The Legal 500

Within Bank lending (including other sources of financing), tier 5

Gibson Dunn’s practice is jointly headed by three partners: Jeff Hudson in Los Angeles, and Joerg Esdorn and Robert Cunningham in New York. The firm is primarily geared towards borrower representation and handles a high volume of transactions; 2010 initially brought numerous restructuring deals, followed by an increase in leveraged acquisitions later in the year. It acted for Charter Communications on a $4.4bn term loan and revolving credit facility: a progressive deal whose flexible nature has influenced a number of subsequent transactions. Recommended partner Linda Curtis in Los Angeles acted for CityCenter Holdings on a fourth amendment to a $1.8bn credit facility, while Darius Mehraban in New York represented Alliant Techsystems on a $1bn senior secured credit facility, and Alan Bannister assisted the same client on a further, linked transaction. Goldman Sachs is a relatively new client for the firm, and Eric Wise in New York recently assisted it on a $455m senior credit facility.

Within Capital markets: debt offerings, Gibson Dunn is a third tier firm,

Gibson Dunn’s capital markets practice is led by Kevin Kelley in New York and Stewart McDowell in San Francisco, spanning the US and advising managers and issuer clients on a range of debt transactions. With a strong track record in the arena, recent highlights on the issuer side for the group include advising Xilinx on a $600m Rule 144A convertible notes offering, a transaction handled by McDowell. Andrew Fabens in Washington DC advised Kraft Foods regarding a $9.5bn notes offering for an acquisition financing, while Denver-based Richard Russo advised longstanding client The Williams Companies on two separate Rule 144A debt issuances, each of $3.5bn notes. The highly recommended Steven Finley in New York also advised Tyco International in a $500m notes offering. On the manager side McDowell represented various underwriters, including Wells Fargo Securities, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, in several debt transactions of Wells Fargo, including a $25bn MTN offering, a $2bn MTN offering, a $3.5bn offering of floating rate notes and a $2.844bn remarketed senior debentures offering. Kelley represented Morgan Stanley, Banco Santander, Banco Bradesco and BCP Securities in Banco BMG’s $250m Rule 144A subordinated notes offering. Douglas Smith in San Francisco has a depth of experience in advising underwriters, and assisted Banc of America Securities in AMB Property’s $500m notes offering. Other manager clients include Barclays Capital, Santander Global Banking & Markets, and Deutsche Bank Securities.

Within Capital markets: equity offerings, Gibson Dunn is a third tier firm,

Gibson Dunn’s equity offerings practice has traditionally been strong in offering underwriter advice, but the firm is steadily increasing its profile amongst issuer clients, advising on IPOs and other transactions. Washington DC-based Andrew Fabens advised Capital One Financial Corporation on its $1.6bn issuance of common stock, and also represented Towers Watson & Co in its $196m common stock offering, and Ancestry.com on its $100m IPO. Jonathan Layne in the Los Angeles office advised Dole Food on its $500m IPO, as well as assisting AECOM Technology Corporation in several common stock offerings. On the manager side, San Francisco-based co-chair Stewart McDowell advised Wells Fargo Securities and Goldman Sachs on Wells Fargo’s $12.25bn offering of common stock, and also advised Goldman Sachs on the $134m IPO of Financial Engines. Layne assisted Barclays Capital as underwriter of the $860m issuance of common stock by MGM Resorts International. In San Francisco, Douglas Smith advised Morgan Stanley as underwriter of AMB Property Corporation’s $499.7m common stock offering. Clients value the breadth of the practice, both in terms of expertise and geographical spread across the US.

Within Capital markets: high-yield debt offerings, Gibson Dunn is a third tier firm,

The high-yield practice at Gibson Dunn has strength in advising issuer clients, and continues to build on its impressive client roster across a wide range of industries, including telecoms, retail and technology. The national reach of the firm allows for clients to access high-quality advice in a range of different US locations. From the Denver office, Richard Russo advised Qwest Communications International on a $800m Rule 144A high-yield notes offering, while Jonathan Layne in Los Angeles continues to advise Ameristar Casinos in high-yield debt work and Rule 144A offerings. The firm’s Orange County team recently assisted Standard Pacific Corporation in a $300m senior notes offering, and also advised Salem Communications Corporation in a $300m Rule 144A offering of senior secured second-lien notes. Alan Bannister in New York represented Zayo Group in a $250m Rule 144A high-yield offering of senior secured first-priority notes, and also assisted Alliant Techsystems in a $350m Rule 144A senior subordinated notes offering. Michael Greaney, also in New York, advised Stratus Technologies in a $215m senior secured notes offering. From Los Angeles, Linda Curtis represented Del Monte Foods Company in a $450m Rule 144A senior subordinated notes offering, and Andrew Fabens in Washington DC represented Celanese Corporation in a $600m Rule 144A high-yield debt offering of senior notes. Co-chair of the global finance group Joerg Esdorn is based in New York, and has significant expertise in high-yield notes offerings and bridge loans.

Within Corporate restructuring, tier 5

Very much a practice in the ascendancy, Gibson Dunn’s relatively young and entrepreneurial seven-partner team represents an increasingly balanced portfolio of creditor and debtor clients from its New York and Los Angeles offices. Although typically it is the firm’s Los Angeles office which handles the preponderance of debtor mandates – mainly for existing clients of the firm’s strong corporate client base – co-head Michael Rosenthal out of New York recently spearheaded the team’s successful representation of Almatis on its $1bn multi-jurisdictional Chapter 11 debt restructuring. Other debtor mandates include the ongoing representation of housing company Fleetwood Enterprises on its Chapter 11 cases. Led by Orange County-based co-head Craig Millet, the mandate is one of a number of matters within the real estate sector. New York-based co-head David Feldman has an excellent pedigree on the creditor side for a mix of hedge funds and banks, and is currently representing a syndicate of hedge funds led by Farallon Capital Management on providing the $400m DIP financing to General Growth Properties. Benefiting from a broad international network, cross-border mandates are also a sweet-spot for the team, and as well as the aforementioned Almatis mandate, the group recently represented the steering committee of senior lenders of Trident Resources. Notably the firm successfully acquired control of the US/Canadian energy company which had debts in excess of $1.2bn through providing a new capital investment and rights offering pursuant to a Chapter 11 proceeding in Delaware and a CCAA proceeding in Calgary.

Within Financial services: regulatory, tier 5

At Gibson Dunn, Washington DC-based of-counsel Susan Grafton is the principal contact for financial services regulatory work. Formerly vice president and associate general counsel at Goldman Sachs, Grafton provides first-hand experience of the regulatory matters affecting the banking industry. Involved across the waterfront of matters, she has represented numerous clients on a variety of issues raised by the Dodd-Frank Act throughout the legislative process, as well as regularly assisting the transactional lawyers navigate their way through any concomitant regulatory concerns. Broker-dealer work is another niche area of specialism.

Within Environment: litigation, Gibson Dunn is a third tier firm,

The team at Gibson Dunn has strong capabilities in California and an excellent reputation for handling toxic tort matters. The firm is representing Lockheed Martin in several cases including mass toxic tort litigation in Redlands, California involving alleged groundwater contamination with perchlorate and TCE. Hundreds of plaintiffs claimed to be victims of chemical exposure in their drinking water, and presently the firm is leading the defense with respect to the second group of plaintiffs. The team also has extensive groundwater experience and is defending Goodrich on claims brought by the US, on behalf of the EPA, involving five former operators and the current owners of a 160 acre parcel of land that has been used for industrial purposes since World War II, when the Department of Defense maintained an ammunition storage point; the lawsuit seeks cost recovery for perchlorate and TCE contamination in the Rialto-Colton Groundwater Basin. Other highlights included representing domestic and international automakers in litigation across the country in the area of greenhouse gas emissions. Clients also include MeadWestvaco, International Paper, Chevron and General Electric Company. Los-Angeles based Patrick Dennis and Jeffrey Dintzer, Orange County-based Alan Bick and Washington-based Peter Seley co-chair the team.

Within Healthcare and life sciences, Gibson Dunn is a third tier firm,

Gibson Dunn advises a mix of health systems, insurers and manufacturers on higher-end transactions and on litigation pertaining to insurance, false claims and reimbursement, as well as patents and product liability. Recent highlights include achieving DOJ dismissal of an Eleventh Circuit appeal in US v Sulzbach, in which the firm represented a former general counsel of Tenet Healthcare in a false claims case relating to a reimbursement claim submitted by a subsidiary hospital. The firm represents Aetna in a number of cases and class actions pertaining to health plan coverage, and recently won a Ninth Circuit appeal for the defendant, Covidien, in which plaintiffs had sued for $400m restitution after alleging that the client had monopolized the pulse oximetry sensors market. On the transactional front, highlights included acting for St Jude Medical on its $1.3bn acquisition of AGA Medical and advising Quidel Corporation on its $130m purchase of Diagnostic Hybrids. Los Angeles-based Kevin Rosen and Dallas-based Robert Krakow are the healthcare and life sciences practice co-chairs.

Within Insurance: advice to insurers, tier 4

Gibson Dunn’s 27-lawyer insurance practice has particular strength in representing clients in national exposure cases, such as class actions involving multi-district litigation, and it is notable for its experience in the health care sector, reflecting the wider firm’s strength in the area. Led by Los Angeles-based Richard Doren, it successfully obtained the dismissal of a putative class action for client Aetna Life Insurance in Weaver v Aetna Life Ins Co. The firm is also representing Aetna in a putative class action pending in the US District Court for the District of New Jersey, relating to certain Aetna practices in reimbursing out-of-network services. The firm has also been involved in class actions arising from Hurricane Katrina, securing a number of victories for insurers. Gary Justice chairs the practice group.

Within Patent litigation: full coverage, tier 4

Gibson Dunn’s team has a broad focus and expertise across the hi-tech and life sciences sectors. Recent work has been characterised by ANDA-related litigation, with trial lawyer Wayne Barsky involved in representing Johnson & Johnson in a district court case that dismissed patent misuse lawsuits brought against it. The practice is also representig Novo Nordisk against generic manufacturers regarding patent infringement of its multimillion-dollar diabetes drug. Barsky successfully led at trial for Tessera in an infringement suit brought against a number of semiconductor manufacturers, including Spansion, Qualcomm and Motorola. Josh Krevitt advises leading technology companies such as T-Mobile, Apple and AT&T, and recently acted for Hewlett-Packard in a patent infringement claim brought by Minerva Industries against various smartphone companies. Krevitt is also representing Amazon in its well-publicised multi-jurisdictional dispute against Discovery Communications regarding its e-book reader. Denis Salmon, who has been representing St Jude Medical, and Mark Reiter co-chair the practice from Palo Alto and Texas. Jeffrey Thomas has been representing Allergan in various disputes as both plaintiff and defendant.

Within Private equity funds, tier 5

Gibson Dunn’s West Coast origins meant its private equity practice was slower to gain traction than its New York peers, but clients say it ‘compares very favorably’ thanks to the investment management skills of New York-based co-chair Edward Sopher. Industry-specific funds in the oil and gas and real estate sectors were key drivers of work in 2010, as was activity on funds-of-funds, mezzanine and secondary funds, a particular strength of the practice. Its expertise spans the globe, with funds focusing on North America, Europe, the Middle East, South America and Asia. Recent highlights include advising Credit Suisse Alternative Investments on a $2bn secondary fund, JRK Properties on a $300m real estate private equity fund, New York Life Capital Partners on a $1bn mezzanine debt fund, Warburg Pincus and Sheridan Production Partners on a $1.75bn debt fund. Washington DC-based C William Thomas and Los Angeles-based co-chair Jennifer Bellah Maguire are also recommended.

Within ERISA litigation , Gibson Dunn is a second tier firm,

Gibson Dunn fields ‘very smart lawyers who are responsive and produce good written work’. The ERISA group is small, but the quality of the work undertaken is irrefutably high. Of note, recently the Supreme Court granted certiorari in CIGNA Corporation v Amara. The Court will determine the showing that an ERISA plan participant must make to recover benefits based on an alleged inconsistency between the Summary Plan Description and the plan itself. The firm prepared the successful petition for a writ of certiorari on behalf of CIGNA Corporation and the CIGNA Pension Plan. In another case the team successfully brought a petition for permission to appeal pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(f) in the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Spano v Boeing. This petition challenges the ability of plaintiffs in ERISA cases involving 401(k) plans to obtain certification of a class under FRCP Rule 23(b)(1)(B). The group is currently representing Boeing in two other ERISA matters, Harkness v Boeing, in the United States District Court for Kansas, and UAW v Boeing, on remand to an arbitrator from the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in a decision issued this year. Other examples of representative work include assisting First Reserve Corporation, Hamilton Lane and New York Life on ERISA plan asset issues raised by their respective investment funds. William Kilberg is ‘especially strong on strategic and tactical thinking’ while of counsel Paul Blankenstein is ‘good on research and motion and brief writing’. Michael Collins also has impressive experience in advising on ERISA cases as part of his employee benefits and executive compensation practice.

Within Labor and employment litigation, Gibson Dunn is a first tier firm,

Gibson Dunn handles highly complex, sensitive and challenging labor and employment law disputes for its clients. Although smaller than many practice groups in the table, the team undertakes undeniably impressive work and is described by its competitors as, quite simply, ‘off the charts brilliant’. A recent example of the ground-breaking cases the firm has won include its representation of UPS; the firm led the world’s largest package delivery company to a sweeping victory in which it persuaded the Third Circuit to reverse a district court order certifying the largest class in the history of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The firm also recently successfully defended its client’s “Wellness” Initiative in the nationally watched case Rodrigues v EG Systems, Inc (Scotts Lawnservice), and obtained the reversal from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals of a decision from the US District Court for the Central District of California, which had vacated an award in favor of Hawaiian Airlines before the Hawaiian Airlines System Board of Adjustment. The firm is currently representing Marie Callender Pie Shops in five separate class actions involving wage and hour issues, including cases pending in Ventura, Orange and Los Angeles superior courts and federal court in San Diego. It is also assisting Enterprise Rent-A-Car Companies, the largest rental car company in North America, in multiple nationwide wage-and-hour class actions coordinated by the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation. Other clients include Tenet Healthcare, Transamerica Corp, Weight Watchers and EXI Parsons Telecom. The co-chair of the labor and employment practice group Eugene Scalia has a particularly impressive market reputation. He ‘brings brilliance with his insights’, and ‘has a remarkable ability to see the issues clearly’. The newly appointed co-chair of the practice group Christopher Martin, William Kilberg, Baruch Fellner and Jason Schwartz are also highly recommended. In 2010, former co-chair of the group William Claster was appointed as a judge of the Orange County Superior Court. In 2011, Los Angeles-based Jesse Cripps was promoted to the partnership.

Within Workplace and employment counseling, Gibson Dunn is a second tier firm,

Gibson Dunn’s labor & employment group, while known for its high-profile litigation matters, also provides clients with workplace and employment-related counseling. Co-chair of the firm’s practice, Eugene Scalia, served as Solicitor of the US Department of Labor during the development and implementation of the whistleblower provision, and continues to advise clients of the new Dodd-Frank whistleblower rule. UPS consistently turns to the firm for counsel on various employment matters, including Sarbanes-Oxley and other whistleblower protection laws. Regarding significant non-litigation matters, the group is representing the NFL Players Association in collective bargaining with the National Football League over benefits matters. It also represented the Pharmacy Care Management Association in a request for clarification of the Labor Department’s Form 5500 Schedule C reporting obligations, and represented a major manufacturing company before Congress in successfully securing a change in the law that allowed it to amortize certain pension losses over a longer period of time than was provided in the law and thus enabled it to preserve its collectively bargained defined benefit pension plan. The firm’s attorneys also have extensive experience counseling employers on the design and implementation of reductions-in-force (including restructurings, plant closings, layoffs, etc.). The firm frequently provides advice regarding the WARN Act and other state and local notice requirements and the group assists in crafting legally-compliant separation agreements and releases under the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act and other laws. The firm is representing the second-largest US automaker Ford Motor Company in numerous age and other discrimination lawsuits arising out of a reduction-in-force. The group has also counseled numerous Fortune 50 companies in compliance with OSHA standards and the resolution of OSHA citations, including providing global health and safety risk assessment for a client that will require site visits and compliance evaluations throughout the world in an effort to ensure maximum employee protection and uniform regulatory compliance. Washington DC-based Jason Schwartz and Wayne Schrader are recommended.

Within International arbitration, tier 4

Gibson Dunn has particular expertise in large commercial disputes in the energy and mining sectors. The practice is acting for Chevron in a BIT arbitration against Ecuador as well as representing Brazilian mining company MMX, in a $30m commodities dispute arbitrated under the ICC Rules. In the Yukos case, the firm is acting for Yukos Capital and obtained judgment to force the opposing side Rosneft to provide $600m in security in February 2010. Laurence Shore head of the practice and John Behrendt are recommended.

Within International trade, Gibson Dunn is a third tier firm,

Advising large corporate clients on CIFIUS and FCPA matters is an important part of Gibson Dunn’s trade practice. The firm also has significant expertise on export control and countervailing duty rules. American Honda is a longstanding client, which the practice has advised on a wide variety of US customs and international trade matters, including audits and investigations, covering areas such as customs classification, customs valuation, country of origin marking, and antidumping matters involving a variety of products. The practice also advises Western Union’s money transfer businesses in connection with compliance with the USA Patriot Act and anti-terrorism requirements, economic sanctions, and export controls. Judith Lee and Daniel Plaine are the names to note.

Within Leading trial lawyers Leading trial lawyers

Within Securities: shareholder litigation, Gibson Dunn is a third tier firm,

Gibson Dunn’s ‘excellent’ securities litigation group impresses on the back of some impressive recruits, (four partners led by Mark Kirsch joined from Clifford Chance in 2009), as well as a series of critical results on behalf of its clients. The group, which works out of California, New York and Washington DC, is jointly headed by Wayne Smith in Orange County, and Jonathan Dickey and Robert Serio in New York. The broad-based team covers all areas of securities litigation, regularly representing issuers, underwriters and accountants. In the latter, the firm’s successful defence of Ernst & Young, led by Lawrence Zweifach, in a class action arising from Bernard Madoff’s ponzi scheme, was a major highlight. The plaintiffs had sought to hold Ernst & Young liable for losses in the ponzi scheme, but the Court dismissed all claims. Another highlight was persuading the Department of Justice and the SEC to drop their investigations into the former AIG executive Joseph Casanno. The former CEO of AIG Financial Products was targeted by the authorities following the financial crisis, who wanted to investigate whether Cassano had misled his superiors, the outside auditors and the public regarding losses in AIGFP’s credit default swap portfolio. The authorities ultimately found Cassano to be factually and legally innocent and decided not to pursue criminal and civil proceedings. The group is also backed up by a first-class appellate practice, and the specialist appellate litigator Mark Perry has an extremely strong track record in securities-related appeals.

Within Supreme Court and appellate, Gibson Dunn is a first tier firm,

Gibson Dunn is ‘at the top of the list’ when it comes to its experience in US Supreme Court and appellate matters. Its track record speaks volumes: in the past three years, the firm’s ‘top-notch lawyers with a keen focus on client service’ have won eight out of ten cases, and have persuaded the Court to grant more than 30% of certoriari petitions in the past five years. For the 2010 term (starting October 1, 2010), the firm remarkably had five cases on the docket. Perhaps most notable among these was Wal-Mart v Dukes, the largest employment class action in US history, involving over 1.5m plaintiffs. Renowned advocate Theodore Boutrous is representing Wal-Mart in the case, which will assess whether the claims by the individual employees may be combined as a class action. The diverse nature of its caseload is illustrative of the firm’s broad expertise, with cases including a patent dispute where Thomas Hungar is representing Microsoft (Microsoft v i4i), and a securities dispute where Mark Perry is representing Janus Capital (Janus Capital Group, Inc v First Derivative Traders). The two remaining cases (Cigna Corp v Amara, and Mayo Foundation for Medical Education & Research v United States) are being led by Theodore Olson, the esteemed former solicitor general, who led one of the most significant victories in the 2009 term, acting for Citizens United to invalidate provisions in the McCain-Feingold Act that had restricted corporate and union expenditures on political speech. Highlights in the lower appellate courts include winning significant decisions in favor of Chevron in its titanic environmental dispute with Ecuadorian plaintiffs.

Within White-collar criminal defense , tier 4

With ‘strong capabilities’ on both coasts, Gibson Dunn’s 17-partner team provides ‘very good and responsive’ representation to both individuals and corporates across a broad swathe of white-collar matters including FCPA violations, financial services matters, healthcare and criminal antitrust. In the financial services industry the practice has handled a raft of mortgage-related investigations and litigation. The highest-profile of these was the firm’s successful representation of former AIG executive Joseph Cassano following the SEC and DOJ’s investigation into his alleged improper activity regarding credit default swaps. Praised for his ‘excellence at handling FCPA investigations’, Washington DC-based co-head Joseph Warin has handled investigations relating to business in 35 different countries and as well as his high-profile work as compliance monitor for Statoil, also recently persuaded the DOJ to close its five-year FCPA investigation against the General Electric Company without bringing criminal charges. Los Angeles-based co-head Debra Wong Yang is another key member of the team and as well as handing a raft of FCPA matters is also particularly active in the healthcare space. The real jewel in the firm’s crown, however, is its ‘pre-eminent’ criminal antitrust practice. Spearheaded out of San Francisco by the ‘very able’ Gary Spratling, the firm continues to handle a number of multi-jurisdictional investigations and recently successfully negotiated with the DOJ the second lowest fine of the 15 air carrier pleas to date in the air cargo shipping services litigation. Other notable practitioners include ‘excellent trial lawyer’ Randy Mastro, the ‘knowledgeable and responsive’ Lee Dunst and co-head Jim Walden.

Within Technology: outsourcing, Gibson Dunn is a second tier firm,

Gibson Dunn’s outsourcing attorneys ‘know the market: they helped to define it’. The ‘careful, focused’ team offers the combined strength of high-profile outsourcing attorneys William Peters in Los Angeles, Daniel Mummery in Palo Alto, and Stephen Nordahl in New York. The practice benefits from the firm’s blue-chip corporate client base and leverages institutional relationships and strategic alliances the US and Europe. A long and prestigious client list includes Tyco International, The Coca-Cola Company and Symantec. In 2010, the team handled sophisticated IT outsourcing projects, cloud computing and M&A support for hi-tech companies and global brands. Mummery assisted NetApp with outsourcing its finance and accounting services to Gen-Pact and its application development and maintenance services to IBM and Con-way with IT infrastructure deals, notably the outsourcing of IT infrastructure and related services to Hewlett-Packard. Healthcare clients include CareFusion, a spin-off of Cardinal Health. Peters assisted Marsh & McLennan to establish a vendor panel for the provision of application development and maintenance services, which included structuring and negotiating agreements with HCL, IBM, Patni, TCS, and Wipro; contracting for a cloud computing solution for the provision of certain training and HR management services and renegotiating and expanding its financing and accounting services agreement with WNS. Nordahl’s clients include Johnson & Johnson and Omnicom.

Within Technology: transactions, Gibson Dunn is a third tier firm,

Gibson Dunn’s strategic sourcing and technology transactions group benefits from the firm’s blue-chip corporate client base and leverages its institutional relationships and strategic alliances in the US and Europe. Led by leading outsourcing attorneys William Peters in Los Angeles, Daniel Mummery in Palo Alto and Stephen Nordahl in New York, it advises clients including Marsh & McLennan on technology procurement and outsourcing transactions. The group works closely with the firm’s information technology and data privacy group, launched in March 2011.

Within Antitrust, Gibson Dunn is a first tier firm,

Gibson Dunn has considerable resources at its disposal with scores of lawyers providing advice on the full spectrum of antitrust matters, augmenting its flourishing US and EU civil litigation practice with advice on some impressive merger transactions. Recent work includes acting for Energizer on its acquisition of American Safety Razor, both leading suppliers of wet shaving razors and blades in the US, where the team obtained unconditional clearance from the FTC in an unusually short time period. The firm also represented Schlumberger Limited, the world’s largest oilfield services company, on its $11bn acquisition of Smith International for which it received unconditional clearances from antitrust authorities in the US (which included handling a second request from the DOJ), Canada, Russia, Colombia, Mexico and the EU. In the contentious space, achievements included helping longstanding client Intel to reach a proposed comprehensive settlement agreement with the FTC regarding alleged antitrust violations in connection with parts of its business activities and products. Daniel Swanson – co-chair of the antitrust practice group – represented AkzoNobel on a class action asserting price-fixing and cartel allegations. Cartel specialist Gary Spratling, based in San Francisco, acted for Martinair Holland NV in In Re Air Cargo Shipping Services Antitrust Litigation.

Within M&A: large deals ($1bn-5bn), Gibson Dunn is a first tier firm,

Gibson Dunn recently grew its New York office by recruiting Peter Hanlon from Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP, whose practice includes a focus on the energy industry. The firm also expanded its Dallas office when corporate partners Jeffrey Chapman and Robert Little joined from Vinson & Elkins L.L.P.. Robert Walters became co-partner in charge of the Dallas office. Recent experience includes acting for Baldor Electric Company, a manufacturer of industrial electric motors, in its $4.2bn sale to ABB, a developer of power and automation technology, and advising Kuwait Investment Authority in its $4.1bn sale of its stake in Citigroup. Paulson & Co was assisted in the $3.93bn acquisition out of bankruptcy by a group of investors including Centerbridge Partners and affiliates of The Blackstone Group of hotel chain, Extended Stay. In the middle market, Aurora Capital Group was advised in the formation of its fourth private equity fund with targeted capital commitments of $900m, and Littlejohn & Co was represented in the $890m sale of portfolio company, LJVH Holdings (Van Houtte), a provider of gourmet coffee products. The firm also picks up its share of mega deals. It acted as US corporate counsel to Kraft in the $19bn acquisition by Kraft of confectionary company Cadbury, and assisted Barclays in the $15bn acquisition of Archstone-Smith Trust. Del Monte Foods Company was advised in the $5.3bn sale of Del Monte Foods, a manufacturer of canned food products and pet food products. Co-chairs Jonathan Layne in Century City and New York-based Dennis Friedman are recommended.

Within Private equity buyouts, Gibson Dunn is a third tier firm,

While being a genuine player in the private equity sector, Gibson Dunn has created a real name for itself by representing a series of sovereign wealth funds and foreign-based private equity funds. As part of this emphasis, it has developed leading expertise in Sharia financings for funds such as Middle East originated Arcapita. The firm’s relationship with the Middle East is deep and long, having represented Investcorp for over three decades and now the Kuwait Investment Authority. In the US, it advises funds such as Leonard Green & Partners, Centerview Partners, Littlejohn & Co, Generation Partners, Aurora Capital, Odyssey Investment Partners and Catterton Partners. Highlight deals included advising Catterton Partners on its acquisition of Noodles & Company, illustrating the firm’s strength in hospitality, retail and consumer products. It continues to be active on behalf of sovereign wealth funds, acting for Investcorp portfolio company Berlin Packaging on two add-on acquisitions, and representing Kuwait Investment Authority on its $792m investment in France’s Areva. The firm has also completed a series of deals on behalf of Blackstone portfolio company, Summit Materials. New York is the firm’s private equity epicentre, with lead partners Steven Shoemate, Sean Griffiths, Michael Greaney, and Edward Sopher. Los Angeles-based Bruce Meyer and Jennifer Bellah Maguire are also highly rated.

Within Venture capital and emerging companies, tier 5

Gibson Dunn is more of an investor side practice, with a particularly fine record in the gaming, medical device, clean technology and energy sectors. While many of its clients are based in the US, it frequently represents foreign investors, including a number from the Middle East. Much of the practice is centered in California. In Los Angeles, Bradford Weirick is to the fore, while in Palo Alto, Gregory Davidson and the immensely experienced Joseph Barbeau, have excellent practices. Recent highlight deals include advising Investcorp Technology Partners on taking an equity stake in CSIdendity. It also represented Rustic Canyon Ventures in its Series B investment in cloud-based video game producer Gaikai. On the energy side, it advised Mighty River Power on its $400m investment in Hudson Ranch Power. It has also completed a number of investments in solar companies.

Within Land use/zoning , Gibson Dunn is a third tier firm,

Gibson Dunn predominantly handles land use projects in northern and southern California, with lawyers situated in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Work highlights included advising Universal Paragon Corporation in its negotiations to develop Brisbane Baylands, a project expanding over approximately 600 acres, including over 8 million sq ft of mixed commercial, office, retail, restaurant, and open-space uses.

Within Real estate, Gibson Dunn is a second tier firm,

Gibson Dunn has a broad national presence with real estate attorneys working out of its offices in California, Texas, Colorado, New York and Washington DC, in addition to closing deals across the whole of the US. The ‘outstanding’ Jesse Sharf and Fred Pillon co-chair the 17-partner practice group. Sharf has a diverse practice encompassing operators and developers, lenders and investors. He and Andrew Lance completed several key property acquisitions for Rockpoint Group, including that of an office and retail project in Washington DC; a converted condominium project in Orange County; and a development project in Phoenix. Sharf also represented Paulson & Co as a participant in the acquisition out of bankruptcy of Extended Stay Hotels. Pillon represented Barclays Capital and HSBC on restructuring matters, and Pacific Coast Capital Partners on the restructuring of numerous projects, and on new equity investments and loan purchases totaling over $1bn. Lance represented German American Capital Corporation, a Deutsche Bank subsidiary, on its acquisition of an existing $250m mortgage on 3 Columbus Circle in Manhattan. Lance also represented Felcor, a large hotel REIT, on a management agreement relating to its recent acquisition of Fairmont Copley Hotel in Boston. The highly regarded David Furman represented Investcorp on multiple restructuring transactions involving hotel, office and retail properties throughout the US, and acted for a $1bn fund sponsored by Investcorp Real Estate Group on the acquisition of senior loans, mezzanine loans, CMBS and B-pieces. Other clients include Wells Fargo, Oaktree Capital, Lehman Brothers and Fortress Investment Group. Los Angeles-based Drew Flowers is a ‘very strong attorney’ and a ‘strong advocate for his clients’.

Within Domestic tax: Central, tier 4

Gibson Dunn has established an excellent reputation for federal and state tax work, with expertise in oil and gas taxation now leveraged into the growing alternative energy sector. Dallas resident partner David Sinak provides ongoing advice to Merit Energy in connection with direct investment in oil and gas, including the 2010 new limited partnership offering of $750m for investments in the US. Practice clients include Warburg Pictus, Atmos Energy and Eagle Materials.

Within Domestic tax: West Coast, Gibson Dunn is a first tier firm,

Gibson Dunn has a strong regional presence on the West Coast with a tax practice concentrated in Los Angeles, representation in Orange County, and access to the expertise of other US offices and the firm’s European tax lawyers. Though comparatively small, the practice group has extensive experience of the tax complexities in key Californian business sectors such as media and entertainment, technology and life sciences. Hatef Behnia ranks as the senior member of the team, although the younger attorneys are now also well-established. Paul Issler, a ‘very talented, very smart, low key guy’, provided tax advice to Intel in structuring and developing the multibillion-dollar WiMax network joint venture with partners including Clearwire Corporation, Sprint and Comcast. Dora Arash, ‘an encyclopedia of tax, a tremendous resource’, combines a strong tax planning department with controversy instructions. In Orange County, Scott Knutson is ‘a very good tax lawyer, diversified and practical’. Practice group clients include Washington Mutual, Nokia and Amazon.com.

Within Employee benefits and executive compensation, tier 5

Gibson Dunn provides excellent service standards in an all-round practice which handles both benefits and compensation issues including ERISA, tax and fiduciary matters, plan design and compliance. The five-partner, eight-associate practice is co-chaired by Michael Collins in Washington DC and Stephen Fackler in Palo Alto. Los Angeles-based Sean Feller is providing ongoing advice to AECOM Technology Corporation in connection with the design and administration of executive and employee compensation and benefit plans and arrangements and related SEC disclosure obligations. William Kilberg has a broad and expert advisory practice, and is a member of the team representing the NFL Players Association in collective bargaining over employee benefits. Practice clients include Douglas Dynamics, Dole Food and Apple.

Within International, Gibson Dunn is a third tier firm,

Gibson Dunn’s tax practice group numbers some 30 lawyers with the majority of the US team based in New York, Washington DC and Los Angeles. The international tax lawyers have attracted a strong following and, in addition to serving on multi-practice teams on larger deals, have built an advisory practice and several areas of niche expertise including the taxation of Sharia-compliant investment vehicles. Recommended lawyers in the group include Washington DC-based practice group chair Arthur Pasternak, who specializes in cross-border corporate and real estate work. Jeffrey Trinklein has provided tax advice to the Kuwait Investment Authority on numerous matters including a $1bn investment in the preferred shares of Dow Chemical Company. Also in New York, David Rosenauer and Romina Weiss specialize in private equity transactions, and have handled numerous complex cross-border transactions. Practice clients include Heineken, CVC Venture, Credit Suisse Alternative Investments and Arcapita Bank.