Law firm Sidley Austin added Brian Minyard as a partner in its Houston office, and Rob Carlson as a partner in Palo Alto, CA.

Minyard will be a member of Sidley’s Global Finance practice, focusing on energy finance. Minyard focuses his practice on debt financings for both lenders and borrowers, particularly those in the exploration and production, oilfield services and midstream sectors. He has extensive experience with acquisition financing and other specialized energy finance transactions, including reserve-based lending, mezzanine debt financings and volumetric production payments.

“Brian’s considerable skills advising financial institutions in intricate energy industry transactions will add strength to our significant capabilities in this area,” said Cliff Vrielink, co-managing partner of Sidley’s Houston office and member of the firm’s executive committee. “We are very pleased to welcome him to the firm.”

Carlson will be a member of Sidley’s M&A practice. Carlson focuses his practice on advising corporations on an array of corporate matters, including mergers and acquisitions, public and private securities offerings and joint ventures.

He also counsels private equity clients on fund formation and the acquisition and disposition of portfolio companies. Additionally, Carlson advises boards of directors on corporate governance matters. His experience spans multiple industries, among them technology and life sciences.

“Rob’s experience advising sophisticated clients in a broad range of corporate matters will make him a great addition to our Silicon Valley team and a sought-after resource for clients in the technology and life sciences sectors, in particular,” said Martin Wellington, managing partner of Sidley’s Palo Alto office. “We are delighted to welcome him to the firm.”