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KKR Names Simpson Thacher's David Sorkin as First-Ever General Counsel
His appointment comes ahead of KKR's eagerly awaited initial public offering
Legal Week
November 26, 2007
Simpson Thacher's David Sorkin
Private equity giant Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. has snared top-rated Simpson Thacher & Bartlett private equity partner David Sorkin as its first-ever general counsel.
Sorkin, who has been at the elite New York firm since 1985, has a longstanding relationship with the private equity house and its co-founders, Henry Kravis and George Roberts.
He advised on some of the group's earliest deals, including the landmark $30 billion buy-out of RJR Nabisco in 1988 that became the subject of Bryan Burrough's best-selling book "Barbarians at the Gate."
Other transactions on which Sorkin has advised KKR include deals for Duracell, Borden and SunGard Data Systems, while he also acted for AOL on its tie-up with Time Warner in 2000.
When Sorkin moves later in the year, he will become a 'member' or partner at KKR as well as becoming its first-ever formally employed in-house lawyer.
Sorkin's appointment comes ahead of KKR's eagerly awaited initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange, confirmation of which was given by the group last week. The firm -- one of the oldest and largest leveraged buy-out houses in the U.S. -- plans to raise $1.25 billion when it floats in the first quarter of next year.
That news came after market rival and fellow Simpson Thacher client Blackstone in March announced plans for its own IPO, valuing the group at around $40 billion.
