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Welcome to WSJ Pro Bankruptcy's Daily Briefing. It's Tuesday, April 22. In today's briefing, Kirkland & Ellis announced its hiring of restructuring and finance lawyer Joshua Feltman, the latest big-ticket lateral move in a hot talent market for the liability management field.
Feltman’s hire adds to Kirkland’s bench in its market-leading liability management practice and follows the departure of several debt finance and restructuring partners to rival Simpson Thacher & Bartlett.
Together, the moves underscore how law firms are investing heavily in restructuring practices even with corporate defaults and bankruptcies still muted by historical standards. Once viewed as a countercyclical hedge, restructuring has evolved as a strategic tool for clients at different stages of the corporate life cycle.
Ed Stevens, managing partner at global legal executive search and advisory firm Bishop Rock Partners, also pointed to the expansion of private credit, evolving sponsor behavior, macroeconomic volatility and “a broader convergence between restructuring and finance.” Those dynamics are creating greater optionality for partners and teams, driving increased lateral mobility.
Such lateral moves are typically underpinned by a clear strategic rationale, “whether through stronger creditor alignment, deeper sponsor relationships or more flexible approaches to conflicts,” Stevens said.
U.S. lateral hiring of restructuring partners has picked up, with 96 moves recorded year to date. That pace puts 2026 on track to exceed last year’s total, according to data from Bishop Rock Partners.
Kirkland hired Feltman, formerly of Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz, after parting ways with leading debt finance specialist David Nemecek over tensions with clients in the asset-management industry. He and several other Kirkland partners went to Simpson Thacher & Bartlett.
Feltman, whose practice sits at the intersection of finance and restructuring, has designed some of the largest and most innovative transactions in the space, Kirkland said.
“The lateral market is moving fast and furious for all manner of firms,” said Doug Mintz, co-chair of Cadwalader’s financial restructuring practice. “Kirkland saw a high-profile departure, and Josh and Dave have similar practices.”
"It’s illustrative of what’s going on in the lateral market,” said James Sprayregen, the founder of Kirkland & Ellis’ restructuring group.
“The market is putting a high value on those people with good reason, as they can provide a great return on investment and high impact," said Sprayregen, now vice chairman of strategy and growth at Hilco Global.
—Andrew Scurria and Becky Yerak
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