The Financial Times reports, citing two people with knowledge of the matter, that Ramona Nee will not take over as executive partner of Weil, Gotshal & Manges in January. The newspaper says Nee has told the firm’s management committee she will not step into the role. Weil did not immediately respond to its request for comment.
Nee was named Weil’s next leader in March, according to the FT. She was due to succeed Barry Wolf, who had led the firm for 16 years and was expected to retire at the end of 2027. The FT reports that Weil said at the time that Wolf would continue chairing its management committee until retirement and spend 2027 on the transition.
More than two dozen partners have decided to leave since spring, the FT reports, naming Simpson Thacher, Paul Weiss and Sullivan & Cromwell among their destination firms. It also reports that Michael Aiello said he would leave for Cravath with a team of lawyers. According to the FT, the departures prompted Weil to consider a merger, but those efforts had not yielded a deal.
Separately, Semafor reporter @rogoswami wrote on Oct. 25, citing people familiar with the matter, that Nee was in talks to leave Weil for Simpson Thacher. The post also said other firms had expressed interest. It described talks, not an agreement or a completed move.
