‘Co-founding an investment firm was the biggest learning curve of my career’ – Hg GC Samantha McGonigle

‘Co-founding an investment firm was the biggest learning curve of my career’ – Hg GC Samantha McGonigle

Samantha McGonigle – General counsel, Hg Year of qualification: 2003 Hogan Lovells, 2001-06 Weil, Gotshal & Manges, 2006-19 Farview Equity Partners, 2019-24 Paul Hastings, 2023-24 Hg, 2024-present What do you most enjoy about working in PE? Private equity is incredibly diverse and dynamic. Even within a very specialist firm like Hg, which focuses only on …

Freshfields’ Mark Sansom on motorsports, email gaffes and competing on the global stage

Freshfields’ Mark Sansom on motorsports, email gaffes and competing on the global stage

I nearly drowned in a river in Wales when I was four. It had been raining a lot and the boulder my brother and I were standing on beside the river toppled into the water. I fell into the river and was held under by a waterfall. My mother, father and a passerby all dived …

‘I’ve called firms and asked why someone isn’t a partner yet’ – the female GCs shaking up PE

‘I’ve called firms and asked why someone isn’t a partner yet’  – the female GCs shaking up PE

‘No-one should be under any illusion that the hours are fewer, or the work less demanding. You don’t have the luxury of working on just one thing; you’re juggling multiple deals, multiple fund formations and perhaps litigation,’ says Carlyle partner, chief risk officer, head of EMEA and global general counsel (GC) for Investments Heather Mitchell …

The Private Equity Elite: the top general counsel in PE

The Private Equity Elite: the top general counsel in PE

What does it take to run the legal team in one of the most profitable deal shops in the world? After months of discussions with private equity and leveraged finance partners at the leading law firms in London as well as a host of in-house lawyers, Legal Business has come up with the definitive list …

‘The DWF take-private was headline-grabbing and justifiably so’ – Inflexion GC Andrew Stevens

‘The DWF take-private was headline-grabbing and justifiably so’ – Inflexion GC Andrew Stevens

Andrew Stevens – General counsel, Inflexion Year of qualification: 2010 Slaughter and May, 2008-13 Och-Ziff Capital Management, 2014-16 HPS Investment Partners, 2017 Inflexion, 2017-present Within law, the transactional side felt like the natural destination for me and, within that, PE always stood out.

‘I work with the best M&A lawyers in the world’ – Carlyle’s Heather Mitchell

‘I work with the best M&A lawyers in the world’ – Carlyle’s Heather Mitchell

Heather Mitchell – Partner, chief risk officer, head of EMEA and global general counsel for Investments, Carlyle Squire, Sanders & Dempsey, 1996-99 Kaiser Group International, 1999-2001 Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, 2001-02 Carlyle, 2002-present I absolutely love my job. There’s a natural synergy in my roles as GC for global investments and chief risk …

High achievers – private equity is changing; meet the elite GCs at the vanguard of the transformation

High achievers – private equity is changing; meet the elite GCs at the vanguard of the transformation

From dating apps to entertainment venues, airports to music collections, there’s almost no industry left untouched by the multitrillion-dollar private equity market. And, with these secretive organisations continuing to diversify their business into new asset classes such as infrastructure and credit, it’s an industry that is not only still changing but also still growing.

‘There are many memorable moments that that can’t be shared’ – Charterhouse GC Tom Patrick

‘There are many memorable moments that that can’t be shared’ – Charterhouse GC Tom Patrick

Tom Patrick – GC, Charterhouse Year of qualification: 1999 White & Case, 2001-05 D.B. Zwirn & Co, 2005-10 Charterhouse, 2010-present Why did you want to become a private equity lawyer? I didn’t really – I originally wanted to be a journalist but once I did law, I was very keen to go in-house and get …

‘A PE firm is one of the most interesting places for an in-house lawyer’ – Cinven GC Babett Carrier

‘A PE firm is one of the most interesting places for an in-house lawyer’ – Cinven GC Babett Carrier

Babett Carrier – General counsel, Cinven Shearman & Sterling, 1996-2012 Arma Partners, 2013-14 Cinven, 2015-present I come from a family of lawyers. My father was a lawyer, my uncle was a judge, so there was maybe some bias. What I like about the law is that it is very analytical and it rewards logic. You …