The following is an excerpt from Practice Perspectives: Vault's Guide to Legal Practice Areas.
Allison Schneirov is a partner in Skadden’s M&A group, Global Head of the firm’s transactions practices, and a member of the Policy Committee, the firm’s highest governing body. Her diverse practice includes advising corporate clients and their boards, as well as financial sponsors, on a range of matters, including mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, investments, corporate governance, shareholder activism, investigations, and other significant representations. Allison has been repeatedly recognized in IFLR1000 and Chambers USA (Band 1) and honored as a Law360 Private Equity MVP. She was also featured in The Deal’s 2023 Top Women in Dealmaking for M&A and Women in M&A: The Powerhouse 20 list. Allison earned her B.A., magna cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania and her J.D., cum laude, from NYU Law.
Brett Fleisher is a partner in Skadden’s M&A group. She advises public and private companies, financial sponsors, family offices, and hedge funds on mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures, investments, corporate governance, and other matters. Brett also represents CEOs in connection with private equity transactions. Brett has been named one of Lawdragon’s 500 Leading Dealmakers in America and honored as a Rising Star by Law360 and New York Law Journal. She earned her B.A., cum laude, from Colgate University and her J.D. with high honors from Emory Law School.
Allison and Brett are based in New York, and both have spent their entire legal careers at Skadden.
Describe your practice area and what it entails.
We handle complex mergers and acquisitions across various industries. Being an M&A lawyer is akin to being the “quarterback” of the deal, overseeing the process from start to finish and collaborating with colleagues from across Skadden on critical aspects of the transaction, such as antitrust, finance, intellectual property (IP), litigation, tax, and more. The nature of the work means we quickly gain a deep understanding of a client’s business and how it operates.
What types of clients do you represent?
We each advise companies and financial sponsors, also known as private equity funds, on many of their most important transactions. Recent corporate clients include Dell, Honeywell, Unilever, Genesys, and NXP Semiconductors, and on the financial sponsor side, Blackstone, Permira, OceanSound, and Wendel, to name a few. We also represent CEOs and management teams in private equity transactions, advise family offices, and serve as general corporate advisers to our clients and their boards of directors.
What types of cases/deals do you work on?
Allison: Most of my work combines hands-on execution with strategic judgment—leading complex M&A deals and advising boards, senior management, and financial sponsors on their most consequential business decisions. I represent both financial sponsors and corporate clients, which gives me a holistic understanding of sophisticated M&A and provides clients with a comprehensive, market-driven perspective.
My versatile experience has also enabled me to forge new client relationships across the industry. For example, Brett and I recently advised NXP Semiconductors on the sale of its MEMS sensors business to STMicroelectronics, a deal valued at $900 million up front with $50 million in future milestone payments. Our relationship with NXP arose from our earlier work representing Freescale Semiconductor in its merger with NXP. Similarly, after representing Permira in the sale of its portfolio company Intelligrated to Honeywell several years ago, I began advising Honeywell. I’ve also been fortunate that when clients move to different companies or private equity firms, they’ve continued to trust me as their adviser. It means a great deal to me that my clients have maintained their relationship with me as their careers have evolved.
Brett: While I work on a range of transactions, a significant part of my practice involves advising financial sponsors, who are very active in the M&A space. My financial sponsor clients focus on deploying capital on behalf of their limited partners; we advise them on investments in targets and their exits when they’re selling a business to strategic companies or other financial sponsors. Some recent examples include advising OceanSound on its acquisition of Burns Engineering, and Permira on its investment in PharmaCord and combination with Mercalis (now known as Valeris).
How did you choose this practice area?
Allison: While in college, I worked at Skadden as a summer legal assistant. The 1990s was an exciting time to start your career as a transactional lawyer, especially in M&A, and I was drawn to the high-stakes nature and cross-functional aspect of the practice. What really stood out to me, however, were the strong, trusted relationships Skadden M&A lawyers had with their clients. My father practiced law for more than 60 years, and I admired the deep client relationships he built; it was something I aspired to as well. My summer experience confirmed that M&A would be a great fit for me, especially at a firm like Skadden.
Brett: As a summer associate at Skadden, I tried assignments from each corporate practice group. M&A appealed to me because of the breadth of experiences and skills it offered. I was also fortunate to have Allison as my assigned summer mentor. Through her, I learned the ins and outs of M&A transactions, how to add strategic value, how to become a trusted adviser, and, more than anything, the importance of building teams. I enjoy having so much variety in my work, and I especially love having the opportunity to mentor the next generation of brilliant lawyers.
What is a “typical” day like and/or what are some common tasks you perform?
Allison: There is no such thing as a typical day, and it is a constant balancing act (which is one reason it is still so interesting!). On any given day, I’m deeply involved in active deal execution, client conversations, and my leadership responsibilities at the firm. I’ll spend part of the day deep in live M&A transactions (problem-solving, negotiating, etc.) while also staying closely connected to clients on their current matters, broader strategic issues, market conditions, or what’s coming next. As Global Head of Skadden’s transactions practices, my leadership responsibilities include mentoring colleagues, building and supporting teams, and making sure we’re investing in the right people and practices to deliver advice to our clients at the highest level. I also find time to connect with lawyers across the firm to offer guidance and help them identify opportunities for the firm to grow. All of these roles are interconnected and reinforce each other. Of course, the day also includes the most important check-ins: texts and calls with my kids, who unfortunately don’t take my advice nearly as often as my clients do.
Brett: I don’t have a typical day, but I spend most of my time on deal execution and client conversations. In addition, I set aside time to mentor more-junior lawyers. I know how critical it is to have a trusted mentor. Allison set the bar high for me in terms of mentorship, and I feel a tremendous responsibility to pay that forward. Also, like Allison, I regularly check in with my kids and make time to attend their important activities.
What training, classes, experience, or skills development would you recommend to someone who wishes to enter your practice area?
Brett: The deal-simulation courses I took in law school were incredibly helpful; if your law school offers those types of courses, I would recommend taking them. Contract Drafting and Securities Regulation were also useful classes. If you can, take a Tax course—you’ll still need a fantastic tax lawyer by your side throughout a deal, but having a foundational understanding is valuable.
Allison: Brett’s suggestions are all spot on. I also recommend finding an environment that supports your professional growth and taking advantage of every learning opportunity. As a summer associate, try different practice areas to see what resonates with you. Once you find your practice area, seek out opportunities and make yourself indispensable to the team. At a firm like Skadden, you’ll have ample chances to tackle interesting work and pursue development opportunities. Find mentors and colleagues who will help you grow professionally, so you can gain deeper insights into the practice and achieve your career goals.
What do you like best about your practice area?
Allison: I enjoy operating at the intersection of execution and strategy, driving complex M&A deals forward while also helping boards and senior management think through the broader business issues. Each deal brings unique issues, so even after decades of practicing, I’m still learning new things. Brett and I both thrive in collaborative environments and enjoy building and leading teams, and M&A is very focused on relationship-building, negotiating, and working together. Working with so many different personalities from a wide array of industries is energizing (and often fascinating!).
Brett: As Allison mentions, I am a people person, which makes the collaborative nature of M&A perfect for me. I especially enjoy working with our associates and watching them grow and become more confident in their lawyering skills as the deal progresses.
What is unique about your practice area at your firm?
One of the best aspects of practicing M&A at Skadden is the variety of matters we handle: deals of all different types and sizes across industries and borders. Because we have such a broad client base, there are myriad ways to shape your practice, whether that’s having a broad and diverse practice, a niche one, or something in between. The vast experience within our team also makes our lawyers an incredible resource when a new question arises. Our global team works together seamlessly, so clients know they can trust us to handle their complex, cross-border deals, and our lawyers gain invaluable experience working with colleagues across the world.
What kinds of experience can summer associates gain at this practice area at your firm?
Brett: I’m co-chair of Skadden’s summer associate committee, and working with the summer associates each year is one of my favorite things. We give summers substantive work that we would otherwise give to our junior associates, like putting together ancillary documents, preparing diligence request lists, and reviewing disclosure schedules, to name some. Summers shadow us in meetings and on calls, and we host a summer-long M&A training program that is a crash-course in an M&A deal and negotiation. Most people haven’t been exposed to M&A prior to their summer, and it’s amazing to see their development by the end of the program.
How do you deal with the fast-paced nature of your work in M&A, especially given the high stakes for your client?
Allison: I have always relished the challenge of M&A deal work, including—and especially—its fast pace. The faster the pace, the more important judgment and experience become. You can’t try and win every point. The real value is helping clients prioritize what actually matters to them and directing the team’s energy there and not getting distracted by issues that don’t change the outcome. To be successful in this area, you need to be ready to pivot when unexpected issues arise and welcome collaboration. This last point is critical because working as a team will make even the most difficult deals move forward more efficiently and effectively. No matter how stressful or heated negotiations may be, continue to prioritize collaboration, including across the table; the relationships you build with your counterparty and their counsel are often just as important in getting a deal done.