $1.2bn IPO. Among its company-side highlights, Andrew Barkan advised the issuer on At Home’s $130m IPO and GMS’ $147m IPO. Stuart Gelfond jointly leads the New York-based department and brings to bear a strong record in private equity matters; he advised Extended Stay America and ESH Hospitality, as issuers, and Centerbridge Partners, Paulson & Co and Blackstone, as selling stockholders, on a series of share deals, including a $258.7m secondary offering of paired shares.

The ‘outstanding’ and ‘great-to-deal-with’ team at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP is ‘able to link up with other departments to provide comprehensive and joined-up advice’. The firm continues to shine in the technology space and it is also highly active in the telecoms, energy and healthcare sectors. San Francisco-based Stewart McDowell and corporate partner Douglas Smith advised the underwriters on various debt and equity offerings made by Wells Fargo & Company worth $33.5bn, including a $2.3bn offering of depositary shares. In a headline IPO, New York-based Glenn Pollner advised the underwriters on the $161m debut offering of Medpace Holdings. Andrew Fabens and Peter Wardle are also key contacts in New York and Los Angeles respectively. In early 2017, the firm acquired a team from Baker Botts L.L.P. to bolster its new Houston office, including Douglass Rayburn.

Goodwin’s equity practice continues to go from strength to strength, particularly in the technology, telecoms and life sciences areas. Silicon Valley-based technology specialist Richard Kline led the group’s marquee deal of recent times, advising Atlassian on its headline IPO at the end of 2015. In another technology highlight, Anthony McCusker acted for Twilio in its $150m IPO. Among the firm’s life sciences work, Boston’s Mitchell Bloom advised BeiGene on its $158m IPO. Boston-based capital markets chair Ettore Santucci is also recommended and advised JP Morgan Securities, as underwriters, on Washington REIT’s $150m follow-on offering. In 2017, Silicon Valley-based Rezwan Pavri left for Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati.

Hogan Lovells US LLP’s practice is led from Washington DC by David Bonser, and has strong experience in deals concerning regulated industries, particularly healthcare, defense, life sciences, energy and financial services. Issuer mandates continue to account for the majority of instructions and highlights saw Richard Parrino advising cyber security company SecureWorks on its $112m IPO, and Eve Howard and Michael McTiernan acting for Playa Hotels & Resorts during its $100m IPO. On the underwriter side, Daniel Keating assisted UBS Investment Bank with Banc of California’s $100m public offering. In 2016, the group was boosted by the arrival of three corporate partners from Pepper Hamilton LLP: Rachael Bushey, John Duke and Steve Abrams, who co-chaired the life sciences and corporate and securities departments at his former firm, all join the Philadelphia office. Named partners are based in Washington DC unless otherwise stated.

‘Dedicated and highly responsive’, the team at Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP contains ‘excellent lawyers’. Corporate and securities co-chair Michael O’Leary teamed up with Jon Daly and Cindy Lin to act for LongPoint Minerals in a $525m private placement. O’Leary also worked with Courtney Cochran Butler and Jordan Hirsch to advise Credit Suisse Securities, BMO Capital Markets and Wells Fargo Securities as the underwriters on a follow-on offering by Laredo Petroleum. Co-chair David Buck and Melinda Brunger assisted Independence Contract Drilling with its $46.3m follow-on offering. All named partners operate out of Houston, but the group is also well represented in Austin, Dallas, New York and Washington DC.

Although better known for its debt work, Jones Day acts on a significant volume of equity matters, with strong experience in IPOs, exchange transactions and rights offerings. Detroit office managing partner Timothy Melton and Chicago’s Bradley Brasser advised Procter & Gamble on its offer to exchange shares of P&G common stock for Galleria common stock. In New York, Alexander Gendzier acted for Jefferies as sole placement agent during FourPoint Holdings’ $815m issuance of common equity units and related transactions. Other key names include Christopher Kelly and Michael Solecki, who are both based in Cleveland and lead the global and US capital markets teams respectively.

Kirkland & Ellis LLP specializes in company-side matters but continues to raise its profile among underwriters. The firm’s top-tier private equity group ensures a steady flow of instructions from funds looking to exit their investments and recent examples include advising 3G Capital as selling stockholder in Restaurant Brand International’s $601.7m secondary offering - ‘market leader’ Joshua Korff and Michael Kim led that work from New York. Also in New York, Christian Nagler acted for Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs and Cantor Fitzgerald as the underwriters in Conyers Park’s $402m public offering. In Chicago, Robert Hayward advised US Silica on its $174m public offering. Other recommended names include Chicago-based Dennis Myers and Richard Aftanas in New York.

‘Strong in all areas’, Latham & Watkins LLP has a ‘broad and deep team’ which is noted for its ‘specialist “big game” experience’. The already sizeable practice increased significantly in 2016, following the hires of Washington DC-based counsel Paul Dudek (formerly chief of the SEC’s office of international corporate finance) and New York-based Michael Benjamin (from Shearman & Sterling LLP). The firm continues to garner roles on some of the most high-profile equity deals to hit the market. Most notably, New York-based global co-chair Witold Balaban teamed up with Courtenay Myers and the Hong Kong office to advise the underwriters on SoftBank’s issuance of $5.5bn mandatory exchangeable trust securities, convertible into Alibaba shares in three years. On the issuer side, New York-based global corporate chair and ‘leader in his field’ Marc Jaffe and New York-based Ian Schuman assisted Camping World Holdings with its $250m IPO. Chicago’s Cathy Birkeland is also recommended. Kirk Davenport retired in 2016.

The team at Mayer Brown provides ‘excellent service’ and demonstrates ‘great communication skills’. Particular praise is reserved for New York’s David Bakst, who ‘combines strong knowledge of the market with practical, clear advice’; he is highlighted for his specialist expertise in foreign private issuances and emerging growth company IPOs. Among Bakst’s highlights, he assisted GW Pharmaceuticals with its $289m offering of American depositary shares. Also in New York, John Berkery advised the underwriters - Morgan Stanley, UBS, Keefe Bruyette & Woods, RBC and JMP Securities - on a $200m offering of depositary shares by National General Holdings. Chicago-based practice head Edward Best and Palo Alto-based Jennifer Carlson acted for JP Morgan Securities in Beneficial Interest’s $125.4m issuance of common shares. Since publication, Anna Pinedo and has joined in New York from Morrison & Foerster LLP.

Although better known for its underwriter-side practice, Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP’s issuer practice had a very strong year. Among its key highlights, New York-based Rod Miller advised MGM Growth Properties on its $1bn IPO, which was the third-largest REIT IPO in history. In Los Angeles, Deborah Conrad and Kenneth Baronsky acted for Red Rock Resorts in its $531m IPO. The group also handled a clutch of high-profile deals for underwriters. Most notably, New York’s Paul Denaro advised the syndicate of underwriters, co-led by Scotia Capital, Barclays Capital Canada, HSBC Securities (Canada) and TD Securities, on Brookfield Renewable Partners’ C$460.1m public offering. Marcelo Mottesi leads the global capital markets practice from New York.

Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP’s capital markets group routinely advises issuers in the energy, financial services, technology and life sciences industries, and it also has an active underwriter-side practice. In Philadelphia, department head Joanne Soslow and Kevin Shmelzer advised Cerecor on its $26m IPO, and the ‘extremely knowledgeable, responsive, creative and practical’ Justin Chairman acted for the underwriters, including Deutsche Bank Securities as sole book-running manager, in City Office REIT’s $91.8m public offering. New York-based Tom Giblin is also a key contact. Other clients include Axsome Therapeutics, NextEra Energy Partners and Tabula Rasa HealthCare.

Morrison & Foerster LLP routinely acts for issuers and underwriters, and is strong in the energy, financial institutions, life sciences, technology and telecoms fields. Washington DC-based David Slotkin co-chairs the corporate finance and REIT departments and advised MedEquities Realty Trust on its $240m IPO, while San Diego-based Scott Stanton and Sara Terheggen, who operates from both San Francisco and Palo Alto, acted for Fulgent Genetics in its $43.5m IPO. The firm also assisted the underwriters with Bank of America’s $900m offering of depositary shares. Other clients include Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Education Realty Trust and Farmland Partners. Since publication, Anna Pinedo has moved to Mayer Brown.

O’Melveny & Myers LLP’s team is jointly led by New York-based Michael Schiavone and Brophy Christensen in San Francisco, and it also calls on partners in Los Angeles, Silicon Valley, Washington DC and Newport Beach. Schiavone and Daniel O’Shea recently advised Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings on a $593m share offering, while Peter Healy assisted the underwriters with Sunstone Hotel Investors’ public offering and advised Healthcare Trust of America on a significant public offering. In other work highlights, Los Angeles office managing partner John-Paul Motley acted for Sportsman’s Warehouse Holdings, and the selling stockholders, in a $65m secondary offering. Clients also include Bank of America, Morgan Stanley and Sabra Health Care REIT.

Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP shines in energy and life sciences deals and also regularly works alongside the firm’s technology group to handle capital markets matters in the technology and telecoms spaces. In a recent example, New York-based Christopher Austin and San Francisco’s John Bautista advised Coatue Management on its $500m investment in Liberty Broadband. In other work highlights, New York-based Brian Margolis assisted the underwriters with Axsome Therapeutics’ $51m IPO, and San Francisco-based Andrew Thorpe advised Ellie Mae on its $284.6m follow-on offering. In 2016, the team boosted its Houston capital markets practice with the hire of technology and energy specialist David Ronn from McGuireWoods LLP.

Paul Hastings LLP’s ‘excellent’ capital markets practice comprises ‘very responsive lawyers’. Among the names to note in New York, Latin America group lead Michael Fitzgerald impresses in Mexico-related matters and recently acted with Joy Gallup to advise Fideicomiso Hipotecario on its $170m follow-on offering. Fitzgerald also teamed up with Arturo Carrillo to advise Morgan Stanley and Deutsche Bank as the lead underwriters on a $175m follow-on offering by Mexican airline Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación. Yariv Katz acted for Citigroup and Bank of America Merrill Lynch, as joint book-running managers, in Sun Communities’ $284m follow-on offering. Jeff Hartlin, who splits his time between Palo Alto and San Diego, and San Diego-based Teri O’Brien are also recommended.

The ‘practical and inventive’ New York-based group at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP attracts praise for its ‘extremely competent and proficient lawyers’, who have ‘impressive market knowledge’. Capital markets co-head John Kennedy is a widely respected name, who advised Virtu Financial on its $143m offering. In another work highlight, Adam Givertz, who splits his time between New York and Toronto, acted for Canada’s Suncor Energy in its C$2.5bn offering. Among the firm’s work for underwriters, Tracey Zaccone advised Citigroup, Deutsche Bank and a major Canadian investment bank as lead underwriters on AquaVenture Holdings’ $134.6m IPO. Monica Thurmond, Lawrence Wee and ‘remarkably good’ department co-lead Gregory Ezring are also recommended.

The ‘highly client-focused’ group at Proskauer Rose LLP has a ‘deep and practical knowledge base’ and is ‘very easy to work with’. Lawyers are singled out for their ‘timely and thoughtful responses’, with New York-based capital markets co-head Frank Lopez singled out as ‘very fluent in the current technology of IPOs’. Lopez recently advised the underwriters on two secondary offerings made by WCI Communities worth a combined $160m. New York-based Julie Allen jointly heads the team and acted for NovoCure in its $150m IPO. Also in New York, Stuart Bressman ‘quickly understands issues and how to resolve them’; he advised JP Morgan Securities and Citigroup as joint book-running managers on Novavax’s $200m share offering. On the West Coast, Los Angeles-based Philippa Bond is an ‘up-and-coming star’, who acted for Ares Management in its $310m offering.

Reed Smith LLP recently bolstered its capital markets practice with a trio of significant hires. In New York, new capital markets head Danielle Carbone joined from Shearman & Sterling LLP, while Jennifer Cheng arrived from Paul Hastings LLP. Counsel Blair Petrillo, formerly with the SEC, joined in Pittsburgh. In a key piece of work, Los Angeles-based Michael Sanders advised Glaukos on its $108m IPO. In fact, the life sciences sector proved particularly fruitful for the team in 2016 and it also advised the issuers on the IPOs of Strongbridge Biopharma, Ritter Pharmaceuticals and Jaguar Animal Health. Other clients include Essex Woodlands Health Ventures, Neurotrope and Squadron Capital.

Ropes & Gray LLP boosted its capital markets team in 2016 through the hires of New York-based securities partner Michael Littenberg from Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP, and San Francisco-based counsel Jesse Cuevas from Shearman & Sterling LLP. The group had a strong year, acting on a string of debut and follow-on offerings and secondary offerings. In a high-profile cross-border deal, life sciences specialist Marc Rubenstein acted alongside the firm’s Hong Kong office in advising Hutchinson China MediTech on its $101m IPO. Among its work for underwriters, practice co-head Patrick O’Brien acted for the lead underwriters in two separate follow-on offerings for Sage Therapeutics totaling $325m. David Fine, Julie Jones and department co-head Paul Kinsella are also recommended. Named partners are based in Boston except where otherwise stated.

Shearman & Sterling LLP’s New York-headquartered practice, which is evenly balanced between manager and issuer work, has a wide industry focus encompassing financial services, healthcare, media, mining and telecoms, with a strong showing in cross-border deals. In a key highlight, Ilir Mujalovic and Jonathan DeSantis advised Bank of America Merrill Lynch as underwriters on the $759m IPO of Valvoline. ‘Rising star’ Merritt Johnson had an impressive year; he acted for Barclays, Credit Suisse and Morgan Stanley as underwriters in AdvancePierre Food’s $390m IPO, and also advised the underwriters on Catalent’s $447m secondary offering. A major headline on the issuer side, Richard Alsop and DeSantis assisted Advanced Disposal Services with its $398.5m IPO. Robert Evans is also recommended. David Beveridge heads an international Americas capital markets group that also has platforms in Washington DC, Palo Alto, San Francisco, São Paulo and Toronto.

Sidley Austin LLP’s concerted effort to increase its share of issuer work continues to pay dividends, with company-side mandates now accounting for well over a third of all capital markets transactions. In a highlight example of the firm’s growing profile in this area, Samir Gandhi advised Athene Holding on its headline $1.2bn IPO. In addition, San Francisco-based Eric Haueter assisted eBay with a $1.2bn offering made by its subsidiary MercadoLibre. However, underwriter mandates remain the mainstay of the practice, and it acted on a string of significant transactions during 2016. Most notably, Bartholomew Sheehan advised the underwriters and the forward purchasers on a $765.9m offering by Duke Energy. Edward Petrosky and Craig Chapman are also key names in the group. Named partners are based in New York unless otherwise stated.

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP’s ‘exceptional capital markets practice’ distinguishes itself through its ‘deep bench’ and ‘personable lawyers, who all have broad experience in their fields’. In particular, the ‘utterly fantastic’ Joseph Kaufman advised the underwriters on US Foods Holding’s $1.2bn IPO, and ‘impressive lawyer’ Richard Fenyes acted for TransUnion during two secondary offerings totaling $1bn. Palo Alto-based William Hinman is highly regarded for his technology-focused practice and acted alongside the firm’s Tokyo office to advise the underwriters, led by joint global coordinators Morgan Stanley, Nomura Securities, Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan, on LINE Corporation’s dual-listed IPO. Roxane Reardon also had a strong year and assisted Acushnet with its $378m IPO. Other key names in the group include the ‘client-focused and highly commercial’ Joshua Ford Bonnie and global capital markets head Arthur Robinson. Named partners are based in New York unless otherwise stated.

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP’s group has traditionally excelled in work for issuers and it continues to win a significant share of company-side instructions. Most notably, Andrea Nicolas advised Patheon on its $679m IPO, which was one of the largest debut offerings of the year. The firm also has strong experience in acting for managers in headline deals, with its recent work for Morgan Stanley and Citigroup Global Markets as joint book-running managers in the $291m IPO of BATS Global Markets standing out as a case in point - Gregory Fernicola and respected senior specialist Phyllis Korff led that work. High-profile partner David Goldschmidt also remains an active member of the team and advised the underwriters on the $400m IPO of Match Group. Other key names are Michael Zeidel and global corporate finance co-chair Stacy Kanter. All attorneys mentioned operate out of New York.

Sullivan & Cromwell LLP’s New York-headquartered group acted on a steady flow of equity matters through 2016, and significantly its issuer-side practice set the pace for the department - historically it has been stronger on the manager side. Among the group’s recent highlights, deputy capital markets head Catherine Clarkin and Mitchell Eitel advised First Hawaiian Bank on its $557.7m IPO and spinoff from BNP Paribas, and John Evangelakos assisted Intercontinental exchange with its $1.3bn follow-on offering. In the Palo Alto office, John Savva and Sarah Payne advised SoftBank on the $10bn monetization of a portion of its Alibaba stake, including a $3.4bn private placement. On the underwriter side, Robert Downes acted for Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Wells Fargo Securities in Regency Centers’ $406.4m follow-on offering. The highly regarded Robert Buckholz coordinates the firm’s corporate and finance department.

‘Responsive’, ‘efficient’ and ‘practical’, Vinson & Elkins LLP ‘staffs matters appropriately and works closely with internal counsel to produce a quality work product’. The capital markets group was significantly bolstered in 2016 through a string of new hires. Among the new arrivals were four partners from Hunton & Williams LLP, with Christopher Green and Gregory Cope joining in Washington DC, and David Freed and Daniel LeBey joining in New York and Richmond respectively. In addition, Paul Tobias joined the Austin office from Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. From Houston, David Oelman and Matthew Strock co-lead a team that excels in energy matters but also regularly handles deals in the life sciences, healthcare and financial services spaces. Recent work saw Houston-based Gillian Hobson advising Columbia Pipeline Group on its $1.4bn public offering. Other clients include Anadarko Petroleum, Core Laboratories and MarkWest Energy Partners.

The ‘responsive’ and ‘well-integrated’ team at Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP is highly regarded for ‘taking the time to understand its clients’ businesses’. Furthermore, the firm’s ‘deep bench allows it to handle strategic transactions alongside everyday matters’. Alexander Lynch heads the New York-based group and is a ‘fantastic lawyer’, who ‘surrounds himself with a great team and quality associates’; he advised Cotiviti Holdings, a portfolio company of Advent International, on its $246m IPO. In another private equity-related deal, Jennifer Bensch acted for Silver Run Acquisition, a special-purpose acquisition company sponsored by Riverstone Holdings, in its $500m IPO. Issuers may provide the bulk of mandates, but the firm does have a solid underwriter-side practice and Lynch advised Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan as underwriters on the $250m Camping World IPO. Corey Chivers, Heather Emmel and ‘up-and-coming partner’ Faiza Rahman are also recommended.

The Americas capital markets group at White & Case LLP is led out of New York by John Donovan and it also benefits from key domestic platforms in Washington DC and Miami, as well as Latin American footholds in Mexico City and São Paulo. The energy sector remains a primary source of deals and the firm also has a strong record in the life sciences and technology sectors, with a good split between issuer and underwriter-side work. Recent mandates saw David Johansen advising Hess on its $1.1bn offering of common stock and concurrent $575m offering of depositary shares. On the underwriter side, Colin Diamond assisted Goldman Sachs, Barclays Capital, Jefferies and RBC Capital Markets with Mimecast’s $77.5m IPO. All named partners are based in New York.

The life sciences and technology sectors kept WilmerHale’s practice busy in 2015 and 2016, and it acted for a stream of issuers across a wide spread of ECM matters. Among its recent IPOs, David Westenberg acted for Acacia Communications in its $119m IPO, while Rosemary Reilly advised Editas Medicine on its $94.4m debut offering. Stuart Falber acted for Epizyme in multiple follow-on offerings, including its $137.7m public offering in January 2016. New York-based Brian Johnson leads the group alongside Erika Robinson in Washington DC. Named partners are based in Boston except where otherwise stated.