Akin Promotes 12 Lawyers to Partnership

(New York) – Akin announced today the promotion of 12 lawyers to its partnership, effective January 1, 2026. This year’s new partner class follows the addition of 27 lateral partners in 2025 and expansion into new markets with the opening of offices in Chicago and Riyadh, reflecting continued investment in growth.

“Each of our new partners represents the very best of Akin’s core values, including dedication to excellence, an unwavering commitment to client service and the spirit of collaboration,” said Akin co-chair Daniel Walsh. “We are proud to welcome them to the partnership as part of the next generation of leaders at Akin and we congratulate them on this achievement. As we continue to grow, these new partners will play a vital role in advancing innovative solutions for clients.”

Aaron Farovitch (Tax, New York) advises public and private companies on a wide range of executive compensation & employee benefits matters in complex transactions, including M&A and private equity deals, initial public offerings, spinoffs, financial restructurings and other strategic transactions. Aaron advises companies and executives on the design and implementation of equity and equity-based incentive compensation arrangements, nonqualified deferred compensation plans, severance, change in control and executive employment agreements.

Joe Hewton (Litigation, London) is a white collar defense & investigations lawyer and advises financial institutions and investment management clients, including their senior executives, on enforcement actions pursued by the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority and other global regulators. He regularly handles internal investigations, as well as cross-border matters involving U.S. agencies, such as the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Department of Justice.

Tom Hillebrand (Corporate, Houston) advises clients on M&A transactions, joint ventures and project development in the energy & infrastructure sector, with extensive experience in the midstream and upstream sectors. His experience encompasses the full oil & gas value chain, including upstream, midstream and downstream transactions, and covers cutting-edge energy transition projects such as carbon capture, utilization & sequestration and other green technology fields.

Kyle Hogan (Investment Management, New York and Philadelphia) advises fund sponsors and institutional investors on a full range of complex transactions, including hybrid and evergreen fund formation and operations as well as manager transactions. Additionally, he is a leader of the investment management practice’s legal tech group and is one of the firm’s first “AI pathfinders.”

Sarah Kirwin (Regulatory, Washington, D.C.) is a go-to advisor on trade policy and supply chain regulatory matters with deep experience in tariff mitigation strategies, customs and forced labor compliance and foreign entity restrictions. Sarah counsels clients across the automotive, battery, solar, aerospace, electronics, and retail sectors on these and other complex trade matters through advocacy, litigation and enforcement defense.  

Marc Lombardi (Investment Management, Dallas) advises fund sponsors on the formation and launch of complex fund vehicles and joint ventures, ongoing fund operations and the establishment of emerging investment managers, with a focus on energy & infrastructure funds, real estate funds, evergreen and hybrid structures and sovereign-backed platforms. Marc also serves as a trusted advisor to institutional investors across a wide range of asset classes, fund types and investment strategies.

Brendan McNamara (Investment Management, Washington, D.C.) focuses his practice primarily on the representation of buyers, including lead investors, and sellers in the acquisition and sale of investments on the secondary market. He advises on traditional multi-manager portfolio sales, recapitalizations and restructurings, GP-led transactions and tender offers, as well as all aspects of secondary fund formation and fundraising.

Caitlin Olwell (Intellectual Property, New York) is a proven and trusted trial attorney focused on high-stakes patent and trade secret disputes, particularly in the medical device and pharmaceutical sectors. She handles all phases of IP litigation, from early case strategy through trial, representing clients in federal courts across the country. Outside of litigation, Caitlin provides strategic advice to investors, creditors and other financial stakeholders on IP-related issues.

Andrew Schlossberg (Regulatory, Washington, D.C.) advises U.S. and international clients on U.S. economic sanctions administered by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the U.S. Department of State, and other national security- and trade-related areas such as U.S. export controls, customs, anti-money laundering compliance and state divestment laws. His work includes internal investigations, administrative enforcement, compliance advisory, licensing, litigation and policy matters.

Richard Swanson (Tax, New York) advises clients, including hedge and private equity funds and multinational entities on tax matters, including fund formation, M&A, financial products, cross-border lending and real estate transactions.

Marta Thompson (Regulatory, Washington, D.C.) focuses on government contracts, representing clients in high-stakes government investigations, including False Claims Act matters involving federal grants, contracts and cooperative agreements. Marta is a trusted advisor on complex transactions involving companies holding government contracts, providing regulatory counseling and due diligence. She specializes in issues related to national security, federally sponsored research and development, and the advancement of space and defense technologies.

Brad Warner (Corporate, New York) is a leading project finance lawyer who advises financial institutions, private equity firms and sponsors on complex energy & infrastructure transactions. He serves as lead counsel on large-scale project financings for power generation, storage and other critical infrastructure projects and advises on tax credit monetization and other innovative financing structures across diverse asset classes.

Akin is a leading international law firm with more than 900 lawyers in offices throughout the United States, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

###