White & Case has hired Paul Tiger, the former head of US transactions at Freshfields, to boost its M&A practice in New York.
Tiger, who was also co-head of global industrials at his former firm, left Freshfields early last year having joined in 2019 as part of a high-profile team hire from Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton that was widely seen at the time as the UK firm gaining a credible foothold in New York’s elite legal market.
White & Case chair Heather McDevitt said boosting its US capabilities was a key element of the firm’s strategy, adding: “Paul is known for his collaborative approach, and his skill set will support our listed corporate clients and global organisations conducting transactions in the US.”
Tiger advises on public and private M&A transactions and private equity investments, as well as on stockholder activism, corporate governance and fiduciary duty considerations. Before joining Freshfields, he spent 13 years as a partner at Cleary, where he worked on major deals including the $30.5bn merger to create media giant ViacomCBS in 2019.
At Freshfields, he co-led the team that advised Google on its $5.4bn acquisition of Mandiant in 2022 with Ethan Klingsberg, the firm’s co-head of US corporate and M&A, who had moved over with him from Cleary. More recently, he advised JD Sports on its $1.2bn acquisition of US-based retailer Hibbett, with his client base spanning industries including manufacturing, automotive, building materials, chemicals, logistics and retail, as well as TMT and industrial clients and PE firms like TPG and Blackstone.
Michael Deyong, White & Case’s global co-head of M&A, said Tiger’s hire was “another step forward” in the continued growth of the firm’s 300-partner M&A team, which last year advised on global deals worth nearly $285bn, according to London Stock Exchange data, a figure that saw the firm rise one place to 13th in its global rankings.
Freshfields, meanwhile, held steady in seventh place with $452.6bn of deals – earning it the distinction of being the only non-US firm in the top 10.
White & Case noted its corporate practice had made 32 lateral partner hires over the past year, including New York-based Stephen Fraidin, who joined from Kirkland & Ellis earlier this month. Last February, the firm also added a team of partners from Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft in the city led by Richard Brand, a former co-chair of Cadwalader’s corporate group who is recognised as a leading adviser on shareholder activism matters and M&A.
The firm has also been boosting its corporate bench in London with senior hires as it homes in on UK public M&A and public company work. Recruits include Richard Browne, a former global co-head of legacy Allen & Overy’s corporate practice, who joined from A&O Shearman last year.
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