Kirkland launches a Dallas restructuring group with two Jones Day partners, and Paul Weiss takes a Ropes and Gray capital markets partner

Kirkland & Ellis launched a Dallas restructuring group by hiring two mass torts partners from Jones Day. Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison poached a capital markets partner from Ropes & Gray in New York, and Freshfields brought in an M&A partner from White & Case, also in New York. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett hired a liability management lawyer from Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz who joins as a partner in New York, Baker McKenzie hired an executive compensation lawyer from Cooley who joins as a partner in Palo Alto, and Sullivan & Cromwell brought an antitrust lawyer back as a partner in Washington after a run at the Justice Department.

On the business side, Johnson & Johnson settled 76,000 talc lawsuits for $5.5 billion, resolving nearly all of the federal talc litigation, and Law.com reports outside capital is knocking on Big Law's door with most firm leaders unprepared for the conversation.