Law firm Weil opens L.A., San Francisco offices with private equity dealmakers (updated)

Loews

09/07/2024 18:53

(Updated to include statement from Weil spokesperson)
    By David Thomas
       July 9 (Reuters) - U.S. law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges
said Tuesday it is opening new offices in Los Angeles and San
Francisco with a pair of private equity dealmakers from rival
Latham & Watkins.
     Tana Ryan is joining the firm as managing partner of its
new Los Angeles office, while Navneeta Rekhi joins as a partner
in Weil's new San Francisco office, the firm said. 
    Kyle Krpata, who co-chairs Weil's U.S. private equity group,
said expanding the practice also drives growth in related areas
for the firm, like tax, finance and executive compensation.
    A Latham spokesperson did not immediately respond to a
request for comment. 
    Rekhi co-led the Latham team that advised Arcline Investment
Management in its $1.29 billion take-private acquisition of
aerospace parts maker Kaman Corp earlier this year. Kaman counts
the U.S. military, planemaker Boeing  BA.N , and defense firms
Lockheed Martin  LMT.N  and RTX  RTX.N  among its customers.
    Ryan and Rekhi together led a Latham team that advised
private equity firm H.I.G. Capital in its 2023 acquisition of
supply-chain company Ascent Global Logistics.
    Krpata said there is some overlap between the firm's clients
and Ryan and Rekhi's. "We are excited about the fact that they
are bringing new private equity sponsor relationships to the
firm on Day 1," he said.
    Weil, a 1,100-lawyer firm founded in New York, has had an
office in Silicon Valley since 1991. Outside the United States,
it has offices in Belgium, China, France, Germany and the United
Kingdom. 
    Weil's move to expand on the U.S. West Coast comes four
months after the firm said it was considering closing its
Shanghai office, after shutting its Beijing office last year.
        A firm spokesperson said Tuesday it "has consolidated
its Asia operations through the Hong Kong office." The
spokesperson did not immediately respond to requests to clarify
the status of its Shanghai office, which is still listed on its
website.
  

 (Reporting by David Thomas)
 ((D.Thomas@thomsonreuters.com;))