Taurie Zeitzer, the co-head of Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison’s mergers and acquisitions group, is joining White & Case in New York as the latter firm eyes growth in private equity.
Zeitzer, a dealmaker with longstanding ties to private equity firms Apollo Global Management and Searchlight Capital Partners, is joining White & Case as co-head of the global private equity industry group. The former Latham & Watkins attorney had joined Paul Weiss in 2015 from Kirkland & Ellis.
Last year, she advised Apollo on a $5.2 billion acquisition of aluminum products maker Arconic Corp. and an $8.1 billion purchase of Univar Solutions Inc., a distributor of chemical products. She also advised Intrado Corp. on its US$2.4 billion sale to investment manager Stonepeak.
Zeitzer also worked with other clients like Gamut Capital, Cox Media, Shutterfly, ADT Corp., Silver Lake Partners, Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board, and BC Partners.
Private equity has experienced exponential growth over the past decades and has diversified its assets across numerous industries and regions, Zeitzer said.
White & Case’s elite status and global footprint “position us well to service the needs of my clients and allow us to forge strong relationships and long-term relationships with other top PE players,” Zeitzer said in an interview.
Private equity growth is a strategic priority for the firm, said White & Case chair Heather McDevitt in a statement. McDevitt took over as leader of the firm in June 2023, succeeding Hugh Verrier, who had led the firm since 2007.
“Taurie’s arrival is a significant move in the US legal market,” McDevitt said. “Our ability to attract such outstanding talent reflects the strength of our firm.”
Last year, the firm picked up Cahill Gordon & Reindel’s co-head of M&A and corporate advisory group Kimberly Petillo-Décossard and partner Ross Sturman and Troutman Pepper dealmaker Hayden Baker in New York.
It also added former Pathlight Capital general counsel Omar Hemady in Boston, the head of Dechert’s Middle East investment funds practice Phillip Sacks in Dubai, and Ropes & Gray partner Emily Brown in London.
