Simpson Thacher & Bartlett has hit Weil for two more partners, bringing the total number of exits from the firm over the last two weeks to four.
In New York, Simpson has hired US private funds practice co-head Stephanie Epstein Srulowitz. Srulowitz is a Weil lifer, having joined the firm in 2005 as an associate and made partner in 2016.
Commenting on her move, she said: ‘Simpson Thacher’s investment funds team is known not only for the scale and sophistication of its platform, but for the holistic, solutions-oriented counsel it provides to sponsors on their most important matters.’
‘That approach aligns perfectly with how I work with clients, and I am excited to join a team that is shaping the next evolution of fund formation and fundraising,’ she added.
Meanwhile in London, Simpson has hired secondaries partner Simon Saitowitz, who has been a partner at Weil just over a year.
Saitowitz joined Weil from Ropes & Gray last April, and was previously at Weil for over a decade, from 2006 to 2017 as an associate.
His move follows PE partner Murray Cox, who left Weil for Simpson Thacher in London last week. Also last week, Weil’s co-head of PE and management committee member Christopher Machera also left the firm, joining Paul Weiss in New York.
A Weil spokesperson said of Saitowitz’s departure: ‘The market for leading private equity talent is exceptionally aggressive and, like many firms operating in these highly competitive markets, we have seen some partner movement.’
They continued: ‘We have substantial cross-border teams in private equity and its related areas and on Monday, we were pleased to announce the arrivals of Michael Hanna and Jonathan Stott as partners in our US private equity group in San Francisco. These partners further strengthen Weil’s market-leading private equity platform as we continue to strategically invest.’
Hanna joined from Kirkland & Ellis, where he spent ten years as a partner, while Stott joined from Dechert, where he spent nearly 16 years, making partner in 2019.
Despite the recent departures, Weil has been expanding in private equity in recent years, and has grown its US PE practice by 20% in the US since 2022, while its US PE partnership has grown by 58%.
Of 90 lateral partners who have joined the firm since 2023, around 34 have been in PE and private funds.
