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Weil, Gotshal & Manges plans to wind down after partner exodus

Published

The management committee of the New York law firm recommended an "orderly wind-down" to its partners on Wednesday. The partners are expected to vote in the coming days, and the firm says it will keep serving clients.

The firm has about 1,200 lawyers. Its leadership acted after a failed attempt to stop partners leaving. Reports said talks on a merger with Willkie Farr & Gallagher ended days earlier.

Some counts say around 40 partners left in 2026 before this week. Private equity partner Christopher Machera was one who moved, to Paul, Weiss. The firm said it will serve clients during the wind-down over the coming months.

An adviser to the firm said it believes it can wind down solvently. That would make it a dissolution, not a bankruptcy. Reports also said the firm brought in Brian Resnick, a bankruptcy partner at Davis Polk.

Key facts

Who
Weil, Gotshal & Manges (elite US law firm); Brian Resnick (Davis Polk bankruptcy partner advising Weil, per the Wall Street Journal); Neil Barr (chair of Davis Polk, advising Weil); Willkie Farr & Gallagher (law firm whose merger talks with Weil reportedly ended)
What
The US law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges told its partners on the previous afternoon that it should dissolve. The firm had been in turmoil this year after a series of top partners left, taking teams of lawyers to rivals.
When
28 October 2026
Where
Wall Street, New York
Status
Reported

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