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Ramona Nee, Weil Gotshal & Manges' co-managing partner and co-head of U.S. private equity, has told the firm's other leaders that she will not take the executive partner role she was due to assume in early 2027. The decision follows a series of partnership departures, The American Lawyer reported.
Nee named Weil's first female executive partner in March, succeeding Barry Wolf
Nee was named executive partner on 24 March and was due to succeed Barry Wolf, who has led Weil for roughly 16 years, on 1 January 2027. She was also set to chair the Management Committee from 2028, Pulse 2.0 reported. The appointment made her the firm's first female executive partner.
She is reportedly in discussions to join Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, Semafor reported. Her departure from Weil has not been confirmed, but if she leaves, the move would affect the firm's Boston partnership.
More than 25 Weil partners have left for rivals in 2026
Weil has lost more than 25 partners this year to firms including Cravath, Paul Weiss, Simpson Thacher, Davis Polk, Sullivan & Cromwell and Sidley, LawFuel reported. The departures came as Weil held merger talks with Willkie Farr & Gallagher. The two firms later called off the talks, The American Lawyer reported.
Cravath recruited six Weil partners in September, led by corporate chair Michael Aiello and corporate co-head Matt Gilroy, The American Lawyer reported. Paul Weiss added private equity co-head Chris Machera, along with partners Timothy Burns, Noah Beck and Amanda Rotkel and two associates, in late August, Private Equity Wire reported.
Management committee members Drew Tulumello and Chantale Fiebig are moving to Davis Polk, The American Lawyer reported. Corporate co-managing partner Lyuba Goltser is joining Sidley, former corporate co-managing partner Michael Hickey is expected at Sullivan & Cromwell, and securities litigation partner Caroline Zalka is heading to Paul Weiss, Bloomberg Law reported. In London, M&A leader David Avery-Gee and corporate partner Sarah Flaherty are moving to Sullivan & Cromwell, while finance head Tom Richards is moving to Simpson Thacher, Bloomberg Law reported.
Corporate, private equity and litigation exits span Weil's core practices
The departures involve Weil's strongest practices: corporate and M&A, private equity, and litigation. Its U.S. private equity group has gone through its second major round of partner departures in two years, with lawyers moving to Paul Weiss and Simpson Thacher, The American Lawyer reported. Rival firms have recruited most heavily from these practices.
Aiello, one of the most active U.S. deal lawyers, advised Fox Corp. on its $22 billion Roku acquisition in June and MarketAxess on a $6 billion deal in July before leaving for Cravath, Bloomberg Law reported. Even as it lost PE partners, Weil hired two private equity partners in San Francisco from Kirkland & Ellis and Dechert on 28 August to rebuild the practice, The American Lawyer reported.
Weil's $2.077bn revenue trailed peers now recruiting its partners
Weil generated $2.077 billion in revenue and $5.593 million in profits per partner the prior year. Those figures trailed peers now hiring its partners, including Simpson Thacher, Paul Weiss and Davis Polk, The American Lawyer reported. Senior partners attributed the departures to compensation pressures and the absence of a convincing long-term vision, Semafor reported.
Nee's decision also leaves open whether Wolf will proceed with his planned year-end retirement and who would succeed him, Bloomberg Law reported.
The partner Weil named in March to lead the firm from 2027 has declined the role in the same year the firm lost more than 25 partners, abandoned a merger, and left its succession unresolved. The reversal leaves the leadership transition Weil announced seven months ago without a named successor.
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