Associate: Mergers & Acquisitions - Americas

Firm Summary

White & Case is an elite global law firm serving leading companies, financial institutions and governments worldwide. Our long history as an international firm means we are perfectly placed to help our clients resolve their most complex legal challenges wherever they may be.

With lawyers operating from more than 40 locations, working around the world, we have invested heavily in building a high-quality full-service practice competing at the top of the market. We are distinguished by our on-the-ground presence in the world’s key financial markets and our strengths in handling complex cross-border work.

It’s not just about our global network of offices; it’s the global interconnectedness of the Firm that our people, and our clients, value most. We work well together across geographic and practice boundaries. It’s one of the reasons we attract and retain cross-border work.

Our lawyers are globally minded, enterprising, collaborative and committed to excellence. Our people represent 90 nationalities and speak 80 languages.

Position Summary

We are currently looking for a mid-level associate with private equity and M&A experience to join the M&A/Corporate practice in our Chicago office. This role will advise privately held and high growth companies, as well as venture capital funds, private equity funds and corporate strategics, in connction with equity and debt financings, mergers, acquisitions, divestures, corporate restructurings, and general corporate matters.

As well as possessing excellent academic credentials and legal knowledge, you should also be commercially minded, with a solid grasp of the market and an enthusiasm for the cut-and-thrust of international deal making. Ideal candidates should have excellent drafting, writing and analytical skills, strong attention to detail, organizational, verbal, interpersonal and project management skills. Experience in drafting and negotiating purchase and merger agreements, LLC and LP agreements and other ancillary transaction documents and otherwise meeting the day-to-day requirements of private equity fund and portfolio company clients is expected.

Highly focused, you should display the organizational skills and composure needed to thrive in a demanding, fast-paced practice, working to tight deadlines and managing multiple workstreams and communication channels. Given the fluidity of the deal-making process, you should also be mentally agile—adept at thinking on your feet, and quickly adapting to changing circumstances.

Excellent oral and written communication skills will be major assets—enabling you to negotiate effectively, and to seamlessly manage the flow of information between practice groups, clients and stakeholders. Regularly working in large, international and multidisciplinary teams, you should also demonstrate a collaborative approach and an ease interacting with a wide range of legal and business professionals. Proactive and self-motivated, you should be eager to take ownership of your work product and demonstrate the skill, talent and commitment to deliver outstanding results.

Our Practice Area

Drawing on a global breadth of knowledge and experience, we support major multinationals and leading corporations, banks, private equity funds and other visionaries to execute their largest, most complex multijurisdictional transactions. Combining deep local market knowledge with specialist expertise across the full spectrum of legal areas and business sectors, we have been involved in some of the largest and most high profile M&A transactions worldwide, and numerous market ‘firsts’.

As an associate in our practice, you will be working in an exciting working environment, handling challenging, time-sensitive deals that demand a cool head and positive mindset. From the moment you join, you will be interacting with multidisciplinary teams from across our international offices and practice groups, from Tax and Intellectual Property to Private Equity, Real Estate and Commercial Litigation. As well as learning from leading practitioners within our own group, you will therefore also be ideally placed to integrate yourself within the firm’s wider global network.

As an associate, your responsibilities will include a broad range of communication, logistical and analytical tasks—coordinating the various groups working on a project and ensuring that they are all on schedule, understanding and disseminating transactional information, and liaising with clients and stakeholders. Supported by your colleagues at every step, you will find this work both challenging and rewarding; partners are both accessible and approachable, and as a team, we will ensure that you are given the training and hands-on experience needed to flourish in this field.

Duties And Accountabilities1

• Advising and leading drafting efforts for all aspects of mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, private equity transactions, joint ventures and investments for sophisticated public and private clients
• Leading on due diligence
• Conducting and overseeing legal research
• Ensuring clients’ interests are properly represented and protected at all times

Qualifications

• 4+ years of M&A and/or private equity experience
• A Juris Doctor (JD) degree (LLM or foreign equivalent) from an accredited law school
• Admitted to the Illinois bar (or the ability to become admitted) and in good standing
• Strong academic record and intellectual curiosity, creative thinker
• Commercial and business awareness
• Outstanding communication skills
• Strong time management skills, ability to stay calm under pressure when juggling multiple projects
• Excellent drafting skills
• Driven by professional growth
• Strong professional presence
• Client service focus
• Team player
• Strong judgment
• Proactive, resourceful, takes initiative and a self-starter
• Fluency in English

Location & Reporting

• This role is based on Chicago office

Equal Opportunities

White & Case is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) employer and is committed to creating a fair workplace. It is our Firm’s policy to recruit, employ, train, compensate and promote without regard to race, color, religion, creed, national origin, age, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, military or veteran status, disability, genetic information, or any other category protected by applicable law. Applicants who are interested in applying for a position and require an accommodation during the process should contact talent.acquisition@whitecase.com.

Note To Recruitment Agencies

Our internal Recruitment team are responsible for all end-to-end lateral recruitment processes. All agencies must sign White & Case terms of business, which are office specific. Candidates submitted by an agency without terms of business agreed with the appropriate office, and/or outside of our online application tracking system, will not be considered a formal introduction. Any applications and CVs sent directly to White & Case Partners and employees will not be accepted as formal introductions. If you have any questions, please contact the Americas Lateral Recruitment team.

Benefits

White & Case LLP offers a comprehensive suite of benefit programs to all eligible employees, including medical, dental, and vision insurance, life and disability coverage, 401(k) retirement savings, vacation time, and leave programs (including parental leave). Exempt roles are also performance bonus eligible.

The firm may modify and amend this job description at any time in its sole discretion. Nothing herein creates a contract of employment or modifies the at-will nature of employmen