The Deal Awards 2021 - Winners
About This Event
The Deal on Thursday, Sept. 23, announced the winners of its fourth annual Deal Awards program, honoring the top dealmakers in sector specialties as well as areas of dealmaking including restructuring, activism and private equity.
The 2021 Deal Awards honored deals and dealmakers for their work on transactions announced, completed or in flux during 2020. The Deal research team combed through thousands of transactions and hundreds of nominations to decide the top advisers and identify the deals that exemplified the biggest trends of the year.
For this year’s awards The Deal combined the middle market and more traditional large-cap New York ceremony into one live event, hosted at the JW Marriott Essex House in Manhattan.
Among the notable winners T-Mobile US Inc.’s (TMUS) $26 billion megamerger with Sprint Corp. took home Deal of the Year in the large-cap category while a deal from Fox Corp. (FOX) to acquire Tubi Inc. took home our Deal of the Year in the middle market. SoftBank Group Corp.’s monetization of its stake in the combined T-Mobile entity was the Most Innovative Large-Cap Deal of the Year.
Sidley Austin LLP took home the Activist Defense Law Firm of the Year award while Kirkland & Ellis LLP and Cole Schotz PC were Debtor Counsel of the Year in the large-cap and middle-market segments, respectively.
On the dealmaker front, Kris S. Withrow, co-chair of Fenwick & West LLP’s M&A group, won middle-market Dealmaker of the Year, as well as middle-market TMT Dealmaker of the Year. Andrew J. Nussbaum of Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz took home large-cap Dealmaker of the Year.
Check out the complete list of winners below.
And the Winners are....
Top Categories
Deal of the Year (Large Cap)
T-Mobile and Sprint complete blockbuster merger
Target/Seller: Sprint Corp./SoftBank Group Corp.
Outside Counsel:
Goodwin Procter LLP
Morrison & Foerster LLP
Potter Anderson & Corroon LLP
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP
Investment Adviser:
Centerview Partners LLC
JPMorgan Securities LLC
Raine Group LLC
Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd.
SMBC Nikko Securities Inc.
Counsel to I-bank:
Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP
Sidley Austin LLP
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP
White & Case LLP
PR Firm:
Sard Verbinnen & Co. LLC
Acquirer: T-Mobile US Inc./Deutsche Telekom AG
Outside Counsel:
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP
Cooley LLP
DLA Piper
Hogan Lovells
Latham & Watkins LLP
Richards, Layton & Finger PA
Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati PC
Investment Adviser:
Credit Suisse Group
Deutsche Bank AG
Evercore Inc.
Goldman, Sachs & Co.
Morgan Stanley
PJT Partners Inc.
Counsel to I-bank:
Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP
Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP
Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP
PR Firm:
Abernathy MacGregor Group Inc.
Kekst and Co.
Deal of the Year (Middle Market)
Fox acquires over-the-top content platform Tubi
Target: Tubi Inc.
Outside Counsel:
Cooley LLP
Fenwick & West LLP
Investment Adviser:
Qatalyst Partners
Acquirer: Fox Corp.
Outside Counsel:
Jenner & Block LLP
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
Investment Adviser:
Allen & Co. LLC
Dealmaker of the Year (Large Cap)
Andrew Nussbaum, Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz
Dealmaker of the Year (Middle Market)
Kris Withrow, Fenwick & West LLP
Most Innovative Deal of the Year (Large Cap)
SoftBank monetizes T-Mobile interest
Target/Seller: T-Mobile US Inc./SoftBank Group Corp.
Outside Counsel:
Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP
Sullivan & Cromwell LLP
Investment Adviser:
PJT Partners Inc.
Goldman, Sachs & Co.
Raine Group LLC
PR Firm:
Sard Verbinnen & Co. LLC
Acquirers: Deutsche Telekom AG, Marcelo Claure
Outside Counsel:
Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP
Most Innovative Deal of the Year (Middle Market)
Gogo sells commercial aviation Wi-Fi business to Intelsat
Target/Seller: Gogo commercial aviation/Gogo Inc.
Outside Counsel:
Debevoise & Plimpton LLP
Investment Adviser:
BDT & Co. LLC
JPMorgan Chase & Co.
Morgan Stanley
Acquirer: Intelsat SA
Outside Counsel:
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
Investment Adviser:
PJT Partners Inc.
PR Firm:
Kekst CNC
Adviser:
Altman Solon
Alvarez & Marsal LLC
Specialty Awards
Private Equity
PE Deal of the Year (Large Cap)
Thoma Bravo sells Ellie Mae to Intercontinental Exchange
Target/Seller: Ellie Mae Inc./Thoma Bravo LLC
Outside Counsel:
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
Investment Adviser:
Jefferies LLC
JPMorgan Securities LLC
PR Firm:
Finsbury
Acquirer: Intercontinental Exchange Inc.
Outside Counsel:
Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP
Potter Anderson & Corroon LLP
Shearman & Sterling LLP
Sullivan & Cromwell LLP
Investment Adviser:
Broadhaven Capital Partners LLC
Citigroup Inc.
Credit Suisse Group
Goldman, Sachs & Co.
Moelis & Co. LLC
Wells Fargo NA
Counsel to I-bank:
Alston & Bird LLP
Sidley Austin LLP
PE Deal of the Year (Middle Market)
Falfurrias Capital sells American Safety Council to Ridgemont
Target/Seller: American Safety Council Inc./Falfurrias Capital Partners LP
Outside Counsel:
McGuireWoods LLP
Investment Adviser:
Robert W. Baird & Co.
Acquirer: Ridgemont Equity Partners
Outside Counsel:
Alston & Bird LLP
Investment Adviser:
William Blair & Co. LLC
Private Equity Dealmaker (Large Cap)
Paul Bird, Debevoise & Plimpton LLP
Private Equity Dealmaker (Middle Market)
Carolyn Vardi, Ropes & Gray LLP
Activist Defense Law Firm
Sidley Austin LLP
Cross-Border Deal of the Year
Warburg-backed Allied Universal Security acquires G4S
Target: G4S plc
Outside Counsel:
Linklaters LLP
Investment Adviser:
Citigroup Inc.
Goldman, Sachs & Co.
JPMorgan Chase & Co.
Lazard Ltd.
PR Firm:
Brunswick Group LLP
Acquirer: Allied Universal Security Services LLC/Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG and Warburg Pincus LLC
Outside Counsel:
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
Sullivan & Cromwell LLP
Investment Adviser:
Credit Suisse Group
Moelis & Co. LLC
Morgan Stanley
PR Firm:
Teneo Global LLC
Restructuring
Restructuring Deal of the Year (Large Cap)
J.C. Penney sells assets in Ch. 11
Debtor: J.C. Penney Co.
Legal Counsel: Kirkland & Ellis LLP
Jackson Walker LLP
Restructuring Adviser: AlixPartners LLP
Investment Bank: Lazard Ltd.
Debtor Counsel – Individual (Large Cap)
Joshua Sussberg, Kirkland & Ellis LLP
Debtor Counsel – Firm (Large Cap)
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
Restructuring Financial Adviser (Large Cap)
AlixPartners LLP
Restructuring Deal (Middle Market)
Modell’s Sporting Goods liquidates
Debtor: Modell’s Sporting Goods Inc.
Legal Counsel: Cole Schotz PC
Restructuring Adviser: Berkeley Research Group LLC
Debtor Counsel – Individual (Middle Market)
Gregg Galardi, Ropes & Gray LLP
Debtor Counsel – Firm (Middle Market)
Cole Schotz PC
Restructuring Financial Adviser (Middle Market)
Berkeley Research Group LLC
Sector Awards
Consumer, Retail, Food & Beverage
Consumer, Retail, Food & Beverage Deal of the Year (Large Cap)
Roark-backed Inspire Brands acquires Dunkin’ Donuts parent
Target: Dunkin’ Brands Inc.
Outside Counsel:
Ropes & Gray LLP
Investment Adviser:
Bank of America Corp.
Counsel to I-bank:
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP
PR Firm:
Gladstone Place Partners LLC
Acquirer: Inspire Brands Inc./Roark Capital Group
Outside Counsel:
Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP
Investment Adviser:
Barclays plc
Houlihan Lokey Inc.
Counsel to I-bank:
Manatt, Phelps & Phillips LLP
PR Firm:
Sard Verbinnen & Co. LLC
Information agent:
Innisfree M&A Inc.
Consumer, Retail, Food & Beverage – Law Firm (Large Cap)
Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP
Consumer, Retail, Food & Beverage – Investment Bank (Large Cap)
Centerview Partners LLC
Consumer, Retail, Food & Beverage – Dealmaker (Large Cap)
Daniel Brass, Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP
Consumer, Retail, Food & Beverage Deal of the Year (Middle Market)
GoPuff adds liquor store chain BevMo!
Target/Seller: Beverages & More Inc./TowerBrook Capital Partners LP
Outside Counsel:
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
Investment Adviser:
JPMorgan Chase & Co.
PR Firm:
Brunswick Group LLP
Acquirer: GoBrands Inc.
Outside Counsel:
Cooley LLP
Investment Adviser:
Evercore Inc.
PR Firm:
Finsbury
Consumer, Retail, Food & Beverage – Law Firm (Middle Market)
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
Consumer, Retail, Food & Beverage – Investment Bank (Middle Market)
Evercore Inc.
Consumer, Retail, Food & Beverage – Dealmaker (Middle Market)
Lori Green, Nixon Peabody LLP
Energy & Industrials
Energy & Industrials Deal of the Year (Large Cap)
WillScot acquires storage peer Mobile Mini*
Target: Mobile Mini Inc.
Investment Adviser:
Barclays
Goldman, Sachs & Co.
Outside Counsel:
Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP
Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell LLP
White & Case LLP
Counsel to I-bank:
Sullivan & Cromwell LLP
PR Firm:
Sard Verbinnen & Co. LLC
Proxy Solicitor:
Innisfree M&A Inc.
Acquirer: WillScot Corp.
Investment Adviser:
Bank of America Corp.
Deutsche Bank AG
JPMorgan Securities LLC
Morgan Stanley
Rothschild & Co
Stifel, Nicolaus & Co.
Outside Counsel:
Allen & Overy LLP
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
Richards, Layton & Finger PA
Counsel to I-bank:
McGuireWoods LLP
Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP
PR Firm:
FTI Consulting Inc.
Proxy Solicitor:
Georgeson LLC
Energy & Industrials – Investment Bank (Large Cap)
Energy & Industrials – Law Firm (Large Cap)
McDermott Will & Emery LLP
Energy & Industrials – Investment Bank (Large Cap)
Goldman, Sachs & Co.
Energy & Industrials – Dealmaker (Large Cap)
Joanne Katsantonis, McGuireWoods LLP
Energy & Industrials Deal of the Year (Middle Market)
KAR Auction buys auto auction startup BacklotCars
Target: BacklotCars Inc.
Investment Adviser:
Evercore Inc.
Outside Counsel:
Stinson LLP
Acquirer: KAR Auction Services Inc.
Investment Adviser:
Guggenheim Partners LLC
Outside Counsel:
Winston & Strawn LLP
Energy & Industrials – Law Firm (Middle Market)
Baker Botts LLP
Energy & Industrials – Investment Bank (Middle Market)
Guggenheim Partners LLC
Energy & Industrials – Dealmaker (Middle Market)
Frank Bayouth, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP
Financial Services
Financial Services Deal of the Year (Large Cap)
Charles Schwab acquires brokerage TD Ameritrade
Target/Seller: TD Ameritrade Holding Corp./Ricketts Family Foundation and Toronto-Dominion Bank
Outside Counsel:
Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz
Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP
Investment Adviser:
PJT Partners Inc.
Piper Sandler Cos.
Barclays
JPMorgan Securities LLC
TD Securities Inc.
Counsel to I-bank:
Shearman & Sterling LLP
PR Firm:
Sard Verbinnen & Co. LLC
Proxy Solicitor:
Innisfree M&A Inc.
Acquirer: Charles Schwab Corp.
Outside Counsel:
Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP
Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell LLP
Investment Adviser:
Credit Suisse Group
Counsel to I-bank:
Alston & Bird LLP
Proxy Solicitor:
D.F. King & Co.
Financial Services – Law Firm (Large Cap)
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP
Financial Services – Investment Bank (Large Cap)
Ardea Partners LP
Financial Services – Dealmaker (Large Cap)
Edward Herlihy, Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz
Financial Services Deal of the Year (Middle Market)
Banco Bradesco acquires BAC Florida Bank
Target/Seller: BAC Florida Bank/Grupo Pellas
Outside Counsel:
Avila Rodriguez Hernandez Mena & Ferri LLP
Hughes Hubbard & Reed LLP
Investment Adviser:
Piper Sandler Cos. (then Sandler O’Neill & Partners LP)
Acquirer: Banco Bradesco SA
Outside Counsel:
Shearman & Sterling LLP
Investment Adviser:
Banco Bradesco BBI SA
Banco Bradesco SA
Financial Services Law Firm of the Year (Middle Market)
Dechert LLP
Financial Services – Investment Bank (Middle Market)
Raymond James & Associates Inc.
Financial Services – Dealmaker (Middle Market)
Chris Frieden, Alston & Bird LLP
Healthcare, Pharma & Biotech
Healthcare, Pharma & Biotech Deal of the Year (Large Cap)
Teledoc acquires chronic care manager Livongo
Target/Seller: Livongo Health Inc./Kinnevik AB
Outside Counsel:
Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP
Investment Adviser:
Morgan Stanley
Counsel to I-bank:
Cooley LLP
PR Firm:
Sard Verbinnen & Co. LLC
Proxy Solicitor:
D.F. King & Co.
Acquirer: Teladoc Health Inc.
Outside Counsel:
Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP
Investment Adviser:
Lazard Ltd.
Counsel to I-bank:
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP
PR Firm:
Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher
Proxy Solicitor:
MacKenzie Partners Inc.
Healthcare, Pharma & Biotech – Law Firm (Large Cap)
Cooley LLP
Healthcare, Pharma & Biotech – Investment Bank (Large Cap)
Bank of America Securities Inc.
Healthcare, Pharma & Biotech – Dealmaker (Large Cap)
Maggie Wong, Goodwin Procter LLP
Healthcare, Pharma & Biotech Deal of the Year (Middle Market)
Addus HomeCare buys Queen City Hospice and affiliate
Targets/Seller: Queen City Hospice LLC and Miracle City Hospice LLC/Stonehenge Partners Inc.
Outside Counsel:
Benesch, Friedlander, Coplan & Aronoff LLP
Investment Adviser:
Cain Brothers & Co. LLC
Acquirer: Addus HomeCare Corp.
Outside Counsel:
Bass, Berry & Sims plc
Investment Adviser:
Raymond James & Associates Inc.
Healthcare, Pharma & Biotech – Law Firm (Middle Market)
Latham & Watkins LLP
Healthcare, Pharma & Biotech – Investment Bank (Middle Market)
TripleTree LLC
Healthcare, Pharma & Biotech – Dealmaker (Middle Market)
Catherine Dargan, Covington & Burling LLP
Technology, Media & Telecom
Technology Media and Telecom Deal of the Year (Large Cap)
Salesforce.com buys messaging company Slack
Target: Slack Technologies Inc.
Lead Counsel:
Latham & Watkins LLP
Outside Counsel:
Goodwin Procter LLP
Investment Adviser:
Goldman, Sachs & Co.
Counsel to I-bank:
Paul Hastings LLP
Sullivan & Cromwell LLP
PR Firm:
Sard Verbinnen & Co. LLC
Proxy Solicitor:
MacKenzie Partners Inc.
Acquirer: Salesforce.com Inc.
Lead Counsel:
Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz
Outside Counsel:
Morrison & Foerster LLP
Investment Adviser:
Bank of America Corp.
Counsel to I-bank:
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP
PR Firm:
Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher
Technology, Media & Telecom – Law Firm (Large Cap)
Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP
Technology, Media & Telecom – Investment Bank (Large Cap)
JPMorgan Securities Inc.
Technology, Media & Telecom – Dealmaker (Large Cap)
Allison Leopold Tilley, Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP
Technology Media and Telecom Deal of the Year (Middle Market)
Fox acquires over-the-top content platform Tubi
Target: Tubi Inc.
Outside Counsel:
Cooley LLP
Fenwick & West LLP
Investment Adviser:
Qatalyst Partners
Acquirer: Fox Corp.
Outside Counsel:
Jenner & Block LLP
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
Investment Adviser:
Allen & Co. LLC
Technology, Media & Telecom – Law Firm (Middle Market)
Fenwick & West LLP
Technology, Media & Telecom – Investment Bank (Middle Market)
Moelis & Co.
Technology, Media & Telecom – Dealmaker (Middle Market)
Kris Withrow, Fenwick & West LLP
Fintech
Financial Technology (FinTech) Deal of the Year (Large Cap)
Morgan Stanley acquires online brokerage E-Trade
Target: E*Trade Financial Corp.
Outside Counsel:
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP
Investment Adviser:
Ardea Partners LP
JPMorgan Chase & Co.
Proxy Solicitor
Innisfree M&A Inc.
Acquirer: Morgan Stanley
Outside Counsel:
Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP
Investment Adviser:
Morgan Stanley
Fintech – Law Firm (Large Cap)
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP
Financial Technology (FinTech) Deal of the Year (Middle Market)
Alliance Data Systems acquires Lon Operations
Target: Lon Operations LLC
Outside Counsel:
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP
Investment Adviser:
Centerview Partners LLC
Acquirer: Alliance Data Systems Corp.
Outside Counsel:
Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP
Investment Adviser:
JPMorgan Chase & Co.
Financial Technology (FinTech) Law Firm of the Year (Middle Market)
Troutman Pepper Hamilton Sanders LLP
About This Event
For parameters and criteria, check out The Deal Awards 2021 FAQ.
For specific inquiries about the event and to find out how to have your firm featured the upcoming Dealmaker Quarterly magazine, please contact chris.edouard@legalmediagroup.com.
