McDermott Will & Schulte has hired transactional partner Kalish Mullen in Paris from Kirkland & Ellis to lead and develop the office’s finance offering.
Mullen’s practice spans acquisition finance – including uni-tranche, term loan B and senior/holdco structures – recapitalisations, fund-level liquidity solutions and other sponsor-side financings. He will work closely with colleagues across Paris, London, Milan, Frankfurt and other European hubs on complex, multijurisdictional matters.
Prior to joining Kirkland in 2022, Mullen trained and qualified at Reed Smith, practising in both London and Paris, before moving to Weil Gotshal & Manges, where he continued to build his cross‑border finance and private capital experience.
The move follows McDermott’s merger with Schulte Roth & Zabel in August last year to form a 1,750‑lawyer firm with revenues of $3bn.
“We’re focused on accelerating our momentum by investing in exceptional talent and continuing to strengthen the capabilities that matter most to our clients,” said Ira Coleman, the firm’s chairman.
He added: “Kalish’s arrival does just this by enhancing our finance platform and bringing meaningful depth to our Paris deal teams. We’re excited about the energy and experience he adds as we continue building our premier, fully integrated private capital practice across Europe.”
Harris Siskind, global head of transactions, said: “Today’s sponsors expect seamless, execution ready support. Kalish brings deep sponsor-side financing expertise and fund-level know-how at the heart of client demand.”
Grégoire Andrieux, managing partner of McDermott’s Paris office, added: “The arrival of Kalish is a major step forward for our financing practice and reflects the outstanding trajectory of our Paris office and the firm globally. This top-tier hire strengthens our existing teams and enhances our ability to support fund clients across all their financing needs. It also reflects our leading position in private equity in France and Europe and underscores our commitment to delivering best-in-class client service.”
Mullen said he was attracted to the move because of the strength of the firm’s private equity platform combined with its “clear strategic ambition” in Europe, which he said created the right environment for building and expanding a leading sponsor finance practice in Paris.
Mullen boosts the firm’s ranks following the departures of Pierre‑Arnoux Mayoly and Shirin Deyhim to Linklaters in July last year. He is admitted in England and Wales and France, enabling him to work alongside other recent European arrivals, including antitrust lawyer Kristina Nordlander, who joined in London in January.
The firm also boosted its US corporate credentials in August last year with the hire of Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft corporate co-chair Ira Schacter in New York, although it lost more than 20 partners to Dechert in January in a blow to its post-merger plans.
Mullen’s arrival follows Proskauer’s hire of a three-partner private equity team in Paris from Hogan Lovells earlier this month, led by partners Matthieu Grollemund, Hélène Parent and Pierre-Marie Boya.
The team’s exit from Hogan Lovells comes ahead of its planned merger with Cadwalader, though the exits were mitigated by the arrival of Thibault Dupont‑Nougein as a partner on the private equity team, joining from Willkie Farr & Gallagher this month.
Email your news and story ideas to: [email protected]
