Weil, Gotshal & Manges
Encyclopedia
Weil, Gotshal & Manges is a prominent international law firm, one of the largest and most prestigious in the world with 1,200 lawyers and gross annual revenue in excess of $1.1 billion. The firm was founded in New York City in 1931 by Frank Weil, Sylvan Gotshal, and Horace Manges. In 1968, Weil Gotshal moved to its current New York headquarters in the GM building
overlooking Central Park
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The fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the subsequent move by Central and Eastern European countries toward market-based economies prompted Weil to launch its international expansion. The firm established offices in Budapest, Prague, and Warsaw in the early 1990s, and these openings were quickly followed by the establishment of offices in London, Paris, Frankfurt, and Munich. In the 21st century the firm’s international expansion has focused on Asia, where Weil has launched offices in Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong, and Dubai. One-quarter of the firm’s lawyers now practice outside of the U.S. The firm now has 20 offices worldwide.
General Motors Building (New York)
The General Motors Building is a 50-story, 705-foot office tower in Manhattan, New York City, facing Fifth Avenue at 59th Street . The building is one of the few structures in Manhattan that occupies a full city block...
overlooking Central Park
Central Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
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History & Expansion
After its founding in 1931 Weil, Gotshal & Manges grew steadily in the following decades. By 1950 the firm numbered 19 lawyers, placing it first among New York’s “Jewish” law firms. As the ethnic distinctions among the city’s law firms disappeared in the last quarter of the 20th century, Weil continued to grow, establishing a client base that included some of the U.S.’s top corporations – including General Electric and General Motors – and positioning the firm among the largest in the country. In 1975 the firm opened an office in Washington, D.C., its first outside of New York, and this was followed in the 1980s by locations in Miami, Houston, and Dallas.The fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the subsequent move by Central and Eastern European countries toward market-based economies prompted Weil to launch its international expansion. The firm established offices in Budapest, Prague, and Warsaw in the early 1990s, and these openings were quickly followed by the establishment of offices in London, Paris, Frankfurt, and Munich. In the 21st century the firm’s international expansion has focused on Asia, where Weil has launched offices in Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong, and Dubai. One-quarter of the firm’s lawyers now practice outside of the U.S. The firm now has 20 offices worldwide.
Recognition
The firm is rated as one of the top law firms by Vault.com. Chambers and Partners gives the firm high marks in the following practice areas: Bankruptcy, Corporate, Litigation, M&A, Private Equity:Buyouts, Investment Funds:Fund Formation, Financial Services Regulation, Intellectual Property, Antitrust, Patent Litigation, Labor and Employment, Securities Litigation, Entertainment Litigation, and Tax.Financial Crisis of 2008-09
Like many large law firms with successful transactional law practices, Weil was adversely impacted by the recent financial crisis. The presence of the firm’s Restructuring Department – routinely considered one of the strongest in the world – helped to offset the diminished deal flow during the crisis as the firm posted relatively flat revenues during that time. It also helped the firm avoid major layoffs. Weil opted instead to introduce an incoming associate deferral program for 2009 and 2010, which delayed the starting dates of new associates for roughly a year and compensated the deferred associates with a stipend.Key People
- Barry M. Wolf, Executive Partner
- Stephen J. Dannhauser, Chairman
- James W. Quinn co-chairs Weil’s Litigation practice, named several times by National Law Journal as one of the ten top trial lawyers in the United States.
- Thomas Roberts, Chairman of the over 600-lawyer Corporate department and a member of the firm’s Management Committee.
- Ira M. Millstein, senior partner at Weil, one of the leading authorities in the areas of government regulation, antitrust law and corporate governance. He has counseled numerous boards on issues of corporate governance, including the boards of General MotorsGeneral MotorsGeneral Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
, Bethlehem SteelBethlehem SteelThe Bethlehem Steel Corporation , based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, was once the second-largest steel producer in the United States, after Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based U.S. Steel. After a decline in the U.S...
, WellChoiceWellChoiceWellChoice, Incorporated is the parent company of Empire Blue Cross-Blue Shield of New York, created when Empire became a publicly traded company in 2003. WellChoice is listed on the Fortune 500 with revenues of over US$5,000,000,000....
(fka, Empire Blue Cross), Computer Associates and the Ford FoundationFord FoundationThe Ford Foundation is a private foundation incorporated in Michigan and based in New York City created to fund programs that were chartered in 1936 by Edsel Ford and Henry Ford....
. He is Senior Associate Dean for Corporate Governance at the Millstein Center for Corporate Governance and Performance, Yale School of ManagementYale School of ManagementThe Yale School of Management is the graduate business school of Yale University and is located on Hillhouse Avenue in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. The School offers Master of Business Administration and Ph.D. degree programs. As of January 2011, 454 students were enrolled in its MBA...
. - Marcia Goldstein, chair of the Business, Finance & Restructuring department and a member of the firm's Management Committee. She has been at Weil for over 30 years and has handled some of the biggest bankruptcy cases in the world, including the restructuring of WorldCom, Inc.
- Michael FranciesMichael FranciesMichael Francies is a solicitor in the United Kingdom who specializes in equity financing. He is currently the managing partner of the London office of the United States firm, Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP....
, managing partner of the London office and has experience in public and private mergers & acquisitions, private equity transactions and equity issues. - Gerhard Schmidt, managing partner of the German offices and one of the leading private equity and M&A lawyers in Germany. He is one of the few German lawyers to combine competencies in corporate and tax law.
- Harvey R. MillerHarvey R. MillerHarvey R. Miller is an American lawyer. The New York Times called him “the most prominent bankruptcy lawyer in the nation.” Born in New York City, Miller was admitted to bar in New York State in 1959...
has been described by The New York TimesThe New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
as "the most prominent bankruptcy lawyer in the nation". - J. Philip Rosen co-chairs Weil's Real Estate practice, Hospitality and Gaming practice, and Infrastructure practice, is considered one of the leading real estate restructuring lawyers
Notable Deals and Cases
- General ElectricGeneral ElectricGeneral Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
’s $11.6 billion sale of GE Plastics to Saudi Basic Industries Corporation - DIRECTVDirecTVDirecTV is an American direct broadcast satellite service provider and broadcaster based in El Segundo, California. Its satellite service, launched on June 17, 1994, transmits digital satellite television and audio to households in the United States, Latin America, and the Anglophone Caribbean. ...
’s $25 billion stock-for-stock merger with Liberty Entertainment - Sanofi Aventis’ $18 billion acquisition of Genzyme Corporation
- General ElectricGeneral ElectricGeneral Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
’s $35 billion joint venture with Comcast for ownership of NBC Universal - AppleAppleThe apple is the pomaceous fruit of the apple tree, species Malus domestica in the rose family . It is one of the most widely cultivated tree fruits, and the most widely known of the many members of genus Malus that are used by humans. Apple grow on small, deciduous trees that blossom in the spring...
, Inc.’s favorable settlement of litigation with Burst.com - CBS CorporationCBS CorporationCBS Corporation is an American media conglomerate focused on commercial broadcasting, publishing, billboards and television production, with most of its operations in the United States. The President and CEO of the company is Leslie Moonves. Sumner Redstone, owner of National Amusements, is CBS's...
’s successful defense against a lawsuit filed by former reporter and news anchorman Dan Rather - ExxonMobilExxonMobilExxon Mobil Corporation or ExxonMobil, is an American multinational oil and gas corporation. It is a direct descendant of John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil company, and was formed on November 30, 1999, by the merger of Exxon and Mobil. Its headquarters are in Irving, Texas...
’s successful breach of contract suit against Saudi Basic Industries resulting in a $400 million jury award, one of the largest in history - eBayEBayeBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...
’s successful defense in trademark litigation with Tiffany & Co. - EnronEnronEnron Corporation was an American energy, commodities, and services company based in Houston, Texas. Before its bankruptcy on December 2, 2001, Enron employed approximately 22,000 staff and was one of the world's leading electricity, natural gas, communications, and pulp and paper companies, with...
bankruptcy. - Lehman Brothers bankruptcyBankruptcy of Lehman BrothersLehman Brothers filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on September 15, 2008. The bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers remains the largest bankruptcy filing in U.S...
. - Washington MutualWashington MutualWashington Mutual, Inc. , abbreviated to WaMu, was a savings bank holding company and the former owner of Washington Mutual Bank, which was the United States' largest savings and loan association until its collapse in 2008....
bankruptcy. - General MotorsGeneral MotorsGeneral Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
bankruptcy.