Elizabeth Cooper > Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP > New York, United States > Lawyer Profile

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP‘s M&A team remains a key player in the private equity space, standing out for its ability to handle bulge-bracket buyouts, take-private acquisitions, and portfolio deals for major funds including EQT, Silver Lake, and Carlyle. The department’s reach extends across a diverse array of sectors, including life sciences and consumer products, and it also handles a growing volume of deals in the tech and infrastructure sectors. Marni Lerner, an expert on PE investments and divestitures, and Elizabeth Cooper, a key contact for public and private M&A with close ties to private equity giants like Blackstone, co-head the practice from the firm’s New York office. New York-based Michael Holick leads on numerous PE investments in the energy and infrastructure space. Also based in New York is Anthony Vernace, an expert in both strategic and private equity-backed transactions. Palo Alto-based Naveed Anwar navigates complex leveraged transactions and buyouts for the likes of KKR, and Atif Azher, also in Palo Alto, stands as a key contact for fund investments in the tech sector.

The ‘well-rounded‘ practice at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP remains a key player on the M&A market and continues to advise on a wide range of impactful and high-value strategic transactions. The team demonstrates significant expertise in representing clients from across the financial services, tech, and infrastructure spheres, with practice head Eric Swedenburg regularly assisting public and private corporations with a diverse array of mergers, acquisitions and divestitures. The ‘reliable’ Mark Viera focuses on complex dispositions and leveraged buyouts, Lee Meyerson is noted for his expertise in connection with mergers in the financial services industry, and Alan Klein specializes in shareholder activism and corporate governance issues. Mario Ponce specialises in handling negotiated and hostile M&A transactions, and Elizabeth Cooper concentrates on recapitalizations and investments Katy Lukaszewski, who arrived from Sidley Austin LLP in September 2023, handles complex energy and infrastructure-based transactions. All attorneys mentioned are based in New York.

Regulatory matters tied to transactions form the core of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP‘s work in this space, with the firm advising banks, private equity houses, payment processors and insurers on deals in the banking and fintech sectors among others. Alongside its transactional expertise, the team also assists with Dodd-Frank and Basel III compliance. Lee Meyerson leads the team out of New York, with a strong track record of overseeing major bank M&A deals, complemented by a capital markets practice that covers a range of debt and equity offerings. Elizabeth Cooper is the name of choice for a number of global private equity houses for major acquisitions and disposals, while Ravi Purushotham handles large bank M&A; both are based in New York. Amanda Allexon joined the firm’s Washington DC office from Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz in April 2023, advising on the regulatory aspects of M&A transactions while also representing clients before the Federal Reserve, OFAC and FDIC. April 2024 saw the team further strengthened by the arrival from Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP of Sven Mickisch, Matthew Nemeroff and Tim Gaffney in New York and Brian Christiansen in Washington DC.