Chair and Managing Partner Barbara Becker has been named to The Lawyer’s Hot 100 2026, which recognizes excellence and relevance in the legal sector.

The Lawyer describes how it is Barbara’s “ability and willingness to connect the dots which has underpinned Gibson Dunn’s expansionist platform” and states that “2026 is already gearing up to be another power period.”

Gibson Dunn advised Aurora Capital Partners, a leading middle-market private equity firm, on its acquisition of Anova, the leading global provider of Industrial Internet of Things solutions to remotely monitor and manage industrial assets for the industrial gas, propane, fuels, lubricants, and chemicals industries.

Our corporate team was led by partner Ari Lanin and included associates Jonathan Lee, Suji Han, and Valy Menendez. Partners Aaron Adams and Tom Brower and associates Maithili Bagaria and Ruoqi Wei advised on financing. Partner Dora Arash and associates Bree Gong and Eugene Wei-En Woo advised on tax aspects. Partner Sean Feller and associate Akiva Reich advised on benefits. Partner Daniel Angel, of counsel Scott Roe, and associate Nate Hancock advised on IP aspects.

In a Reuters article on the rise of “zombie firms” in private equity markets — struggling portfolio companies unable to attract buyers — partner James O’Donnell comments on the challenges limited partners (LPs) face when seeking to fire the buyout firm and replace it with another firm to wind down the assets.

James says that, with voting thresholds frequently set high to do this, often 75%, gaining such a level of consensus is difficult.

“Often there are conflicting interests between LPs,” he notes. For example, big LPs may view any single disappointing fund as a rounding error on their wider portfolio. Others may have cash tied up in other vehicles with the same manager, making them unwilling to rock the boat. The upshot is that firing managers is much rarer than in other arms of the asset management industry, like listed UK investment trusts, where a simple majority will often do.”

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security has undergone significant institutional changes under the Trump administration that present enormous practical challenges but also create unexpected opportunities for exporters, write partner Christopher Timura and associate Scott Toussaint for Law360 [PDF].

“Practitioners should not let this moment pass by,” they write. “Although the continuing overhaul of BIS has complicated the day-to-day activities of numerous exporters, it potentially also offers industry a once-in-a-generation opening to advocate for simplifying and rationalizing U.S. export controls.”

Gibson Dunn announced today that Blake Estes has joined the firm’s New York office as a partner in its preeminent Investment Funds Practice Group. Blake advises asset managers and broker-dealers through all aspects of the structuring, development and distribution of retail investment products, including interval funds, tender offer funds, Business Development Companies (BDCs), and Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs).

“Blake’s impressive experience with retail investment products, including registered funds, combined with his in-house and private practice background, further strengthens our Investment Funds Practice Group,” said Shukie Grossman, Global Chair of the Investment Funds Practice Group. “As the retailization of private capital markets continues, Blake’s arrival complements our private credit, private equity, and real estate practices and supports the multidimensional needs of our clients.”

“I’m excited to join Gibson Dunn and grow my practice on the firm’s investment funds platform alongside a team known for its incredible bench strength, market knowledge, and collaborative, client-focused approach,” said Blake. “Alternative asset managers are increasingly focused on accessing retail and mass-affluent capital, and I look forward to helping clients navigate the complex structuring, compliance, and operational challenges associated with the rapid growth of evergreen capital vehicles sold through private wealth distribution channels.”

Gibson Dunn’s Investment Funds Practice Group is a top-tier practice advising sponsors across geographies, asset classes, and fund structures. With a deep bench and extensive experience, the team provides the full scope of fund services needed to navigate the challenges and opportunities facing investment fund managers in today’s market. From fund formation to fund servicing to fund finance, and tax planning, complex secondaries, management company transactions, and regulatory and compliance matters, the team delivers top-of-the-market knowledge and senior-level, commercial counsel across the lifecycle of a fund. The practice has continued to expand to deliver integrated, full-service support to clients, most recently welcoming Marian Fowler in Washington, D.C., Duncan McKay in New York, James O’Donnell and Hannah Watson Fanin in London, and Carolyn Abram in Dubai.

About Blake Estes

Blake’s practice is focused on retail investment products structured for distribution to noninstitutional investors, primarily through wirehouse wealth management platforms and independent RIA networks. He represents sponsors and distributors of interval funds, tender offer funds, BDCs and REITs, among other retail-focused products. He focuses on product structuring, compliance, operations, fundraising, and distribution within complex regulatory frameworks.

Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, Blake served as a partner at an international law firm and General Counsel at CION Investments, an early sponsor of retail alternatives products.

Partner Ted Boutrous discussed the launch of our First Amendment and Free Expression Practice Group with The AmLaw Litigation Daily [PDF]. Ted is Co-Chair along with partners Katie Townsend and Connor Sullivan. Ted stressed the importance of the practice group for everyone.

“One thing about the First Amendment … it cuts across all ideologies, all political parties,” Ted said. “It’s a universal. And these rights are really fundamental to freedom and liberty, and everyone benefits from them.”

Partners Ted Boutrous, Katie Townsend and Connor Sullivan, Co-Chairs of our newly launched First Amendment and Free Expression Practice Group, discussed the new practice with Law360 [PDF].

“Clients increasingly turn to us for advice and representation on First Amendment matters that present complex, novel issues, and we continue to deliver outstanding results,” Katie said. “We decided it made sense to have a formal home for that work.”

In the January 2026 volume of the St. Mary’s Law Journal [PDF], associate Jack DiSorbo discusses the first year of practice for the new Texas Business Court, including case statistics, analysis of first-year opinions, and an evaluation of amendments from the recent legislative session.

According to the Octus 2025 Americas Restructuring Rankings, Gibson Dunn was the most retained legal advisor for all engagements with 51 total engagements. The firm was also the most retained legal advisor for creditor side engagements for the second consecutive year with 47. These impressive numbers came in a year where the volume of mandates increased in double digit percentages from 2024.

The Americas Restructuring Rankings report ranks market-leading advisors based on their involvement in the restructuring markets in 2025.

The American Lawyer [PDF] recognized Gibson Dunn as Litigation Department of the Year in Intellectual Property in 2025, citing the firm’s sustained success for Cisco Systems, including three jury verdicts within a year, in patent infringement cases involving networking technology. The publication noted these results and the many other successes that led to this recognition as emblematic of the firm’s broader strength in high-stakes IP litigation.

These victories were part of a series of significant results achieved by Gibson Dunn’s Intellectual Property practice group during the year. The American Lawyer also highlighted major wins for clients including Dell EMC and SharkNinja, underscoring the group’s ability to deliver decisive outcomes across a wide range of technologies, industries, and litigation forums.

For the 11th time, Gibson Dunn has been named a Firm of the Year by Law360 [PDF], taking a top spot with the most 2025 Practice Group of the Year honors. Our firm was recognized for its many successes in seven categories: Appellate, Employment, Energy, Intellectual Property, Life Sciences, Media & Entertainment, and Telecommunications.

“We have a truly integrated global platform, but what matters most is how effectively we use it — matching the right expertise to each matter and executing at the highest level,” said Chair and Managing Partner Barbara Becker.

Barbara noted that the multiple Practice Group of the Year wins highlight the firm’s ability to use its expertise in various industries to create optimal legal teams that can stretch across different offices and practices: “We bring the full strength of Gibson Dunn’s integrated platform to these industries, across litigation, regulatory, investigations and transactions, delivering excellence for our clients.”

Gibson Dunn today formally launched a First Amendment and Free Expression Practice Group, creating a dedicated home for the firm’s longstanding expertise in advising and defending clients on matters involving fundamental freedoms and the free exchange of ideas.

“Gibson Dunn has been at the forefront of defending free expression in the United States and throughout the world for generations,” said Theodore J. Boutrous, Jr., Co-Chair of the First Amendment and Free Expression Practice Group. “From challenging government action targeting free expression, defending against private litigation seeking to impose liability on protected corporate speech, advising clients on defamation risk around the world, or challenging government action targeting news media organizations, our clients trust us to navigate the free expression issues that have defined industries and made history. Our First Amendment and Free Expression group acknowledges and highlights that important work.”

Gibson Dunn’s First Amendment and Free Expression team has long been recognized for its experience handling complex, high-stakes matters that test the boundaries of free expression in today’s evolving technological and regulatory landscape. The group represents clients across industries and jurisdictions in private litigation involving claims like defamation, in challenging government regulations and statutes that restrict or punish free expression, and defending against efforts to impose liability on protected corporate speech. From major news organizations and leading technology platforms to entertainment studios and AI innovators, the firm’s lawyers are shaping the future of free expression through their work in landmark cases worldwide.

“Free expression issues have never been more complex—or more consequential,” said practice group Co-Chair Katie Townsend. “We have spent decades representing news media organizations and protecting the rights of the press against private litigation and government retaliation to ensure the public continues to receive unrestricted, accurate reporting on the issues of the moment.”

“From inventive private lawsuits to shifting regulatory landscapes, clients need counsel who understand both the constitutional principles at stake and the business realities driving them,” said practice group Co-Chair Connor Sullivan. “Our team has significant experience defending speech and expression on every frontier—from traditional media to emerging AI technologies—and we bring the insight and expertise to guide clients through these challenges around the world.”

The practice group also represents individuals and institutions of every faith when their rights are implicated under the First Amendment’s Religion Clauses, combatting discrimination on the basis of religion, protecting the autonomy of religious institutions, and defending free exercise of religion. Our colleagues ensure the proper application of both the Free Exercise Clause and the Establishment Clause, as well as the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA), the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), and its state equivalents. We have had extraordinary success advising clients on cutting-edge topics, bringing affirmative litigation in state and federal trial courts across the country, prosecuting appeals up to and including landmark decisions at the U.S. Supreme Court, and filing amicus briefs at every level.

The First Amendment team collaborates closely with Gibson Dunn’s preeminent Appellate and Constitutional Law, Administrative and Regulatory Law, Intellectual Property, Tech and Innovation, Technology Litigation, Trials, and Media, Entertainment and Technology Practice Groups to provide comprehensive counsel at every stage of litigation and regulation.

“Whether the challenge involves defamation claims in the age of AI, government retaliation against journalists, or cross-border speech disputes, Gibson Dunn stands ready to defend our clients’ rights and the principles of free expression that underpin democracy,” added Theodore.

Read more about our First Amendment and Free Expression Practice Group: https://www.gibsondunn.com/practice/first-amendment-and-free-expression/

Partner Ted Boutrous spoke with NPR’s “Morning Edition” about the FBI executing a search warrant at the home of a Washington Post reporter. Ted commented that the situation is of importance to all Americans: “That’s why the First Amendment imposes these protections for journalists. It’s not for the individual journalists. It’s really for the American people so they can get the information they need to put a check on government abuses and to elect the people who they think will do the best job running the country.”

The Texas Lawbook (subscription required) reported that 12 Gibson Dunn lawyers were among the 135 in the state who were lead counsel on billion-dollar M&A transactions in 2025. These 12 deals totaled $54.1 billion in deal value, second among all firms. Gibson Dunn led two megadeals with price tags of $10 billion or more.

Lawdragon has named 21 Gibson Dunn lawyers to its list of 500 Leading Global Antitrust & Competition Lawyers. These lawyers are “the advisors who negotiate deals that pass regulatory scrutiny, battle for consumers as well as companies in massive competition contests and navigate the frameworks of numerous countries and markets for global forces.”

Congratulations to: Attila Borsos, Rachel Brass, Christopher Dusseault, Sébastien Evrard, Svetlana Gans, Kai Gesing, Scott Hammond, Kristen Limarzi, Joshua Lipton, Samuel Liversidge, Ali Nikpay, Michael Perry, Cynthia Richman, Christian Riis-Madsen, Jay Srinivasan, Eric Stock, Rod Stone, Daniel Swanson, Deirdre Taylor, Stephen Weissman, and Betty Yang.

Gibson Dunn advised Point72 Ventures on an agreement with Portage to assume management of select fintech assets from the Point72 Ventures portfolio.

The Gibson Dunn corporate team was led by partners Stefan dePozsgay, Candice Choh, and A.J. Frey and included associates Jonathan Lee, Curtis Vella, Jack Rogers, Colleen Bazak, and Sam Harris. Partner Dan Zygielbaum advised on tax aspects, and partner Kevin Bettsteller advised on regulatory aspects.

Gibson Dunn is advising PayPal, one of the world’s leading digital commerce companies, on its expansion in New York City at the 345 Hudson and 555 Greenwich office complex in Hudson Square. Gibson Dunn will continue advising PayPal through the construction phase.

The Gibson Dunn real estate team includes partner Andrew Lance and associate Ben Imdieke.

Gibson Dunn advised on 14 M&A deals in the Middle East and North Africa region in 2025, worth a total of $64.7 billion, reports Law.com International (subscription required) based on London Stock Exchange Group data.

The MENA M&A work propelled the firm from ninth place in 2024 to second place last year in terms of the value of M&A deals in the region.

Marwan Elaraby, Partner in Charge of the Gibson Dunn Dubai office, told Law.com International that inbound investment has evolved from simple, de-risked infrastructure into far more varied sectors such as data centers and retail, while outbound capital has shifted beyond U.S. Treasuries and funds into AI, sports, media, and energy. Combined inbound, outbound, and regional activity explains the sharp acceleration in deal flow now being seen.

“On the inbound,” Marwan said, “more and more global private equity firms are opening offices in the region and have teams on the ground looking for opportunities. That’s a trend that we didn’t used to see.”

Gibson Dunn announced today that Armando Albarrán, widely regarded as one of Spain’s preeminent corporate lawyers, will be joining the firm as a partner in its Private Equity and M&A Practice Groups. His arrival will be followed by the opening of Gibson Dunn’s Madrid office and represents a significant expansion of the firm’s European transactional platform.

“Armando brings a leadership ethos defined by client service, excellence, and collaboration—precisely the qualities that will drive the success of our new office,” said Barbara Becker, Chair and Managing Partner of Gibson Dunn. “Madrid is a vital European hub for private equity and cross-border M&A, particularly for sponsors and multinationals executing high-value transactions between Europe and the Americas. This expansion strengthens our ability to serve clients on their most sophisticated deals across the region.”

“Armando has advised on many of the most significant Spanish and cross-border transactions,” said Federico Fruhbeck, Co-Head of Gibson Dunn’s Private Equity Group in Europe. “His arrival positions us to advise clients on their most sophisticated Spanish matters, while also working with our London and continental European teams to deliver integrated, cross-border advice.”

Gibson Dunn’s European growth has been fueled by sustained expansion in the UK—where the London office has more than doubled in size over the past five years, from 84 lawyers in 2020 to 218 today—and by continued investment on the European mainland. The Madrid opening follows last year’s launch in Zurich and builds on the firm’s long-standing presence in Brussels, Frankfurt, Munich, and Paris.

About Armando Albarrán

Armando is widely recognized as one of Spain’s foremost corporate lawyers, ranked Band 1 by Chambers and Partners in Capital Markets (Equity), Corporate/M&A (High-end Capability), and Private Equity. He brings extensive experience advising financial sponsors and corporates on complex cross-border and domestic corporate finance transactions, including public and private M&A, IPOs, and bond offerings across sectors, including energy, infrastructure, real estate, and telecommunications.

Gibson Dunn is advising Immedica Pharma AB on the acquisition of Neurocrine Group Limited.

Headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, Immedica focuses on the commercialization of medicines for rare diseases and specialty care products.

Our London team is led by partners Wim De Vlieger and Jakob Egle and includes partner Branden Berns and associates Lucy Carr, Alex Eldredge, and Tracey Tomlinson.

Partner Alison Beal and associates Chris Puttock and Ioana Burtea advised on Privacy/IP/IT matters; partner Karen Spindler and associate Carson Zheng advised on Licensing matters; Partner James Cox and associate Georgia Derbyshire advised on Employment matters; Partner Melissa Farrar and associates Irene Polieri and Victor Tong advised on Anti-Bribery/Anti-Corruption/Sanctions matters; Partner Christian Riis-Madsen and associates Jonas Jousma and Alex Delipallas-O’Donnell advised on Antitrust/Foreign Direct Investment matters; Partners Sandy Bhogal and James Jennings and of counsel Bridget English advised on Tax matters.