Cadwalader
Wickersham
&
Taft,
long
viewed
as
a
stalwart
of
Wall
Street
law
firms,
now
seems
to
be
scrambling
to
steady
its
ship.
Already
battling
turbulence,
the
firm
just
shook
the
table
again
—
this
time,
by
naming
a
new
co-managing
partner
in
the
midst
of
mass
partner
exits
and
swirling
merger
chatter.
The
timing,
and
optics,
are
hard
to
ignore.
As
noted
by
the
American
Lawyer,
the
firm
recently
announced
the
appointment
of
Wesley
Mission,
the
firm’s
finance
group
chair,
to
assist
Patrick
Quinn,
the
firm’s
longtime
managing
partner.
The
firm
hasn’t
had
a
co-managing
partner
in
a
decade.
In
a
memo
to
partners,
Quinn
said
that
Mission
“has
been
serving
alongside
me
effectively
as
co-managing
partner,
and
I’m
thrilled
that
he
has
agreed
formally
[to]
take
on
the
role.”
So
what,
exactly,
is
Mission’s
mission
at
CWT?
The
addition
of
a
co-managing
partner
may
suggest
the
firm
is
hedging
its
bets
in
an
attempt
to
stop
the
bleeding.
Over
the
past
several
months,
Cadwalader
has
lost
more
than
40
partners
to
competitor
firms,
with
high-profile
defections
hitting
core
practices.
Many
of
these
moves
are
reportedly
tied
to
internal
dissatisfaction
over
the
firm’s
controversial
agreement
with
the
Trump
administration,
in
which
CWT
pledged
$100
million
in
pro
bono
payola
to
help
avoid
punitive
executive
orders.
Some
partners
viewed
the
deal
as
a
capitulation,
prompting
their
resignations
in
protest.
This
talent
drain
caused
merger
rumors
to
swirl,
and
perhaps
the
firm
hopes
that
Mission’s
appointment
will
stem
further
partner
loss,
reestablish
confidence
in
Cadwalader’s
platform,
and
manage
—
or
at
least
resist
—
further
merger
overtures.
Earlier
this
month,
the
firm
offered
Am
Law
the
following
comment
on
its
speculated
merger
plans:
According
to
a
firm
leader,
“Cadwalader
has
received
inbound
interest
from
multiple
firms
over
the
years,
but
is
not
currently
engaged
in
merger
discussions.”
The
leader
added
that
the
firm
considers
all
strategic
opportunities
that
are
best
for
it
and
its
clients.
In
short,
Cadwalader’s
announcement
of
a
co-managing
partner
is
as
much
a
firefight
as
it
is
a
renewal.
The
firm
is
attempting
to
reassert
control
amid
spiraling
exits
and
uncertainty.
What
will
matter
most
here,
however,
is
whether
Mission
and
leadership
can
engineer
a
coherent
recovery
—
or
whether
Cadwalader
will
be
forced
into
a
merger
by
necessity,
not
choice.
Cadwalader
Names
New
Co-Managing
Partner
[American
Lawyer]
As
Competitors
Eye
Cadwalader
For
Talent,
Law
Firm
‘Not
Engaged’
in
Merger
Talks
[American
Lawyer]
Staci
Zaretsky is
the
managing
editor
of
Above
the
Law,
where
she’s
worked
since
2011.
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