Leonard Klingbaum and Jennifer Harris, two leading practitioners in special situations finance, liability management and distressed capital markets, have joined Dechert as partners. Klingbaum will head the firm’s new cross-disciplinary capital solutions team that will work with the full breadth of Dechert’s capabilities across private credit, capital markets, private equity and restructuring.
Together, Klingbaum and Harris bring decades of combined experience in special situations and distressed finance. Their arrival strengthens Dechert’s bi-coastal presence, with Klingbaum based in New York and Harris in Los Angeles, extending the firm’s reach to serve clients across both the East and West Coast financial markets. The team will advise asset managers, companies and sponsors across the spectrum of capital deployment, from financing strategy, direct lending and liability management to distressed M&A and special situation transactions at every level of the capital stack and every stage of the investment.
“Attracting talent like Leonard and Jennifer is central to how we continue to meet our clients’ increasingly complex needs across a very sophisticated investment landscape,” Mark Thierfelder, co-chair of Dechert, said. “They are deeply respected across the industry and bring a breadth of experience and client relationships that will be incredibly additive to our platform.”
Michael Poulos, vice chair and global head of strategy at Dechert, added, “Leonard and Jennifer bring a rare combination of capabilities that enable us to advise clients seamlessly across the full lifecycle of their investments, from deal origination through execution and beyond. They deepen our bench in New York and Los Angeles and position our practice to meet the growing scale and complexities of the market.”
Named by Forbes among “America’s Top 200 Lawyers” (2024-2025), and ranked as one of “America’s Leading Lawyers for Business” by Chambers USA and “highly regarded” by IFLR1000, Klingbaum brings an extensive track record advising credit funds, direct lenders and borrowers on event-driven and opportunistic financing, special situations and liability management transactions, workouts, restructurings and insolvency matters across lending, high-yield and mezzanine transactions from the lower middle market to large cap.
“Dechert has built one of the premier platforms in the world serving asset managers and borrowers, and I am excited to join a firm with such exceptional talent, global reach and a strong client base,” Klingbaum said. “The opportunity to deepen the firm’s capital solutions capabilities alongside Jennifer, who brings exceptional experience, makes this a very exciting time, and we look forward to contributing to the firm’s continued momentum.”
Harris is a finance practitioner whose practice focuses on credit opportunities, intercreditor relationships and esoteric finance transactions, including distressed and structured financing, liability management, workouts and special situations lending such as DIPs and exit financings, FILOs, second lien and mezzanine financing, across a wide array of industries. She has been recognized in The Legal 500.
