Richard Birns > Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP > New York, United States > Lawyer Profile

Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP has continued to expand its private equity team, recruiting domestic and cross-border middle-market specialist Lilit Voskanyan in January 2021 from Kirkland & Ellis LLP, and New York’s Marwan Azzi, who focuses on energy and infrastructure work, from White & Case LLP in August 2021. Elsewhere, the team advises a wide range of sponsor clients, including private equity houses, sovereign wealth funds, and growth capital investors on buyouts, minority investments, and portfolio company M&A, with a strong focus on multi-jurisdictional dealmaking. The team is now led by Ari Lanin in Los Angeles, who enjoys productive relationships with the likes of Platinum Equity, and Richard Birns in New York, known for his work in the technology, media, sports, and entertainment sectors. Also in New York, Steven Shoemate is a trusted advisor for private equity deals, private M&A, and associated corporate issues, while Century City’s Candice Choh advises sponsors on transactions and internal governance issues, with Leonard Green & Partners a notable client. In New York, Sean Griffiths maintains a strong record in complex carve-out and spin off transactions.

Split between Los Angeles and New York, the team at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP handles matters for the traditional entertainment industry like Bollywood studio Eros International Plc and represents investors funding cutting-edge technologies such as Point72 in its investment in RECUR, which operates in the NFT space. Practice co-head Kevin Masuda is based in Los Angeles and advises both content production companies in film, music, gaming, and sports as well as their financiers such as Square, Inc. which he recently represented in its acquisition of TIDAL. Fellow Los Angeles co-head Benyamin Ross counsels both private equity and venture capital firms as well as tech companies like Screenshop in its acquisition by Snapchat. On the east coast, New York side of the practice John T. Gaffney advises on M&A, divestitures, joint ventures, and capital market transactions. Richard Birns broadens the scope of the practice with his additional expertise in corporate governance and takeovers and recently represented YGE Legends Holdings LLC in the sale of Legends Hospitality to global investment firm Sixth Street Partners. Stefan dePozsgay is a highly active member of the New York team, who represents clients in corporate matters both domestically and cross-border.