The
hits
keep
coming
for
Cadwalader
Wickersham
&
Taft.
Reports
of
a
mass
lateral
defection
from
the
firm’s
collateralized
loan
obligation
and
asset-backed
lending
team have
now
been
confirmed,
with
Orrick
taking
in
a
37-lawyer
team
from
the
firm
—
including
10
partners
—
in
one
of
the
most
sweeping
group
lateral
moves
the
Biglaw
world
has
seen
this
year.
This
will
give
Orrick
an
immediate
boost
in
one
of
its
most
profitable
practice
areas,
and
deal
year
another
serious
blow
to
Cadwalader’s
already
shake
sense
of
stability.
As
noted
by
the
American
Lawyer,
this
group
lateral
moves
spans
continents,
with
lawyers
in
the
U.S.
and
the
U.K.
involved,
and
this
expansion
has
allowed
Orrick
to
claim
rights
to
one
of
the
largest
finance
practices
in
the
world.
Here’s
a
statement
from
Mitch
Zuklie,
Orrick’s
chair,
on
the
news:
“The
addition
of
this
world-class
team
positions
our
firm
uniquely
to
advise
our
private
credit
and
banking
clients
as
they
innovate
on
private
debt
solutions.
It
advances
multiple
strategic
priorities,
including
growing
our
London
office
and
scaling
our
finance
practice
with
a
team
of
remarkable
quality.”
For
Cadwalader,
this
move
lands
at
a
delicate
moment.
The
233-year-old
firm
seems
to
have
spent
much
of
2025
in
triage
mode,
trying
to
steady
itself
after
months
of
partner
departures
and
growing
internal
unease.
Just
last
week,
the
firm
announced
that
finance
partner
Wes
Misson
would
become
co-managing
partner
alongside
long-time
leader
Pat
Quinn
—
a
move
widely
interpreted
as
an
effort
to
project
calm
amid
the
chaos.
The
firm’s
leadership
shuffle
was
meant
to
show
that
management
was
paying
attention,
but
today’s
news
makes
that
attempt
at
reassurance
feel
almost
quaint.
When
nearly
40
lawyers
pack
up
from
one
of
Wall
Street’s
most
venerable
firms
and
move
together,
they
send
a
message
about
where
they
believe
opportunity
lies
—
and
where
it
no
longer
does.
Orrick
didn’t
just
make
a
group
lateral
hire;
it
made
a
huge
statement.
Cadwalader’s
leaders
insist
that
the
firm
remains
strong,
profitable,
and
focused,
but
the
optics
here
are
simply
brutal.
In
a
talent-driven
economy,
stability
is
currency,
and
this
move
suggests
that
Cadwalader’s
reserves
may
be
running
low.
37-Lawyer
Cadwalader
Team
Arrives
at
Orrick
[American
Lawyer]
Earlier:
Wall
Street’s
Oldest
Biglaw
Firm
Appoints
Co-Managing
Partner
Amid
Mass
Exits
And
Merger
Rumors
Staci
Zaretsky is
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Above
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Law,
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