Law firm Morgan Lewis added three partners to its structured finance team in Chicago, continuing a 12-month hiring spree.
Jeff Weinstein and Patrick Lampe join from the Chicago office of Sidley Austin; Morgan Lewis partner Philip Russell, who has been with Morgan Lewis since 2014, is relocating from the firm’s New York office.
All three partners work with a diverse range of clients, representing arrangers, banks, investors, issuers and underwriters in connection with securitizations, structured finance and commercial finance transactions.
“Strengthening our elite structured transactions team reflects our commitment to providing clients the best possible talent throughout the United States and globally,” said Jami McKeon, the firm’s chair. “These partners working together in Chicago will be ideally positioned to serve a wide variety of clients in a comprehensive range of asset classes.”
Weinstein and Lampe have worked with a broad assortment of asset classes, among them residential mortgage loans, vehicle and equipment loans and leases, credit card receivables, floorplan loans and trade receivables and timeshare loans. They also have represented clients regarding nontraditional asset classes, including collateralized fund obligations, servicer advances, sports and stadium-related revenues, royalty rights, online marketplace loans, whole business securitizations, and media, sports and entertainment rights.
Russell represents issuers, underwriters, lenders, borrowers, asset managers, buyers, sellers and sponsors in a variety of corporate and structured finance transactions. He regularly represents clients engaged in public and private offerings of debt and equity securities secured by auto loans and leases, marketplace and unsecured consumer loans, private and federally guaranteed student loans, mortgage loans, equipment, trade receivables, and other assets.
“We are tremendously excited to both broaden and deepen our services to clients with the addition of these market-leading practitioners,” said Reed Auerbach, leader of Morgan Lewis’ structured transactions practice. “Jeff, Pat, and Phil are well known to each other and within the industry, so we anticipate a seamless transition resulting in immediate benefits for our clients.”
The group’s presence in Chicago complements Morgan Lewis’ recent expansions there, including including five intellectual property litigators in July and a six-partner team of tax lawyers over the seven months ending in February. The Chicago office provides regional and global clients with advice on a broad range of services in addition to structured transactions, including litigation, labor, employment, intellectual property, securities enforcement, investment management and corporate transactions.
