S&C lands Kirkland and Weil heavyweights in City expansion

Sullivan & Cromwell has made a rare double partner hire in London, adding Kirkland star Kon Asimacopoulos and Mike Francies, Weil’s long-time London managing partner who retired last year, in a move that boosts its restructuring and private equity firepower.

The Wall Street firm - famously selective with its lateral moves, hiring just a handful in London in the past decade - said the arrivals form part of a global push to expand its private capital, restructuring and leveraged finance capabilities through organic growth as well as external hires.

The new joiners

Asimacopoulos, one of the market’s leading restructuring lawyers, joins after nearly 20 years at Kirkland. He will head S&C’s European restructuring and special situations practice, co-lead the global restructuring group alongside Andy Dietderich and Jim Bromley in New York, and share leadership of the London office with John Horsfield-Bradbury.

Francies, a heavyweight in the City’s private equity scene, led Weil’s London office for more than 20 years before retiring at the end of 2024. He was recently handed a lifetime achievement award by Chambers for his work as one of the most influential transactional lawyers in the City.

Bigger picture

The hires come during a rare spell of partner movement at S&C in London.

It hired regulatory star Barney Reynolds from A&O Shearman in an eye-catching move in June, but lost high-profile finance and restructuring duo Presley Warner and Chris Howard to Gibson Dunn earlier in the year. Howard had been the firm's European restructuring head.

While the arrival of Asimacopoulos could be seen as cancelling out the loss of Howard, Francies' arrival is undoubtedly significant. His reputation and network will likely make him a strong draw for any transactional talent looking to join in the future.

What they said

Co-chairs Robert Giuffra and Scott Miller said: "Kon and Mike will be cornerstones to our plans to continue growing our global restructuring, private capital and M&A practices, building on the thriving European private equity practice led by Karan Dinamani.

"They will help us attract other leading lawyers and enhance our reputation for delivering the highest-quality advice across all of our practices."

Asimacopoulos added: "I’m delighted to join Sullivan & Cromwell, whose strong heritage and track record uniquely position the firm to help clients navigate the increased complexity of the transactional landscape".

Francies said: "S&C’s private capital practice is thriving, and I am incredibly excited to partner with Kon and join forces with Karan to propel growth in this critical area from London".