Good morning,

Davis Polk is tapping Kannon Shanmugam to build a Supreme Court practice in Washington, Sullivan & Cromwell has brought back DOJ criminal fraud lawyer John Liolos as a partner in New York, and Latham & Watkins is eyeing further City of London expansion after crossing $1bn in UK revenue. Meanwhile, DLA Piper partners voted to dissolve the firm’s verein structure, signaling that the once-popular model is losing ground as firms chase higher per-partner profits.

On the client side, the UAE is leaving OPEC effective May 1, China has blocked Meta’s $2B acquisition of AI startup Manus, Google is committing up to $40B to Anthropic, and Shell agreed to buy ARC Resources for $16.4B. Big Tech earnings from Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, and Apple land this week alongside the Fed’s rate decision on Wednesday.

Now, on to what matters for your practice today.

Today’s Talking Points

Talent Strategy

What today’s moves tell us: DC and New York remain the primary talent battlegrounds as firms invest in appellate, white-collar, and sponsor-facing capabilities.

-Davis Polk tapped Kannon Shanmugam to build a Supreme Court and appellate practice in its Washington office. Shanmugam previously built a similar practice at Paul Weiss.

-John Liolos returned to Sullivan & Cromwell as a partner in its litigation and criminal defense & investigation groups in New York, rejoining from the DOJ’s criminal fraud unit.

-Amanda Persaud joined Paul Hastings in New York from Ropes & Gray as a funds partner advising PE sponsors across the full lifecycle of investments.

-Weil Gotshal added international trade and national security partner William “Billy” Phalen from Kirkland & Ellis in Boston.

-Separately, women made up 30% of private equity partner moves in London in 2025, a record, according to recruiter Macrae.

Operational Strategy

Firms are restructuring for profitability and planting flags in high-demand markets on both sides of the Atlantic.

DLA Piper partners voted to dissolve the firm’s Swiss verein structure, clearing the biggest hurdle in a shift that reflects how the once-popular model has become a drag on competitiveness. Separate profit pools have made it harder to attract and retain top talent in a market where rival firms offer single-pool economics. Other vereins, including Norton Rose Fulbright and Baker McKenzie, have also restructured in recent years.

Latham & Watkins London managing partner Ed Barnett said the firm is planning further City expansion after crossing $1bn in UK revenue, describing the office as “brimming with rainmakers.” The push comes as US firms continue to scale their London operations to compete for cross-border mandates.

More broadly, firms are tightening equity structures to create room at the top. As one recruiter put it: “A more concentrated equity structure gives firms more room to compensate star partners or attract major rainmakers, sometimes at the $20-plus million range.” Meanwhile, Legalist closed a $415M legal finance fund, per Bloomberg Law.

Practices

M&A and Capital Markets

Cross-border deal activity is running hot, with energy, pharma, and tech M&A driving the pipeline.

Shell agreed to acquire Canadian shale producer ARC Resources for $16.4B in its biggest acquisition in a decade, adding 370,000 barrels of oil per day. Sun Pharmaceutical Industries will acquire US-based Organon for $11.75B in an all-cash deal. Eli Lilly is buying cancer-focused Ajax Therapeutics for $2.3B, and Apollo agreed to buy the auto interiors business of French supplier Forvia for $2.1B. The Paramount and Warner Bros merger will leave the combined entity roughly 50% owned by Gulf sovereign wealth funds following a $110B transaction. Investment-grade bond issuance hit its busiest day since early March, with Walmart, Intel, and American Airlines all selling debt.

Tech, IP, and AI

AI investment and IP disputes are generating new advisory mandates across antitrust, corporate, and litigation.

China blocked Meta’s $2B acquisition of AI startup Manus, citing security concerns. Meta is now preparing for a possible unwinding of the deal, complicated by the fact that integration is already underway and investors including Benchmark have already received their returns. Google committed up to $40B to Anthropic at a $350B valuation—$10B upfront with $30B tied to performance targets—plus 5 gigawatts of TPU-based compute over five years. Microsoft and OpenAI restructured their partnership: Microsoft gave up exclusive rights to sell OpenAI models, though revenue sharing continues through 2030. OpenAI can now sell on AWS and Google Cloud. Taylor Swift filed to trademark her voice and likeness to ward off AI deepfakes.

Litigation and Investigations

High-profile courtroom fights are pulling in top litigators and raising governance questions.

The Musk v. Altman trial kicked off with jury selection in a breach of charitable trust lawsuit against OpenAI. The nine-member jury will decide whether Altman and co-founder Greg Brockman must give up personal financial benefits from OpenAI’s for-profit operations. Separately, four law firms targeted by President Trump’s executive orders have retained Paul Clement to argue before the DC Circuit that the orders should not be revived. The Supreme Court also heard oral arguments in Bayer’s bid to end Roundup cancer litigation.

Private Equity and Credit

LP pushback on conflicts and fund governance is growing as deal flow slows.

PE backers, including a major sovereign wealth fund and a large US public pension plan, are raising conflict concerns over continuation vehicle transactions where buyout firms sell companies to themselves. Some large firms invest in traditional buyout funds and also run secondaries businesses that back those same vehicles, creating an approval-process tension that LPs are now pushing back on. The fund finance market surpassed $1T this year, per Moody’s, driven by private credit growth. Jain Global, the multi-strategy fund that launched with a record $5.3B in 2024, will return cash to outside investors and manage money exclusively for Millennium.

Where the Work Sits

Cross-border M&A is the biggest fee driver right now. Shell’s $16.4B purchase of ARC Resources, Sun Pharma’s $11.75B deal for Organon, and Apollo’s multiple transactions are creating high-end corporate, finance, and regulatory mandates across New York, London, and Asia. The $110B Paramount–Warner Bros merger brings sovereign wealth fund structuring, media regulatory clearances, and IP work.

Tech and AI matters are widening. China’s block on the Meta-Manus deal means CFIUS, sanctions, and unwinding work. Google’s $40B Anthropic commitment and the Microsoft-OpenAI restructuring create corporate, antitrust, and IP advisory needs. The Musk v. Altman trial and Taylor Swift’s trademark filing add litigation and IP mandates.

Private capital governance work is growing. LP pushback on continuation vehicle conflicts and the $1T fund finance market are producing fund formation, secondaries advisory, and fiduciary dispute mandates. The PE slowdown is shifting leverage to LPs, increasing demand for negotiation-heavy fund terms work.

Antitrust, trade, and regulatory practices are busy across multiple fronts: the Trump law firm executive order appeals, SCOTUS hearings on Roundup preemption, and the UAE’s OPEC exit (which triggers energy regulatory and JV restructuring). Adnoc’s “tens of billions” US gas push adds project finance and energy transactional work.

Global Markets

The UAE’s exit from OPEC, stalled Iran negotiations, and a packed central bank calendar are driving volatility across energy and fixed income.

The UAE announced it is leaving OPEC effective May 1, a move that could shift global oil supply dynamics given its position as the cartel’s third-largest producer. Brent crude rose above $111 per barrel. Goldman Sachs lifted its Q4 2026 Brent forecast to $90 from $80, citing “extreme” inventory draws. Iran proposed reopening the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for lifting the US blockade, but Secretary Rubio called the offer unacceptable and the IRGC said it has no intention of unblocking the strait.

The Bank of Japan held rates at 0.75% but raised its inflation forecast and cut growth projections. The Fed’s rate decision lands Wednesday, with markets expecting a hold at 3.50–3.75% and pricing in less than one cut for all of 2026. The ECB signaled it is “ready to hike” if Iran-driven inflation persists, even as Eurozone composite PMI dropped to a 17-month low of 48.3. US equities ground higher—the S&P 500 (+0.12%) and Nasdaq (+0.20%) hit fresh all-time highs—while the 10-year US Treasury yield settled at 4.336%.

That’s the rundown. See you next where law meets the markets.

-The BigLaw Markets Team

*DISCLAIMER: BigLaw Markets analyzes publicly available information, filings, press releases, and news stories published by reputable media sources to deliver newsletters that highlight the drivers of demand for legal services.