Baker McKenzie Adds Leading Silicon Valley M&A Lawyer Leif King

Baker McKenzie has added highly regarded M&A lawyer Leif King in Palo Alto, as the Firm continues to rapidly expand its transactional practice within the key Silicon Valley market and globally.

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Leif King, Partner and California Head of M&A/Corporate, Baker McKenzie

Leif joins Baker McKenzie from Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, where he served as head of that firm's corporate/M&A practice in Silicon Valley. A seasoned M&A lawyer, Leif represents clients in a wide variety of corporate transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, private equity transactions, activist investor situations, recapitalizations, spin-offs and strategic investments. He also advises public and private companies on corporate, corporate governance and securities law compliance issues.

“There is no better way to demonstrate our commitment to this market than to bring on board Leif King, one of the area’s best transactional lawyers,” said Colin Murray, Baker McKenzie's North American Chief Executive Officer. “Leif's expertise will enhance our existing team‘s cross-border and post-acquisition capabilities for current and future clients, and will enable us to provide a more robust level of services throughout the deal lifecycle."

"Leif is one of the most highly regarded M&A attorneys in Silicon Valley, having advised clients on numerous large-scale transactions during his 20+ year career," said Michael DeFranco, Chair of Baker McKenzie's Global M&A Practice. "His excellent reputation handling milestone M&A matters for the technology industry will further enhance our transactional capabilities in California and beyond."

“We are already the largest M&A practice globally, but building a world-class team in California is a key element in our strategy,” added Ai Ai Wong, Chair of the Global Transactional Group. “Leif’s hire enhances our global offering significantly.”

Leif has been featured as a Dealmaker of the Week and Dealmaker of the Month in The American Lawyer, and he has been selected for inclusion in Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business every year since 2008. The Daily Journal has repeatedly named him among the Top 100 Lawyers in California and previously recognized him as one of the Top 20 Under 40 lawyers in the state, among numerous other recognitions. He has received two California Lawyer Attorneys of the Year awards from California Lawyer magazine and The Daily Journal. He also has repeatedly been selected for inclusion in IFLR1000 and The Best Lawyers in America and was recognized in 2016 as a BTI Client Service All-Star.

Leif added, "I am thrilled to join Baker McKenzie and be a part of its top flight transactional practice. Baker's tremendous global platform is unmatched by any other firm, and I am very excited to work with my new colleagues to offer best-in-class service to our clients."

Leif earned his BA from the State University of New York at Binghamton and his JD from Georgetown University Law Center. He began his legal career as an associate with K&L Gates in 1996. He moved to Skadden in 1998. He is licensed to practice in California, Florida and the District of Columbia.

Baker McKenzie is a transactional powerhouse with over 2,500 deal lawyers and expertise in over 46 countries. We do more cross-border transactions than any other law firm in the world, and are ranked #1 in cross-border deals by volume over the past decade. We are global and local, combining money market sophistication with local excellence. The Firm assists clients through all stages of a transaction, from preparing the business for sale or performing due diligence, to negotiating the purchase agreement, coordinating the closing across multiple jurisdictions, and integrating the operations of the resulting business.

Baker McKenzie has added several transactional hires in recent months, including life sciences lawyers Randy Sunberg and Denis Segota and Wall Street M&A lawyer Mark Mandel in New York, as well as Peter Lu and Rob Mathews and David Becker in London, in keeping with the Firm’s strategy to grow its transactional practice in key global money and business centers. In California, the Firm recently added securities litigators Perrie Weiner and Ed Totino in Los Angeles.

About Baker McKenzie

Baker McKenzie helps clients overcome the challenges of competing in the global economy. We solve complex legal problems across borders and practice areas. Our unique culture, developed over 70 years, enables our 13,000 people to understand local markets and navigate multiple jurisdictions, working together as trusted colleagues and friends to instill confidence in our clients. (www.bakermckenzie.com)

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Leah Schloss
Associate Director, NA Communications
[email protected]
+1 212 626 4474