Dechert’s Restructuring Co-Chair Lands at DLA Piper
The partner had prominent roles on well-known matters such as the Lehman and BHS collapses.
November 12, 2024 at 06:05 AM
2 minute read
Adam Plainer, a prominent restructuring partner, has exited Dechert in London after little less than four years, according to people close to the matter, and is set to join DLA Piper.
Plainer helped run Dechert’s restructuring practice as global co-chair.
Upon hiring Plainer from Weil Gotshal & Manges in 2021, Dechert described Plainer as “one of the U.K.’s leading restructuring lawyers“.
His high-profile mandates include advising global financial services firm Lehman Brothers and acting on the restructuring of BHS, two of the highest profile collapses in modern commerce.
He also advised Big Four firm KPMG on the administration of global financial derivatives broker MF Global U.K. and had a lead role on the liquidation of The Abraaj Group, a major Middle Eastern private equity fund.
He most recently advised the board of Yodel on the sale of the parcel deliver business. According to a press release at the time, the sale potentially saved 10,000 jobs.
Commenting on his departure, a Dechert spokesperson said: “We wish Adam well for the future.”
Plainer was a partner at Jones Day between 2003 and 2011, during which time he acted as head of restructuring. He then spent a decade at Weil, where he acted on such matters as Barclays Bank’s restructuring of the General Healthcare Group, which involved the reorganisation of over £1.5 billion of debt.
Dechert has had a tricky time of late, facing several partner departures in London against a backdrop of a flattening revenues over the past two years.
U.K. departures this year have included funds partner Thiha Tun who left for Goodwin Procter, white collar partner Judith Seddon and corporate partner Jonathan Angell departed earlier this year, litigator Simon Fawell left for litigation boutique Signature, while last year restructuring partner duo Solomon Noh and Alastair Goldrein left for Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton and finance partner Smridhi Gulati joined Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft. The firm also promoted fewer people to its partnership.
DLA's global restructuring co-chair, Chris Parker, said: "Adam's reputation for advising on many of the highest profile stressed and distressed situations, together with his tremendous cross border experience, greatly complements our existing global restructuring and special sits offering. Following the recent senior hires of Sven Schelo in Frankfurt and upcoming exciting appointments in other major European cities, we continue to build so we can be at the forefront of the leading global restructurings."
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
Related Stories
View AllYou Might Like
View AllClifford Chance Swipes Wilkie Farr's Global European Competition Chair
2 minute readClyde & Co Australia Hit By Another Major Defection as 16 Lawyers Depart
2 minute readTop German Banking Partners Seiler & Rath Rejoin Latham After White & Case Stint
3 minute readGibson Dunn Hires Again in Singapore After Cutting Partnership Weeks Ago
Trending Stories
- 1Justices Will Weigh Constitutionality of Law Allowing Terror Victims to Sue PLO
- 2Nevada Supreme Court to Decide Fate of Groundbreaking Contingency Cap Ballot Measure
- 3OpenAI Tells Court It Will Seek to Consolidate Copyright Suits Under MDL
- 44th Circuit Allows State Felon Voting Ban Challenge to Go Forward
- 5Class Actions Claim Progressive Undervalues Totaled Cars
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250