The M&A practice at Ropes & Gray LLP possesses significant expertise in advising blue-chip corporations on big-ticket transactions with considerable cross-border complexity, particularly in the healthcare, media, industrial, energy and infrastructure sectors. The team has handled several notable matters over the past year, including the highly publicized $14.9bn acquisition of US Steel by the Nippon Steel Corporation. Practice head Christopher Comeau leads the team from Boston, and is frequently sought out by a host of high-profile clients in the life sciences and medical technology sectors. Julie Jones focuses her transactional expertise on the technology, life sciences and retail sectors. New York-based Ariel Deckelbaum advises both public and private corporations, as well as private equity and asset management firms. Jackie Cohen, described as ‘highly resourceful’, is equally well versed in handling acquisitions as she is in takeover defence and shareholder activism defence.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Accolades
Client satisfaction: Lawyer & team quality
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
- ‘Sarah Young and Kelly Finn make a great combination. Sarah has a strong analytical mind and her communication/presentation is reassuring to investors/sellers. She handled stressful negotiations with urgency and grace.'
- ‘Strong M&A team and likewise great specialists. M&A team led by talented and diverse partners and senior associates. Knowledge of financial aspects of the deal impressed the CFO, CEO and major investors. Responsiveness from team was excellent.’
- ‘The individuals we worked with truly set themselves apart through their leadership, judgement, and responsiveness.'
- 'Compared to other firms, their ability to integrate top-tier expertise across multiple practice areas into a cohesive, client-focused approach truly differentiates them. The team was also extraordinarily diverse, which I'm sure was a comfort to some of us on the client side.’
- 'They were always available, highly practical, and consistently solution-oriented. They brought creativity and resourcefulness to the most challenging issues, while maintaining tight control over execution.'
- 'They coordinated seamlessly across disciplines and jurisdictions, which is critical on transactions of this scale. The team is both deeply experienced and extremely responsive.'
- ‘This practice stands out for its ability to handle exceptionally complex, high-stakes transactions involving far more than a traditional buyer–seller dynamic. In our case, the deal involved multiple stakeholders beyond the immediate parties, a mix of public and private company considerations, and a wide range of legal, regulatory, tax, litigation, and governance issues that all had to be addressed in parallel.'
Key clients
- Nippon Steel Corporation
- National Amusements Inc.
- Novo Nordisk
- Blackstone / Anthos Therapeutics, LLC
- Eli Lilly and Company
- Eversource Energy
- Abbvie Inc
- Sanofi
- Tiptree
- Leaf Home Solutions
- Xerox Corporation
- Gilgamesh Pharmaceuticals
- EMCOR Group Inc
- Simple Mills
- Machinify
- Ethena Foundation
Lawyers
Leading partners
The strongest partners in their field, leading on market-leading deals and endorsed by peers and clients alike.
Practice head
Christopher Comeau
Other key lawyers
Julie Jones; Ariel Deckelbaum; Jackie Cohen; Emily Oldshue; Sarah Young; Kelly Finn