Kyle Harris > Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP > San Francisco, United States > Lawyer Profile

Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton houses a destination M&A practice, evidenced by its involvement in complex corporate mandates and high-value global deals across Europe, South America, and Asia. Fielding a stellar client base, which comprises well-known brands in the tech, retail, and telecoms sectors, the group undertakes both public and private M&A of international significance, while also guiding clients through regulatory, fiduciary, and corporate governance issues. Recent work highlights include advising Synopsys in its pending acquisition of Ansys, valued at approximately $35bn. The department is co-led by New York-based David Leinwand, and Paul Shim, who has an impressive track record in advising global corporates. Also in New York is Kyle Harris, a key contact for cross-border M&A and joint ventures, Kimberly Spoerri, who handles complex carve-outs on the buy and sell side, and Kelsey Nussenfeld. In the San Francisco office, Christopher Moore is reputed among tech industry clients, while Benet O’Reilly  assists leading corporations on high-value M&A and private equity investments. Nickolas Bogdanovich left the firm in August 2024.

Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton‘s New York-based shareholder activism practice is skilled in both reacting to and preparing for shareholder activist campaigns, leading on proxy contests and takeover defense in addition to guiding clients through the ever-changing range of demands made by activist groups concerning changes in governance, board structure and composition, as well as providing advice on new activist tactics. The practice co-chairs are Kyle Harris, who focuses primarily activist campaign defense and preparation and is valued by clients in the consumer products, healthcare, industrials and TMT industries, and the highly experienced Paul Shim, who specializes in corporate governance matters. Francesca Odell leads on succession management, complex ESG governance issues, and shareholder engagement and proposals.