Latham & Watkins added John Sobolewski to its New York office as global chair of liability management and a partner in the capital markets and finance practices. Sobolewski has extensive experience representing sponsors and corporates in their most complex financing and liability management transactions.
“John is a leading authority in complex financing transactions and liability management, and we are delighted to welcome him to the firm,” Rich Trobman, chair and managing partner of Latham & Watkins, said. “John’s arrival, following the recent addition of Ray Schrock, Andrew Parlen, Candace Arthur and Alexander Welch to our restructuring and special situations team, is a powerful testament to our commitment to being the absolute best advisor to our clients throughout their lifecycle, including through their toughest challenges. John will bring tremendous knowledge, experience and leadership to his role as global chair of liability management, as we remain focused on delivering unparalleled value to our clients.”
“John has earned a stellar reputation for leading many of the market’s largest and most complex liability management exercises,” Marc Jaffe, managing partner of Latham & Watkins’ New York office, said. “His deep knowledge and experience will be a tremendous asset to our clients in New York and globally, at a time when demand for our services is growing rapidly in both scale and sophistication.”
Sobolewski’s practice spans the full spectrum of leveraged finance, including: liability management and special situations, leveraged M&A and LBOs, complex hybrid capital, debt capital markets offerings and exchanges, syndicated and direct loans, NAV loans and capital call facilities, management company financings and out-of-court workouts. He has advised clients across industries, including technology, communications, media and entertainment, REITS and real estate, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, retail, education, transportation and logistics and energy.
“John’s arrival underscores Latham’s unwavering commitment to being the premier firm serving clients across all of their sophisticated financing needs,” Ian Schuman, global chair of Latham’s capital markets and public company representation practices, said. “His commercial approach and the scope of his experience are synergistic with the growth strategies of many of our premier practices, including capital markets, hybrid capital, private capital, restructuring, banking and structured finance.”
“No firm can match our ability to deploy expertise and resources across interconnected corporate and finance practices to help clients stay ahead of financial distress and achieve their strategic objectives,” Ray Schrock, global chair of Latham’s restructuring and special situations practice, said. “John is sought after for his critical liability management advice, and his arrival further rounds out Latham’s comprehensive and unrivaled platform.”
“John’s clear leadership in liability management, an area at the intersection of our dominant finance, capital markets and private capital practices, further solidifies our position as the market’s go-to strategic advisor,” Stelios Saffos, global vice chair of Latham’s capital markets and public company representation practices and global chair of the hybrid capital practice, said. “We are laser focused on providing unmatched insight and service to our clients through our scaled platform, with market-leading practices across virtually every jurisdiction and discipline.”
“Latham is the premier full-service finance firm,” Sobolewski said. “I am thrilled to join the team and offer clients the highest level of liability management and complex financing advice.”
Sobolewski joins Latham from Wachtell. He received his JD from Harvard Law School and BA from Boston College.