Proposed Chevron Acquisition of Hess - Paul Weiss Handles Chevron Part of the Deal
"Chevron Corporation
(NYSE: CVX) announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement
with Hess Corporation (NYSE: HES) to acquire all of the outstanding shares of
Hess in an all-stock transaction valued at $53 billion, or $171 per share based
on Chevron’s closing price on October 20, 2023. Under the terms of the
agreement, Hess shareholders will receive 1.0250 shares of Chevron for each
Hess share. The total enterprise value, including debt, of the transaction is $60
billion." - Business
Wire, October 23, 2023
MAJOR DEALMAKING ACCOUNT FOR PAUL WEISS
It is law firm Paul Weiss which gets
to handle the Chevron part of the deal. It has a long relationship with
Chevron. So connected the two have been that the SEC questioned
if Paul Weiss could be independent enough in a racial audit. But that issue is
small potatoes compared to the high financial and branding stakes for Paul
Weiss in overseeing the legalities of this dealmaking.
Overall, there is speculation that
M&A, after a too long dry spell, is picking up. However, even in the worst
of times, Paul Weiss has held its own. DealRoom rates
it as among the top 10 players in that niche:
- Cravath, Swaine, & Moore LLP
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP
- Latham & Watkins LLP
- Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton, & Garrison LLP
- Simpson, Thatcher & Bartlett LLP
- Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP
- Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton
- Debevoise & Plimpton LLP
- Shearman & Sterling LLP
THE SEEMING REBRANDING OF PAUL WEISS
Since his new term in office as chair of
Paul Weiss Brad Karp seems to have repositioned and repackaged the firm as more
opportunistic. For example, with the predicted boom in Private Equity in
Europe, Paul Weiss raided competitor Kirkland & Ellis' London office three
times for that specialized talent. Overall the professional anonymous networks,
usually critical of Big Law firms, are paying homage to Paul Weiss. Even in the
down cycles, such as the recent current one, it did not lay off. Also it is
hiring junior laterals. Karp has become the guy with the jobs. Wearing my
communications hat, I recommend he put together a Ted Talk on job creation.
That's the sandbox lawyers play in.
A QUITE PECULIAR EXPERIENCE
For me in communications, hired in on
a contract retainer basis, that wasn't the story. Or so I lived it. It was a
shocker because I assumed that Karp and I shared a mutual respect for each one’s
expertise. However, Karp wasn’t directly in the loop for this one.
For the two months before I pulled the
plug on that lucrative arrangement I received from Paul Weiss CMO Luke
Ferrandino:
No real work. To simulate a work product I scrambled to dig up topics to
blog about. That was tough since, no, I am not a lawyer.
No contract specifying my duties. I actually wondered why I had been hired.
No contract specifying a time frame
for contract employment. Should I be hunting
for a lot of other work from both professional services businesses and from
industry?
No NDA making explicit what I could
disclose and not disclose. Since
I often wear the journalist hat that might be interpreted as reckless by a law
firm. Quite odd too since the party contracting with not any Mom & Pop
enterprise.
No metrics for assessing my
performance. I tap danced on the rim of fear
wondering if I would enter the shameful state of being given the boot because
of my performance. In a sense that was from Kafka novel since there was no
work. Obviously, with that lack of reality power was so unequal. No, let me
reframe that: I lacked the power of my work to stand up to the law firm’s
power.
Two months in, I terminated the
relationship. That was June 1, 2022. But I still can't shake off the
experience. That's despite the financial reality that I did put together a new
enterprise a month after exiting. Yes, on the one hand, I seem to be resilient.
But, on the other hand, my wiring seems to remain badly frayed.
NO EXIT RAMP, AT LEAST NOT YET
However, that strange two-month
interlude, a force field I still can't emotionally and spiritually exit, has
helped me be a more understanding career coach for those who also wind up in some
kind of shock, ambiguity and disappointment.
One form of healing, but not the only one of course, is to keep telling your story until it is no longer your story. A fresh narrative crowds that one out. I wish I were finished with that saga. But, no, not yet. A blockage is that I still admire the work of Paul Weiss.
Data or the gut for your careers and communications? Both
of course. Complimentary consultation with intuitive coach, content-creator,
and Tarot reader Jane Genova (text 203-468-8579, janegenova374@gmail.com).
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