Free Speech, Due Process and Trial by Jury
In this edition of CDT Roundup, there were 13 deals valued at $13.7 billion. Although the value included an $8.5 billion M&A transaction involving cellular infrastructure, that ranks far better than the prior week's anaemic 7 deals for $2.2 billion, whose value base included a $2 billion loan. For the same week in 2024, we saw 11 transactions valued at $11.4 billion.
EQT Group announced Thursday that it had acquired Crown Castle's small cells solutions business for $4.25 billion through its EQT Active Core Infrastructure fund. In addition, EQT and Digital Bridge-backed company Zayo also announced its own acquisition of a Crown Castle fiber solutions business for $4.25 billion. Lawyers from Kirkland & Ellis and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett are advising on the deals.
Driven by a mix of private equity interest, family office investments and strategic consolidations across multiple sectors, dealmaking was strong in 2024, particularly in Texas, revealing resilience even as the year closed amid tightening credit and unexpected headwinds. Two lawyers stood out in that Texas M&A landscape, each making their mark in distinct ways: Gibson Dunn’s Michael Piazza and Simpson Thacher’s Shamus Crosby.
Dallas' Egan Nelson announced Thursday that it has added Dallas-based attorney R. Scott Cohen as a partner within its practice after Cohen spent the past five years at A&O Shearman.
Kane Russell Coleman Logan announced on Tuesday that it has expanded its presence in Texas by establishing a new office in Austin.
David Washburn always felt "hardwired" to become a lawyer despite his father and others trying to sway him down different paths while growing up. "In what I now understand to be my dad's attempt to induce me to take another path, he gave me a copy of Gray's Anatomy when I started high school. The book bored me to tears," he said, noting it as a moment that further pushed him to pursue law.
Perkins Coie announced Tuesday that it is adding a group of three Texas-based partners, Kyle Fox, Richard Dusenbury and John-Paul Haskins, to its M&A and PE practice. The trio joins Perkins Coie from Greenberg Traurig, where each group member worked for at least five years, primarily serving clients within its M&A and PE practice group.
Gannett announced Wednesday that it agreed to sell the Austin American-Statesman to media conglomerate Hearst, the owner of the Houston Chronicle and San Antonio Express-News.
The cash and stock deal, advised by Kirkland & Ellis and Vinson & Elkins, comes a little more than a year after Diamondback's $26 billion merger with Endeavor Energy. It involves about 40 thousand acres near or adjacent to Diamondback's core holdings in the Permian.
Sara Garcia Duran never considered becoming a lawyer until she was asked to make a decision while on a student trip in high school. She thought about being a politician, but that option didn't sound terribly appealing. “I’ll go join the lawyers,” Duran said.
The M&A-focused partner at Sidley is pleased with her choice. Duran recently gave The Texas Lawbook an in-depth look into her journey and her experience as a woman working as a Texas dealmaker.
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