Hedge Funds and In-House Counsel

The New York Times profiles an increase in deal flow for law firms related to private equity.

Also noted is the need for GCs and corporate counsel with these new and growing companies:

The “demand for general counsel is multiples higher than it was only three or four years ago,” said Alan D. Hilliker, a partner with the executive search firm Egon Zander in New York. Brian Davis, a recruiter with Major, Lindsey & Africa in New York, said, “Until three years ago, we never did a hedge fund search, and now we have had dozens and dozens.”

The draw is both the work and the compensation, which, for senior associates, typically ranges from $400,000 to $600,000 at hedge funds with $2 billion to $3 billion under management, according to Laurie Becker, the president of E. P. Dine, an executive search firm in New York. Partners, she added, can command even more.

Mr. Davis said: “The hedge fund business is diversifying, and they feel like they need lawyers for all the businesses they’re getting into. Funds are looking for transactional lawyers to help to do the deals, and there’s also a big demand for compliance lawyers.”

The liquidity in these markets is touching a lot of people right now. It is one thing to buy businesses; it is another to build them and run them right.