Sidley deepens Clifford Chance talent raid with five partner hires

Sidley has landed another high-profile team from Clifford Chance, recruiting five partners across structured finance and tax, marking the latest high-profile departures from the firm's US practice.

Finance partners Lee Askenazi and Alistair Dunlop have joined Sidley in New York alongside tax partner James Gouwar, while finance partners Robert Hagan and Rebecca O'Brien have joined in Washington, D.C.

Askenazi previously served as co-chair of Clifford Chance's US global financial markets practice

‍The focus

The four finance partners advise across structured capital markets and structured finance, with experience spanning securitisation and asset-backed finance, acting for sponsors, investors and asset managers.

Gouwar specialises in the tax aspects of structured finance transactions, including mortgage and asset-backed transactions and other structured products.

The group joins Sidley as the firm continues to invest heavily in its global finance platform, having already added eight partners to its global finance and tax practice this year from firms including Latham, Cadwalader and Wachtell.

Continuing departures

The latest moves add to a growing list of Clifford Chance partners who have joined Sidley this year. Sidley hired Clifford Chance’s global restructuring co-head Philip Hertz and London restructuring lead Melissa Coakley, who joined earlier this month.

In January, former US funds partners Clifford Cone and Michael Sabin left the firm for Sidley, prompting Clifford Chance to seek the recovery of nearly $5.8 million in profit distributions under its partnership agreement.

What they said

Sidley executive committee chair Brian Fahrney said the firm is building a “fully integrated platform” to advise clients on “the most sophisticated financing transactions”.

Management committee chair Yvette Ostolaza said: “This team of five partners is well known to many of our existing clients and colleagues.

“Their arrival reflects our continued investment in premier teams and practice areas that are strategically important to our clients and to our firm’s long-term growth.”