With offices across the US, including Houston, New York, and Washington DC, Kirkland & Ellis LLP is well-established across energy, infrastructure, and general industrial transactions for private equity sponsors including Blackstone and Bain Capital, on the full range of high-value environmental transactions. In conjunction with its environmental due diligence advisory strength, the group stands out on complex M&A, multinational acquisitions, and divestitures, as well as, various project financing matters. Splitting his practice between the Bay Area and Houston, Paul Tanaka leads the practice and is well-known in the market to energy and infrastructure clients, who turn to him for environmental due diligence assessments and power generation, oil and gas, and renewable energy transactions. In the Dallas office, Jonathan Kidwell‘s broad practice extends to energy and project finance transactions, mergers and acquisitions, and restructurings across the manufacturing, chemical, and mining sectors. Houston’s James Dolphin predominantly handles energy-focused transactions. The deep bench also includes Michael Saretsky, who splits his time between the New York and Bay Area offices and is an expert on environmental-related business transactions, and DC’s Carleigh Trappe Rodriguez and Sara Michaelchuck Webber who are both recommended for work on environmental matters within mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures. Stefanie Gitler departed the team to Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP in March 2025.
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Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
‘This team is unique due to its unyielding focus on one subject area: environmental issues in the context of private equity transactions.’
‘I find Kirkland to be exceptionally unique due to their highly commercial approach to legal counsel. Unlike many other firms that focus primarily on the risks and potential downsides of a project, Kirkland is dedicated to helping clients complete their deals.’
- ‘The strength of Kirkland's team lies in their ability to blend legal expertise with commercial insight. They are solution-oriented and proactive, always striving to get deals done efficiently and effectively.’
- ‘Compared to other legal firms, Kirkland stands out for their positive and forward-thinking mindset. Kirkland's team is committed to finding viable pathways forward, ensuring that clients feel supported and empowered throughout the process. This unique blend of commercial acumen and legal proficiency sets Kirkland apart in the industry.’
‘Very knowledgeable and aware of emerging issues. Uniquely, Kirkland's environment transaction team is well integrated with the lawyers handling other aspects of due diligence and transactions, adding value absent from firms with siloed practices.’
‘Sam Dykstra has especially good judgment and has a broad experience base.’
‘Kirkland's transactional due diligence team is highly knowledgeable and involved in their projects, pushing us as consultants to ensure the absolute best outcomes for their clients. They are highly prepared, leaving nothing to chance. Where outside expertise is needed, they have a network of experts that they can draw from.’
‘I've worked extensively with Paul Tanaka, Michael Saretsky, Sara Webber, Carleigh Rodriguez Trappe, Michelle Sliwinski DeMaio, Jim Dolphin, and Jon Kidwell, and all of them without exception are top notch-attorneys with incredible client focus.’
Key clients
- Bae Systems
- Bain Capital
- Blackstone
- Callon Petroleum
- Carlisle Companies
- Global Infrastructure Partners
- KKR
- Levine Leichtman Capital Partners
- Pritzker Private Capital
- Ridgewood Infrastructure
Work highlights
- Advised TG Natural Resources in its $2.7 billion acquisition of Rockcliff Energy, an upstream natural gas company, from Quantum Energy Partners.
- Advised Southwestern Energy Co. on the environmental aspects of its all-stock merger with Chesapeake Energy Corp. with an enterprise value of approximately $24 billion for the combined company.
- Advised Marathon Oil Corp. on the environmental aspects of its agreement to be acquired by ConocoPhillips in an all-stock transaction with an enterprise value of $22.5 billion.
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Practice head
Paul Tanaka
Other key lawyers
Jonathan Kidwell; James Dolphin; Michael Saretsky; Carleigh Trappe Rodriguez; Sara Michaelchuck Webber; Sam Dykstra; Michelle Sliwinski DeMaio