THE CHEETAH BRIEF – 19th Edition
Weil, Gotshal & Manges has appointed Ning-Ly Seng as the new head of its antitrust team in Paris, bringing her and a five-lawyer team from French firm Peltier Juvigny Marpeau & Associés. Recognized for her expertise in French and EU competition laws, Seng will collaborate closely with Weil’s Brussels, London, and U.S. offices. She succeeds Romain Ferla, who led the team since 2010 and is joining Bridgestone Group as senior competition counsel. Seng previously worked at Bredin Prat and spent time at Cravath, Swaine & Moore in New York. Her move adds to a trend of high-profile antitrust hires across Europe.
MARKET MOVEMENTS
Cleary London hires Rob Sharpe from Kirkland for tax and PE boost.
DOJ veteran, Tim Finley, joins antitrust and competition practice at Baker McKenzie.
Microsoft Assistant GC for international trade, Scott Wise, joins Crowell & Moring in Denver.
Willkie Picks Up Orrick Energy, Infrastructure Practice Leader, Blake Winburne, in Houston.
FIRM SPOTLIGHT - KIRKLAND & ELLIS, LLP
Kirkland & Ellis is a global elite law firm with over 3,500 lawyers, known for its strength in corporate, litigation, M&A, private equity, intellectual property, and restructuring. Founded in Chicago in 1909, the firm gained prominence through its early association with The Chicago Tribune and key figures like Weymouth Kirkland and Howard Ellis, who shaped its legacy in free speech and defamation law. Today, Kirkland boasts top-tier transactional and litigation practices, representing major clients such as Blackstone, Bain Capital, BP, and Intel. It is especially dominant in private equity, handling all stages of deals and consistently ranking at the top of industry lists. The firm also prioritizes long-term relationships through its "Colleagues for Life" program, offering career support and networking tools for both current lawyers and alumni.
INDUSTRY INSIGHTS
The following Big Law firms contributed the most to charitable causes in 2024: 1) Kirkland 2) Sullivan & Cromwell 3) Paul Weiss 4) Quinn, Emanuel 5) Akin 6) Brownstein, Hyatt 7) Gibson Dunn 8) Latham 9) Covington and 10) Hueston Hennigan.
In 2024, Median overall GC package (Fortune 500 public): ~$3.3 million. Median base + bonus (Fortune 1000): ~$365K; total cash ~$557K. Top-tier GCs at major companies: $13M–$30M+, largely driven by equity grants. Emerging equity/incentives compensation model: Stock and performance awards now make up 40–60%+ of total GC pay.
More women than men had moved to an in-house position before making partner at a law firm: 36% of the female GCs had been a partner at a law firm, compared to 42% of the male GCs.
Practice management software provider, Clio, has announced an agreement to purchase legal research provider vLex for $1 billion in cash and stock
INDUSTRY NEWS
Proskauer Hires Sarah Stasny to Lead U.S. PE Transactions
Proskauer has named Sarah Stasny, a veteran private equity lawyer and former Paul, Weiss management committee member, as head of its U.S. private equity transactions practice. Her hire is part of the firm’s strategic push to expand its PE capabilities, distinct from but aligned with its public M&A group. Stasny cited Proskauer’s strong platform and long-term investment in PE as key draws. Firm chair Tim Mungovan called her a “generational talent” and a cornerstone of their growth plan. Stasny will focus on building out the team to meet rising demand from the firm’s elite sponsor clients.
Law Firms Tighten Partner Pay with Performance-Based Gates
To curb “compensation creep” and better align pay with performance, law firms are increasingly implementing or reevaluating compensation “gates” or “toll bridges” that require partners to meet productivity thresholds to advance or maintain pay levels. While traditional lockstep systems are fading, firms are turning to tools like multi-tier partnerships, segmented bonus pools, and performance metrics to reward top performers and hold others accountable. This shift reflects both strong financial performances in recent years and growing uncertainty ahead, with firms becoming more transparent and stringent about the link between compensation and contribution.
