Paul Hastings Adds Market-Leading M&A Partner Eric Schiele

NEW YORK – Paul Hastings LLP announced today that elite corporate M&A lawyer Eric Schiele has joined the firm as a partner in New York and global co-chair of M&A.

One of the leading corporate M&A lawyers of his generation, Schiele joins from Kirkland & Ellis LLP following nearly two decades at Cravath, Swaine, & Moore LLP. Schiele has announced well over $1 trillion in deals — among the youngest M&A partners in the world to have done so.

His practice focuses on big-ticket M&A and public company board and special committee advisory work, with a particular emphasis on public company M&A, including signing the largest M&A deal of 2024. Schiele will co-lead the firm’s M&A group with Eduardo Gallardo, also based in New York.

“Eric is one of the most respected and accomplished M&A attorneys in the U.S. and world. His addition to the firm marks a major leap forward in strengthening our public company M&A platform,” said firm Chair Frank Lopez. “Growing our market share of big-ticket public M&A and broader M&A volume is primary to our strategy. Eric’s industry reputation and unique track record in closing some of the highest-stakes and largest deals over the last 25 years will be instrumental for us to continue to gain market share at the top of the market.”

Schiele’s representations have included transformational deals on behalf of clients such as AbbVie, Kellanova, Amcor, Constellation Brands, Carlisle Companies, Honeywell, Norwegian Cruise Lines and Wynn Resorts, among many others.

Chambers USA, The Legal 500 U.S. and IFLR1000 have consistently recognized Schiele as an industry leader. He is one of only a handful of partners of his generation ranked for M&A in the top tiers of Chambers. In 2024, Schiele ranked #5 in MergerLink’s list of top M&A dealmakers for total deal value. Additionally, he has been singled out by The American Lawyer, Insider and Law360 in annual profiles of leading M&A lawyers, including as one of the select practitioners who have led billion-dollar deals.

“I’m excited to contribute to the impressive momentum of the firm and its M&A practice. Paul Hastings is becoming a true global powerhouse, in part by replicating a successful growth strategy across its platform. The results are evident in the firm’s sustained upward trajectory in the market,” said Schiele. “My clients will benefit greatly from the resulting synergies and complementary practices at the firm that can support their wide-ranging legal needs.”

Paul Hastings has added more than 20 corporate lawyers to its premier global M&A and private equity platforms over the last several years, including Gallardo, who advised Pactiv Evergreen in its recent $6.7 billion acquisition by Apollo Global Management Inc.-backed Novolex. In conjunction with the firm’s M&A trajectory, its shareholder activism defense practice propelled Paul Hastings to #2 in FactSet’s 2024 Shareholder Activism Defense league tables, from #9 in 2023.

 

About Paul Hastings

With widely recognized elite teams across 17 core practices, Paul Hastings is a premier law firm with a culture of excellence focused on providing intellectual capital and superior execution globally to the world’s leading investment banks, asset managers and corporations. For more information, visit www.paulhastings.com.