Weil haemorrhages partners to Paul Weiss, Cravath, Sullivan & Cromwell and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett in transatlantic talent exodus

Weil Gotshal & Manges is losing partners at an accelerating rate across New York and London. A group of three partners, private equity M&A specialist Timothy Burns, tax partner Noah Beck and executive compensation partner Amanda Rotkel, will join former Weil PE co-head Chris Machera at Paul Weiss in New York. The team has advised Blackstone, CVC Capital Partners, Goldman Sachs Asset Management and TPG. Separately, Michael Aiello, chair of Weil's corporate department, departed for Cravath with five M&A partners, while Sullivan & Cromwell hired Weil's London co-managing partner David Avery-Gee and corporate partner Sarah Flaherty. Earlier in the year, S&C had already hired Weil's former London managing partner Mike Francies. A clutch of Weil partners has also defected to Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, including US private funds co-head Stephanie Srulowitz and GP stakes partner Andrew Nichol. Bloomberg Law reported Weil was exploring options including a potential merger; Weil denied it. Meanwhile, Clifford Chance hired leveraged finance partners Taner Hassan and Silvia Menendez, two years after they left CC for Paul Weiss.