Meet the Morgan Stanley rainmaker tapped to chair the M&A division of legislation agency Paul Weiss as fears of investor activism develop

• Morgan Stanley rainmaker Robert Kindler is leaving the funding financial institution for legislation agency Paul Weiss.
• He’ll advise company shoppers on M&A and in defending in opposition to activist buyers.

Robert Kindler, an M&A rainmaker and 17-year veteran of Morgan Stanley, is leaving the funding financial institution to hitch considered one of Wall Road’s prime legislation companies.

Kindler, world chair of mergers and acquisitions at Morgan Stanley, has been named world chair of M&A at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP. Kindler shall be a Paul Weiss companion and can advise the legislation agency’s company shoppers on a variety of points, together with M&A, strategic points, and company governance. Kindler may also advise shoppers on defending in opposition to investor activists as boards brace for a bounce in calls for from hedge funds and different well-heeled buyers looking for to spice up deflated inventory costs.

“I used to be lucky to be part of Morgan Stanley for the previous 17 years as its visionary management reworked it into the main funding financial institution that it’s right this moment,” Kindler stated in an announcement. “Paul, Weiss has the premier franchise for M&A and activism protection and I’m excited to grow to be part of it.”

Final 12 months, Paul Weiss represented the board of McDonald’s in its proxy battle with activist investor Carl Icahn. It additionally represented private-equity agency Apollo World amid questions on co-founder Leon Black’s ties to convicted intercourse offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Final week, Goldman Sachs’ COO John Waldron stated he expects “extra activism,” together with calls for for spinoffs and consolidation, to “propel M&A exercise” because the economic system sours. Waldron made the remarks on the Bernstein Strategic Choices Convention, in keeping with a transcript supplied by information supplier Sentieo.

Defending firms in opposition to activist buyers and vice versa is an enormous enterprise for attorneys, as Insider has beforehand reported.

In his new position, Kindler will work with Scott Barshay, Paul Weiss’ company division chair, and Brad Karp, the legislation agency’s chairman answerable for increasing the agency’s enterprise with shoppers just like the NFL and Apollo.

Kindler began his profession as a lawyer at Cravath, Swaine & Moore, the place he labored with Barshay. He grew to become a companion in 1987 after which co-head of the M&A follow. In 2000, he joined JPMorgan, the place he was named world head of M&A earlier than becoming a member of Morgan Stanley in 2006.

At Morgan Stanley, Kindler suggested Time Warner on its $85.4 billion acquisition by telecom large AT&T and Morgan Stanley’s acquisitions of ETrade and Eaton Vance, which have helped the financial institution’s outgoing CEO James Gorman remodel the financial institution.

Kindler is slated to start out his new job after Labor Day.