Goodwin Procter LLP announced that Robert Masella joined the firm’s Mergers & Acquisitions practice and Life Sciences and Technology groups as a partner, resident in the New York office.
“Our public M&A franchise continues to excel — particularly within our life sciences, healthcare, technology, real estate, and private equity industry verticals, with marquee multibillion-dollar transactions such as MyoKardia, Citrix, Mimecast, Trillium, and Retail Properties of America,” said Stuart Cable, global chair of Goodwin’s M&A practice. “Rob is a world-class M&A lawyer with exceptional experience in executing public company transactions. We are thrilled to welcome him to our New York office.”
Masella has extensive experience in U.S. and cross-border public and private M&A transactions and corporate governance matters. His transactional work includes sell-side and buy-side transactions, dual-track M&A/IPO processes, joint ventures, licenses, co-promotion agreements, debt and equity investments and issuances, spin-offs, and other corporate transactions. Masella also regularly represents investment banks in connection with financial advisory assignments. He advises clients with respect to shareholder activism, corporate governance and fiduciary duty matters, disclosure obligations, conflicts of interest, and compliance matters. Masella was previously a partner at a major international law firm and was also a managing director in M&A at a leading investment bank.
Refinitiv’s latest league tables ranked Goodwin the number one firm for global M&A by deal count in calendar year 2021 — the busiest year for M&A transactions on record — having advised on 1,083 announced deals valued at $176 billion. This figure represents the most M&A transactions completed in a year by any law firm in history, and 106 deals more than the firm’s next closest competitor in 2021. Goodwin also led all law firms by acting as principal advisor on 1,081 deals, which represents 99.8% of the firm’s total deal count. The American Lawyer recently profiled Goodwin's ascent to the top of M&A league tables.
Goodwin’s recent M&A transactions include: Citrix Systems’ $16.5 billion pending sale to affiliates of Vista Equity Partners and Evergreen Coast Capital; Mimecast’s $5.8 billion pending sale to funds advised by Permira; Trillium Therapeutics’ $2.2 billion sale to Pfizer; Retail Properties of America’s $7.5 billion merger with Kite Realty Group Trust; and MyoKardia’s $13.1 billion sale to Bristol Myers Squibb.
