Congratulations to the 193 Gibson Dunn members of the D.C. Bar who completed at least 50 hours of pro bono work in 2024 and are therefore included in the 2024 Capital Pro Bono Honor Roll. In addition, 128 of our Honor Roll lawyers provided 100+ hours of pro bono service, thereby qualifying for the High Honor Roll.

In a joint letter to the honorees, Chief Judge Anna Blackburne-Rigsby of the D.C. Court of Appeals and Chief Judge Milton C. Lee, Jr., of the D.C. Superior Court wrote: “Thank you for contributing your time and expertise to expand access to justice for those who cannot afford legal representation. We are exceedingly proud of the robust tradition of pro bono service in our legal community.”

The lists are available here: https://www.dccourts.gov/sites/default/files/Final_2024_Pro_Bono_Honor_Roll_by_Affiliation.pdf

Gibson Dunn advised Togetherwork Holdings on its sale of UnionWare and MemberTrak, two North American leaders in the union software industry, to Valsoft Corporation, a Canadian company specializing in the acquisition and development of vertical market software businesses.

Our corporate team was led by partner Christopher Harding and included associates Kiel Sauerman and Sam Harris. Partner Michael Cannon and associates Josiah Bethards and Duncan Hamilton advised on tax aspects. Partner Sean Feller and associate John Curran advised on benefits. Partner Meghan Hungate and associate Jacqueline Malzone advised on IP. Partner Kari Krusmark and associate Jocelyn Shih advised on commercial transaction aspects.

Dallas partner Allyson Ho has been appointed by President Donald Trump to the White House’s new Religious Liberty Commission. The commission was established by a presidential executive order on May 1, 2025.

According to the executive order, the commission is tasked with producing “a comprehensive report on the foundations of religious liberty in America, the impact of religious liberty on American society, current threats to domestic religious liberty, strategies to preserve and enhance religious liberty protections for future generations, and programs to increase awareness of and celebrate America’s peaceful religious pluralism.” It will also “advise the White House Faith Office and the Domestic Policy Council on religious liberty policies of the United States.”  The commission will have up to 14 members, including clergy and legal experts.

Allyson is Co-Chair of our firm’s nationwide Appellate and Constitutional Law Practice Group.

Read the full text of the executive order: https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/05/establishment-of-the-religious-liberty-commission/

Gibson Dunn is pleased to announce that James Cameron has joined the firm’s London office as a partner in its Finance Practice Group and as Co-Chair of its Transportation and Space Practice Group.

James is ranked Band 1 for Asset Finance: Aviation Finance by Chambers UK, where clients describe him as “excellent in terms of industry and market knowledge as well as getting things resolved quickly, pragmatically and efficiently.” He has advised on some of the sector’s most significant transactions in recent years, including SMBC Aviation Capital on its $1.6 billion acquisition of Goshawk Aviation’s commercial aircraft leasing platform, the restructuring of Nordic Aviation Capital and the recent sale of Falko to HPS.

Commenting on James’ arrival, Madalyn Miller, Co-Chair of Gibson Dunn’s Transportation and Space Group, said: “James is the biggest name in the transportation sector globally, and has a well-deserved reputation for steering high-level industry players on large financing transactions, M&A and restructurings. We’re delighted to have him join our growing international team.”

“Gibson Dunn provides a market-leading platform for supporting clients in the transportation, defence, satellite, connectivity and related sectors. I am looking forward to working with my new colleagues across the finance, corporate, private equity, tax, funds and restructuring teams,” said James.

Gibson Dunn has significantly expanded its transactions teams in London over the past year, with the arrival of finance partners Kavita Davis and David Irvine, restructuring partners Chris Howard and Presley Warner, and funds partner James O’Donnell. M&A partner Will McDonald and private equity partner Will Summers also joined the London office in recent months.

About James Cameron

James advises on financing and corporate work, focusing on the transportation, aerospace, defence and space sectors. He has extensive experience acting on asset leasing and financing transactions involving aircraft, ships, oil rigs, rolling stock and other movable equipment. James advises on the full range of structures, including mergers and acquisitions, capital markets transactions, enhanced equipment trust certificates, securitisation, finance and operating leasing, structured tax-based financings, export credits, restructurings, leasing company acquisitions, asset portfolio sales and purchases, joint ventures and Islamic financings. His clients include investment banks, lessors, financiers, equity investors, private equity, hedge funds, manufacturers, operators and arrangers.

James is ranked Band 1 for Asset Finance: Aviation Finance by Chambers UK and Chambers Global and as a Leading Partner for Transport Finance and Leasing by Legal 500 United Kingdom 2025, and is a notable practitioner in IFLR1000.

He earned his Bachelor of Laws from Queen Mary and Westfield College of London.

Gibson Dunn advised Investcorp, a leading global alternative investment firm, on its sale of RESA Power to Kohlberg.

Our New York corporate team included partners Sean Griffiths, Christopher Lang, and Maxwell Ball and associates Nicolette Fata and Zachary Landow.

Gibson Dunn is advising Marriott International on its $355 million acquisition of the lifestyle brand citizenM, and its related intellectual property. At the closing of the transaction, the citizenM portfolio will become part of Marriott’s system, with the hotels owned and leased by the seller subject to new long-term franchise agreements with Marriott, and Marriott may make up to an additional $110 million in earn-out payments to the sellers based on future growth of the brand over a specified post-closing period.

Our corporate team is led by partners Stephen Glover, Alexander Orr, and Harrison Korn, and includes of counsel Alisa Babitz and associates Tracey Tomlinson, Alex Prezioso, Kevin Chapman, and Anne Lonowski. Partner Matt Donnelly and associates Doug Bresnick and Alissa Fromkin Freltz are advising on tax aspects. Partners Michael Collins, James Cox, and Nataline Fleury are advising on labor and benefits. Partner Daniel Angel and associates Mona Mosavi and Libby Pica are advising on IP aspects.

Partners Joshua Lipton and Attila Borsos, counsel Andrew Cline, and associates Alexander Merritt and Christian Liborius are advising on antitrust aspects. Partners Cassandra Gaedt-Sheckter, Lore Leitner, Joel Harrison, and associates Sarah Scharf and Ruby Lang are advising on data privacy aspects. Partner Michael Diamant and of counsel Pedro Soto are advising on compliance aspects. Partner Michael Murphy is advising on environmental aspects.

Gibson Dunn has advised PAG, a leading alternative investment firm in the Asia-Pacific region, on the formation of its third Significant Risk Transfer fund, PAG BRS Fund III. The fund raised $1.25 billion, including co-investment capital, with commitments from sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, and endowments across North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific.

The Gibson Dunn team was led by partner Albert Cho and included associates Kathy Wen, Keira Su, Christina Fong, and Rachelle Tong. Partner Daniel Zygielbaum and associate Jennifer Fitzgerald advised on tax aspects, and partner Michael Collins advised on ERISA aspects.

A Gibson Dunn corporate team based in Houston advised IOG Resources II (IOGR II) on its joint development partnership with Elevation Resources LLC, sponsored by Pine Brook Partners. This partnership represents the sixth investment in IOGR II and the 18th investment for the IOG Resources platform.

The Gibson Dunn team was led by partner Rahul Vashi and included associates Chris Atmar and Joseph Kmetz. Partner Michael Cannon and associates Josiah Bethards and Nathan Sauers advised on tax aspects.

Gibson Dunn represented BMO Capital Markets, BofA Securities, Credit Agricole Securities (USA), HSBC Securities (USA), and J.P. Morgan Securities as dealer managers in connection with the tender offer by Vale Overseas Limited to purchase for cash Vale Overseas outstanding 8.250% Guaranteed Notes due 2034, 6.875% Guaranteed Notes due 2039, and 6.875% Guaranteed Notes due 2036.

Vale Overseas accepted for purchase $103,462,000 aggregate principal amount of the 2034 Notes, $171,214,000 aggregate principal amount of the 2039 Notes, and $54,765,000 aggregate principal amount of the 2036 Notes.

The Gibson Dunn team was led by partner J. Alan Bannister and of counsel Rodrigo Surcan and included associates Malakeh Hijazi and Vlad Zinovyev. Partner Michael Q. Cannon and associate Blake Hoerster advised on tax matters.

Gibson Dunn is pleased to announce the launch of Biotech Briefings, a new blog offering timely analysis and commentary on the legal, business, and regulatory issues shaping the life sciences industry. The blog is designed to provide insights for companies, investors, and other industry stakeholders navigating key developments in biopharma, medical devices, diagnostics, and beyond. It will feature expert commentary from leading Gibson Dunn attorneys, on topics including FDA guidance, IP developments, SEC updates, M&A and capital markets trends and activity, royalty finance, collaborations/licensing, litigation and international trade.

“Life sciences businesses operate in a rapidly evolving legal and regulatory landscape, and Biotech Briefings will provide them with actionable insights to help navigate critical issues,” said Ryan A. Murr, Co-Chair of Gibson Dunn’s Life Sciences Group. “From FDA and SEC developments to M&A and financing trends, our goal is to keep clients informed on the most pressing topics shaping the industry.”

In conjunction with the launch of Biotech Briefings, the firm has also introduced the Gibson Dunn Royalty Finance Tracker, a comprehensive database of publicly announced royalty finance transactions among the most active funds in the Life Sciences industry since January 1, 2020. The tracker will serve as a centralized resource, providing a reference point for both current and historical royalty financing trends.

Royalty finance has become an increasingly important tool for biotech companies, universities, and investors, and Gibson Dunn’s Royalty Finance Tracker will provide a one-stop resource for tracking key transactions in the life sciences sector.

About Gibson Dunn’s Life Sciences Group

Gibson Dunn’s Life Sciences Group advises innovative biotechnology, pharmaceutical, medical device and diagnostic companies on a wide range of legal, regulatory, and strategic issues. The firm’s lawyers, many with advanced scientific degrees and hands-on experience in the life sciences industry and regulatory agencies, provide tailored legal guidance throughout the entire life cycle of life sciences companies, from early-stage startups to mature enterprises.

Gibson Dunn is advising 1PointFive, a subsidiary of Occidental, on its 25-year carbon dioxide offtake agreement with CF Industries and its joint venture partners JERA Co., Inc. and Mitsui & Co., Inc. The agreement calls for approximately 2.3 million metric tons of carbon dioxide to be securely stored per year at 1PointFive’s Pelican Sequestration Hub in Louisiana.

Our Houston oil and gas team is led by partner Michael P. Darden and senior associate Graham Valenta and includes associate Joseph Kmetz. Partner Gerry Spedale is advising on corporate aspects, partner Michael Cannon and associate Josiah Bethards on tax, partner Michael Murphy on environmental aspects, and partner Stephenie Gosnell Handler and associate Scott Toussaint on international trade.

Gibson Dunn is ranked in 26 league tables in Mergermarket’s first quarter 2025 rankings of leading M&A legal advisors. Our ranking highlights include moving into 6th position for global legal advisor rankings by value and into 3rd position in Europe rankings by value.

Our firm also made impressive gains in rankings of private equity legal advisors, taking the number 10 position globally and the number 7 position among U.S. advisors.

Gibson Dunn advised Andros Capital Partners LLC on the closing of the third investment fund of Andros Energy Capital III LP (Fund III) at its $1 billion hard cap. Fund III is the latest Andros flagship fund focused on private equity investments, credit opportunities, and direct asset-level investments across the energy value chain.

Founded in 2020, Andros Capital Partners is a private investment firm based in Houston, Texas, with over $2 billion in cumulative equity commitments.

Our team was led by partners Michael Piazza and James Hays and included associates Chris Atmar, Ali Speiss, and Michael Holmes.

Gibson Dunn represented Lobos 1707, the tequila company backed by basketball star LeBron James, in its pending joint venture transaction with Diageo Plc.

Our corporate team was led by partners Kevin Masuda and Sarah Graham and included associates Joey Herman, Haley Moritz, and Elise Widerlite. Partner Sean Feller and associate Kayoko Fong advised on executive compensation; partner Kari Krusmark and associate Nate Hancock on commercial/strategic outsourcing; partner Daniel Angel and associate Maya Hoard on IP; and partner Matt Donnelly and associate Alissa Freltz on tax.

Gibson Dunn has secured the dismissal of a defamation lawsuit against our client, Mississippi Today, an online media outlet. The lawsuit, brought by former Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant, alleged that Mississippi Today defamed Bryant through comments made by its personnel regarding the outlet’s award-winning reporting about Bryant’s alleged role in a welfare scandal. The Court agreed with the motion to dismiss, stating that Bryant had failed to plead any legally viable claims.

“Mississippi Today’s Pulitzer Prize-winning reporting on the former Governor’s role in the State’s recent welfare scandal is exactly the type of reporting the First Amendment was intended to protect, and it exemplifies why the Mississippi Constitution calls the right to a free press ‘sacred.’ The Court’s decision honors those constitutional rights and ends Governor Bryant’s unconstitutional crusade against Mississippi’s free press,” said New York partner Lee Crain.

The Gibson Dunn team included partners Theodore J. Boutrous Jr. (Los Angeles), Lee R. Crain (New York), and Katie Townsend (Los Angeles) and New York associates Chase Weidner, Iason Togias, and Peter Jacobs.

Judge Mills’ order dismissing the case: https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/25879902-mills-judgment-4-4-25/#document/p1

Mississippi Today’s brief in support of motion to dismiss: https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/25879903-mississippi-today-brief-in-support-of-motion-to-dismiss/

Read more about the case:

Mississippi Today: https://mississippitoday.org/2025/04/04/a-win-for-press-freedom-judge-dismisses-gov-phil-bryants-lawsuit-against-mississippi-today/

The Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/style/media/2025/04/05/phil-byrant-mississippi-today-lawsuit-dismissed/

The Clarion-Ledger: https://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/2025/04/04/phil-bryant-to-appeal-defamation-lawsuit-dismissal-involving-mississippi-today/82888715007/

Gibson Dunn is advising AIP Management on its agreement to invest in Silicon Ranch Corporation, one of the largest independent power producers and developers of utility-scale energy infrastructure projects in the U.S.

Silicon Ranch’s portfolio includes 3.6 GW of operating capacity, 3.7 GW in construction or under contract, and a near- and mid-term development pipeline of more than 12 GW. Under the agreement, AIP will join an existing shareholder group including Shell, Manulife Investment Management, and TD Asset Management.

The Gibson Dunn corporate team is led by partner Nick Politan and includes of counsels Ata Dinlenc and Jessica Basil and associates George Hang and Vlad Zinovyev. Partner Michael Cannon and associates Josiah Bethards and Nathan Sauers are advising on tax; partner William Hollaway and senior counsel Janine Durand on energy regulatory matters; partner Michael Murphy on environmental matters; partner Michael Collins on employment; counsel Andrew Cline and of counsel Michelle Weinbaum on antitrust and foreign investment; associate Lauren Traina on real estate; and associate Matthew Goldstein on offtake and other commercial arrangements.

Gibson Dunn advised ReliaQuest and KKR on ReliaQuest’s new funding round of more than $500 million led by EQT, KKR, and FTV Capital, with participation from other existing investors Ten Eleven Ventures and Finback Investment Partners.

The Gibson Dunn corporate team was led by partners Wim De Vlieger, Christopher Harding, and Andrew Fabens and of counsel Soren Kreider.

M&A Deal Team:

  • Wim De Vlieger
  • Christopher Harding
  • Soren Kreider
  • Mickal Haile
  • Chris Ayers
  • Sam Shapiro
  • Willem van Hootegem
  • Chad Kang

Capital Markets:

  • Andrew Fabens
  • Clinton Eastman
  • Kevin Mills

Employment/FLSA:

  • Michael Collins
  • Ryan Stewart
  • Kurtis Michael

Intellectual Property:

  • Meghan Hungate
  • Sarah Scharf

Tax:

  • Matt Donnelly
  • Bree Gong

Antitrust/FDI/CFIUS:

  • Christian Riis-Madsen
  • Kristen Limarzi
  • Andrew Cline
  • Claire Shepherd
  • Francois Vanherck

A federal court has vindicated the strategy of a team of Gibson Dunn lawyers who brought a civil RICO suit against foreign actors who tried to ruin their client and steal his company. The court denied the defendants’ motion to dismiss across the board, finding that our team had plausibly alleged predicate acts of wire fraud, witness tampering, extortion, and kidnapping and violations of the federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and turning away jurisdictional, extraterritoriality, and numerous other significant arguments.

After our client, a successful Chinese-born investor now living in New York, refused to participate in a scheme to use his hedge fund as a front to steal U.S. technology for a foreign espionage ring with close ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and its military, and after he reported the scheme to the FBI, he was targeted in one of the CCP’s now-infamous “Fox Hunt” campaigns, in which it seizes assets and exerts pressure abroad on perceived enemies of the state who refuse to do its bidding.

Our team includes partner Akiva Shapiro, senior associate Jason Bressler, and associate Peter Jacobs.

The case is Khan Funds, et al v. Nations Technologies Inc., et al. 

Gibson Dunn advised AIP Management on its agreement to acquire a 49.99% equity stake in Pine Forest, a co-located 300 MWac solar photovoltaic and 200 MW / 400 MWh battery energy storage system project, from Clearway Energy Group. The total investment amount is approximately $200 million. The transaction follows AIP’s collaboration with Clearway on Victory Pass & Arica, a solar and battery storage project in California on which Gibson Dunn also advised AIP.

Led by partner Nick Politan, the Gibson Dunn corporate team included of counsels Ata Dinlenc and Jessica Basil and associates Matt Goldstein and Andrew Watson. Partner Michael Cannon and associates Josiah Bethards and Nathan Sauers advised on tax, partner William Hollaway and senior counsel Janine Durand on energy regulatory matters, partner Michael Murphy on environmental matters, associate Lauren Traina on real estate, and associate Vlad Zinovyev on project construction and operation.

Gibson Dunn advised Stem Distribution founders Milana Rabkin Lewis and Kristin Graziani on the sale of Stem Distribution to Concord Music Group. Stem, a market-leading music distribution platform, will continue to be operated as a separate division within Concord Label Group, led by its existing CEO Milana Lewis and President Kristin Graziani.

The Gibson Dunn corporate team was led by partner Sarah Graham and included partner Taylor Hathaway-Zepeda and associate Christopher Lee. Partner Sean Feller advised on benefits.