Weil's incoming leader passes on the top job

The American Lawyer reports the partner set to become Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP's top leader early next year is passing on the role. Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe poached a Kirkland & Ellis data center partner in Chicago. King & Spalding poached a Clifford Chance real estate partner in New York. Latham & Watkins poached a Hogan Lovells Cadwalader private equity partner in New York. Womble Bond Dickinson poached a Porter Hedges real estate partner in Houston. Milbank LLP added the former co-chief of the Southern District of New York's securities and commodities task force as a litigation partner in New York. Bracewell added the SDNY prosecutor who supervised the prosecution of Nicolás Maduro as a partner in their government enforcement and investigations group in New York. DLA Piper added a former IRS official as a tax partner in DC. Bloomberg Law reports Latham & Watkins added the lawyer who built the enforcement team at California's privacy agency to their privacy and cyber practice. Akin added a tax partner in New York. Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough added an emerging companies and venture capital partner in New York. Ogletree Deakins added a Laner Muchin labor lawyer in Chicago, who joins as a shareholder. Winston Taylor added a transactions partner in Dallas. In California, Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani added four litigation partners in San Francisco and Walnut Creek and three in Sacramento.

On the deal side, Anthropic made its IPO filing public Monday. Bloomberg Law reports Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati is lead counsel to Anthropic. Bloomberg Law also reports an investment partnership tied to Wilson Sonsini owns less than 0.01% of Anthropic, which would be worth around $200 million at a roughly $2 trillion valuation. Freshfields is counsel to the underwriters. Cravath, Swaine & Moore represents Anthropic's co-founders on governance matters. Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP is counsel to Anthropic's long-term benefit trust.

On the business side, The American Lawyer reports Ropes & Gray promoted a record 26 lawyers to partner, effective January 1.