Cadwalader's London Office Adds New Partners; Christopher Kandel and Bill Rubin to Join Firm

Business Wire,  Sept 17, 2002  

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Business and Legal Editors

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 17, 2002

Christopher Kandel, a former Finance partner in the London office of Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson, and Bill Rubin, a former Finance partner in the London office of Weil, Gotshal and Manges LLP, have joined the partnership of Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft.

Mr. Kandel, whose practice is focused on financing for complex leveraged deals, will be joining the Banking and Finance Department in London. Mr. Rubin, a specialist in project finance, will join the firm's Project Finance team in London.

"Both Chris and Bill are exceptional lawyers with outstanding reputations and experience. Each of their practices fits with our core competencies, yet each is focused on those areas poised for further growth in our London office, banking and project finance. We see both as necessary components as we expand Cadwalader's capabilities in London and throughout Europe," said Robert O. Link, Jr., Cadwalader's Chairman.

"Chris has a broad general banking and capital markets practice, with a specialty in representing financial institutions in international finance transactions. Because of his level of expertise in jurisdictional, multi-layered financings, Chris will be a tremendous asset to the Banking and Finance Department in London as we seek to strengthen our cross border capabilities, expand our leveraged finance practice, and complement the team Stephen Mostyn-Williams is building. Adding Bill's expertise to the firm's strong group of project finance lawyers with a diverse range of specializations provides a superior base from which to pitch for the largest global project finance transactions," said Andrew Wilkinson, Managing Partner of Cadwalader's London office.

"There is a tremendous opportunity in London to build a substantial leveraged finance practice. Few firms in London have the experience and expertise to carry out complex multi-debt layered buy-out transactions. Chris, who practices under both English and New York law, will enhance our capabilities and offering to clients across senior debt, mezzanine and high yield. We now have built a team of over ten specialist bank debt finance lawyers and also intend to extend our leading securitisation business into the LBO arena," said Stephen Mostyn-Williams, Head of the firm's International Banking and Finance practice.

"Bill's specific geographical areas of expertise, namely Central and Eastern Europe, Russia and Central Asia, add depth to our current practice, which is focused on projects in Africa, South Asia, Western Europe and the Middle East and energy trading in the UK and Europe. Awareness of these geographical markets, and increased sector coverage in power, telecoms and infrastructure projects, will allow the group to continue to develop and act on further major project instructions," said Paul Biggs, Head of Cadwalader's European Project Finance practice in London and Europe.

"Few Magic Circle firms are players in the representation of lenders in the European LBO market. I look forward to teaming with Stephen Mostyn-Williams to help build Cadwalader's international banking and finance practice," said Kandel.

"I look forward to joining Cadwalader's project finance group. The group has a strong team of lawyers which, after only a short period of time, has developed a sound reputation and the capability to handle the largest and most complex project finance transactions," said Rubin.

Cadwalader's London office continues to focus on the firm's core competencies -- capital markets, financial restructuring, banking and project finance, and litigation -- each of which is strong and growing. Since opening in 1997, the office has increased in size threefold and now employs more than 70 attorneys. In May 2002, the firm reaffirmed its commitment to the city and the European markets by relocating its offices to state-of-the-art facilities at 265 Strand, doubling the previous UK office capacity of Cadwalader.

Prior to joining Fried, Frank, Mr. Kandel was a partner at O'Melveny & Myers. He was a corporate associate at Piper & Marbury and an associate at O'Melveny & Myers, where he began his career. He received his B.A., magna cum laude, from Yale College in 1982 and earned a J.D., cum laude, from Cornell Law School in 1985. He is admitted to practice law in California, Maryland, the District of Columbia, England and Wales.

Prior to joining Weil Gotshal, Mr. Rubin was a Chief Counsel at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), where he supervised a team of lawyers working on financings for projects in Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. From 1985 - 1992, he was with Coudert Brothers where he concentrated on banking and project finance in the Singapore, Tokyo and London offices. He began his career as an associate with Jones Day in Washington, DC. He received his A.B., magna cum laude, in Engineering and Applied Sciences from Harvard College in 1978 and earned a J.D., cum laude, from Harvard Law School in 1982.