Paul Weiss joins restructuring talent race with ‘superstar’ hire in New York

Paul Weiss has hired renowned bankruptcy lawyer James Sprayregen in New York, as elite US firms continue to battle for talent in one of Big Law's hottest practice areas.

Sprayregen is considered the architect of Kirkland & Ellis' market-leading restructuring practice. He joins Paul Weiss as co-head of its restructuring and debt capital solutions practice after a stint at restructuring advisory firm Hilco Global.

He founded Kirkland’s global restructuring practice in the early 1990s and built it into one of the world's leading bankruptcy teams. He retired from the firm in 2024.

Capital solutions race

The hire is the latest in a wave of high-profile moves at the top end of the US restructuring market, with elite firms competing to build out their restructuring and capital solutions practices.

Earlier this year, Kirkland restructuring star David Nemecek joined Simpson Thacher to head its newly-formed capital solutions practice. Several members of his team have since followed him, while Kirkland responded by recruiting Wachtell restructuring head Joshua Feltman in a move reportedly worth $80 million over three years.

The competition reflects the growing importance of so-called "capital solutions" practices, with firms bringing together talent from across restructuring and finance to advise on increasingly complex financing transactions.

What began as traditional leveraged finance and restructuring work has evolved into broader capital solutions offerings, often helping private equity clients optimise the capital structures of their portfolio companies. Liability management exercises (LMEs) - out-of-court debt restructurings - have become increasingly popular among companies under financial pressure.

Succession plan

Paul Weiss said current practice co-head Paul Basta, who joined the firm from Kirkland in 2017 and previously worked alongside Sprayregen, will step down as a partner at the end of the year as part of a long-term succession plan.

Firm chairman Scott Barshay described Sprayregen as a "superstar lawyer".

Sprayregen said: "Paul Weiss is a true restructuring powerhouse. I have known many of the Paul Weiss partners for decades, I admire what they have built, and I can't wait to be a part of it."