- U.S. & Americas
- Lateral moves
- Fund Formation
Arman Zadeh joined Sidley Austin as a partner in its investment funds group in Los Angeles on 4 November. He is at least the third funds partner to move from Kirkland & Ellis to Sidley in the past month, The American Lawyer reported.
Zadeh forms, structures and operates private closed-end funds. He advises emerging managers and global sponsors on fund economics, governance, co-investment and separately managed accounts. His practice covers first-time vehicles, large institutional funds and fund-related M&A, according to Sidley. Chair Brian Fahrney said building a "best-in-class private equity funds practice" is a high priority.
Zadeh is the third Kirkland funds partner at Sidley in a month
The hire follows two others. Sidley added Kirkland private funds partner Ryan McNish to its global investment funds group in Chicago on 5 October, per Sidley. On 13 October, it added Justin Solomon in Los Angeles to co-lead its private equity funds group alongside former Kirkland colleague John Muno, who joined in 2025. Solomon spent nearly two decades at Kirkland and recently advised Francisco Partners on a $21bn fund closing, Bloomberg Law reported.
Fahrney has called global investment funds work a "key strategic priority". He cited "incredible growth on the private equity side" and said the firm has been "really active in hiring up in that area", The American Lawyer reported. The Lawyer described Zadeh as the latest ex-Kirkland partner to take a funds role at Sidley.
Sidley's 2026 funds build drew from Clifford Chance, Hogan Lovells and Cadwalader
The Kirkland hires are part of a broader recruiting effort. In January, Sidley added Cliff Cone, Michael Sabin and Dan Drabkin in New York from Clifford Chance, where Cone and Sabin had co-headed the U.S. funds and investment management practice, Sidley said. Across 2026, the firm, which reported over $3.7bn in revenue, has picked up funds teams from Clifford Chance, Hogan Lovells, Cadwalader and Fried Frank, Bloomberg Law reported. Legal Business placed the activity alongside Milbank's growth in its new Chicago office.
Fund formation sits in the projected $250bn secondaries market
The hires focus on private fund formation, including closed-end private equity, credit and infrastructure funds, GP-led liquidity solutions, secondaries and continuation vehicles. That part of the market is growing. The private-equity secondaries market is projected to reach roughly $250bn in 2026, with GP-led deals forecast to reach parity with LP-led activity, With Intelligence found. GP-led secondary volume reached about $104bn in 2025, up roughly 50% year on year, William Blair reported, as delayed exits push sponsors toward continuation vehicles. Dechert notes that these structures are lifting DPI and LP liquidity amid fundraising headwinds. Demand for fund-formation specialists at partner level remains strong.
Solomon described fund formation as "often the first touchpoint" that lets a firm "be in early with clients", Bloomberg Law reported. That helps explain why firms value the work as an entry point to broader private equity mandates. Fundraising is concentrated. The top 20 funds accounted for about $171bn in the first half of 2026, more than half the capital closed, With Intelligence found. That increases competition for the sponsors that generate premium work.
Kirkland lost a UK fund-formation partner while rehiring in Shanghai
Kirkland has lost funds partners beyond the moves to Sidley. It lost UK fund-formation partner Edward Prestwich to Macfarlanes in November, Legal Business reported. The move was part of broader funds-partner attrition, and Bloomberg Law has examined what the departures signal about the firm's brand and retention. Kirkland continues to recruit, including the October rehiring of private equity partner Nelson Ni in Shanghai from Warburg Pincus, Law.com reported.
Over roughly four months, Sidley has rebuilt a U.S. private equity funds practice largely with partners from Kirkland and Clifford Chance. The group is concentrated in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles and focuses on fund formation and secondaries, which the firm has identified as a strategic priority. The hires come as the secondaries market heads toward record volume and fundraising remains concentrated among the largest sponsors.
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