Morgan Stanley Global M&A Chair Robert Kindler to Join Paul, Weiss

Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP announced today that Robert A. Kindler, Global Chair of Mergers & Acquisitions at Morgan Stanley and one of the world’s leading M&A advisors, will join the firm as a partner in the Corporate Department and Global Chair of M&A, resident in New York. Rob will advise clients on a full range of M&A, activist defense and corporate matters, including complex transactions, strategic issues and corporate governance.

Rob has a long and storied career in M&A as both a lawyer and a banker. He spent 17 years at Morgan Stanley and served as vice chairman, global head of M&A and a member of the Management Committee at various points.

“Rob is widely recognized as one of the most influential and respected M&A practitioners in the world,” said Paul, Weiss Chairman Brad S. Karp. “Rob has successfully advised on some of the most significant and groundbreaking deals of our time, earning the trust of CEOs, boards and investors around the world, and we are thrilled to welcome him to our firm.”

“Rob has been a preeminent lawyer, banker and senior deal advisor for decades, and his accomplishments and breadth of work will provide our clients and the firm unique capabilities,” said Corporate Department Chair Scott A. Barshay. “I am delighted to once again have him as my partner.”

“I was fortunate to be a part of Morgan Stanley for the past 17 years as its visionary leadership transformed it into the leading investment bank that it is today,” Rob said. “Paul, Weiss has the premier franchise for M&A and activism defense and I am excited to become a part of it.”

Rob began his legal career at another large law firm in 1980, becoming a partner in 1987 and then co-heading the M&A practice. In 2000, Rob joined JPMorgan as managing director and was soon named global head of M&A, then moved to Morgan Stanley in 2006.

Throughout his career, Rob advised on the largest, most groundbreaking M&A deals, including Comcast Corporation in its $72 billion acquisition of AT&T Broadband; Time Warner Cable Inc. in its $78.7 billion acquisition by Charter Communications, Inc.; Dow Chemical Company in its $130 billion merger with E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Co.; Time Warner Inc. in its $85.4 billion acquisition by AT&T Inc.; Bristol-Myers Squibb Company in its $74 billion acquisition of Celgene Corporation; EMC Corporation in its $67 billion acquisition by Denali Holding Inc. (now known as Dell Technologies); IHS Markit Ltd in its $44 billion sale to S&P Global Inc.; Nextel in its $42 billion merger with Sprint; Viacom in its $40 billion merger with CBS Corporation; Norfolk Southern Corp. in its successful defense against a nearly $30 billion takeover bid by Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd.; Sanofi-Aventis SA in its successful $20.1 billion hostile takeover of Genzyme Corp; Lucent in its $18 billion acquisition by Alcatel; Time Inc. in its $15.2 billion merger with Warner Communications and its successful defense against Paramount’s $10.7 billion hostile bid; Quest Communications in its $10.6 billion acquisition by Centurylink; Continental Airlines in its $8.5 billion merger with United Airlines; CBS Inc. in its $5.8 billion acquisition by Westinghouse; CF Industries in successful hostile defense against a $5.4 billion bid by Agrium and in its successful hostile $4.7 billion bid for Terra Industries; and Dreamworks in its formation and $4 billion spin-off of Dreamworks Animation. Rob has also successfully defended companies including Agrium, Akamai, Barnes & Noble, Cummins, General Motors and Transocean against activist hedge funds.

He also advised Morgan Stanley in all of its landmark strategic transactions during his tenure, including in its $10 billion investment by MUFG during the financial crisis, the spin-off of Discover Financial Services, and the acquisitions of Smith Barney, Solium Capital Inc., E*Trade Financial Corp. and Eaton Vance Corp.

Rob earned his J.D. from New York University School of Law, where he has endowed a chaired professorship and serves on the board. He earned his Bachelor’s degree, magna cum laude, from Colgate University, where he has endowed a chaired professorship and is a trustee emeritus.

The Paul, Weiss Mergers & Acquisitions Group is among the most experienced and effective in the world. With nearly 40 dedicated partners, the firm has helped many of world’s leading companies execute their most important transactions. In 2023 alone, the firm advised on numerous multibillion-dollar deals, representing, among others, WWE in its agreement with Endeavor Group Holdings to merge WWE with UFC to form a new publicly listed company with an enterprise value of $21.4 billion; Carrier Global Corporation in its acquisition of Viessmann Climate Solutions for €12 billion; Merck & Co. in its $10.8 billion acquisition of Prometheus Biosciences; General Atlantic in the $10.6 billion sale of its stake in portfolio company Oak Street Health to CVS Health Corp.; Apollo Funds in their $8.1 billion take-private acquisition of Univar Solutions, a leading global chemical and ingredients distributor; and Chevron in its $7.6 billion acquisition of PDC Energy.