Sullivan & Cromwell to open Brussels office with antitrust hire 

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Sullivan & Cromwell, the US corporate law firm, has poached a senior European competition lawyer to open its first new office in nearly two decades based in Brussels.

Michael Rosenthal is joining S & C as partner to work on EU and German competition matters from Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, the Palo Alto-based firm, which is best known for its work related to technology companies.

Mr Rosenthal, who is trained in German and US law, has previously worked with tech groups such as Dell and Spotify as well as industrial groups such as Chevron, BMW and K+S. S & C is one of the top firms advising multinational companies on cross-border transactions, which often require clearance from regulators in a number of jurisdictions.

Its recent deals include advising German chemicals-to-drugs conglomerate Bayer on its $66bn acquisition of US agribusiness Monsanto, which is in front of European Commission regulators, and US industrial gas company Praxair on its $65bn merger with German rival Linde.

EU competition reviews have become increasingly more difficult to clear under the tenure of commissioner Margrethe Vestager. S & C has previously co-ordinated its European antitrust work from its three existing offices in the region, London, Paris and Frankfurt.

However, the move to open a new Brussels office — the first since opening in Beijing in 1999 — comes as the UK prepares to enter negotiations to leave the EU. Mr Rosenthal will work closely with Juan Rodriguez, the firm’s head of EU antitrust work, who is based in London.

“We very rarely move laterally at the partnership or associate level,” S & C chairman Joseph Shenker said. “Whether or not there was Brexit, we would have brought Michael on board. The increasing globalisation of business and cross-border dealmaking is something that is inexorable. It has been a constant part of our business and it is growing.”

Hewitt Pate, general counsel for Chevron, said: “One of the things that makes Michael exceptional is his ability to work seamlessly with clients, whether they are European or American.”

Earlier this year, the firm hired Renata Hesse as a partner in its Washington DC office. She joined from the US government where she was acting assistant attorney-general in charge of the Department of Justice’s antitrust division.

A few S & C partners have left the firm to join the administration of US President Donald Trump including Jay Clayton, who is now the head of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Jeffrey Wall, who is acting solicitor general, and Brent McIntosh, who has been nominated to be general counsel of the Treasury Department.

 

Source: FT

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