Global M&A Chair Named a "Rainmaker"

Mark Gerstein, Global Co-chair of the firm’s Mergers & Acquisitions Practice, was named a “rainmaker” by Law360 for his experience and reputation counseling clients across the globe on their most high-profile and sophisticated M&A transactions and corporate governance matters.

In a Q&A with Law360, Gerstein points to confidence as an important skill to becoming a “rainmaker.” He notes that what is important is, “the confidence that allows one to go into any pitch with the expectation that you will win it, and treating those you lose not as a personal loss, but simply part of the business.” He adds that lawyers risk losing their enthusiasm if they are demoralized by the handful of engagements that inevitably go elsewhere.

Gerstein also highlights the importance of tailoring pitches to the client or potential client’s needs, noting, “what I find differentiates us from competitors in pitches is the extent to which we have studied in advance the client and the proposed transaction. That way, we can present not only our capabilities, but our perspectives on the opportunities and risks we have preliminarily identified in the deal based on our past experience, the particulars of the parties to the possible transaction, and what we have learned from the client in advance of the presentation about their objectives for and concerns as to the deal.”

Finally, Gerstein notes the importance of enabling more junior partners to succeed to build the next generation of rainmakers. “Too many rainmakers develop a cadre of partners who do nothing but handle the rainmaker’s portfolio, and then those partners are left without the skills to build the next generation of clients when the rainmaker retires.”