Ariel Deckelbaum Joins Ropes & Gray in New York

Ropes & Gray announced today that Ariel Deckelbaum is joining the firm as a partner in its mergers & acquisitions practice. With Ariel, Ropes & Gray is expanding a superlative team of New York-based mergers & acquisitions partners that is among the nation’s finest, and includes the recent additions of mergers & acquisitions partners Jackie Cohen and Suni Sreepada, who arrived in 2022.

“Ariel is one of the nation’s leading M&A lawyers who, over two decades, has guided admired companies, investors and strategic dealmakers in their most complex and ambitious deals,” said Julie Jones, chair. “We are excited that Ariel is joining our team.”

Ariel will focus on advising clients on a broad range of public company matters, cross-border M&A, asset management M&A and sponsor-solutions, restructuring transactions and other significant corporate matters.

His clients span industries, including asset management, TMT, industrials and manufacturing, consumer goods and hospitality. He advises public and private companies, multinationals and leading asset management firms as well as their boards of directors, special committees and investors.

Ariel garners praise from clients for being an experienced M&A lawyer who is skilled at solving clients’ most challenging issues across transactions, providing commercial and actionable advice. In Chambers & Partners, where he is ranked for corporate/M&A in New York, clients praise Ariel as an “incredible elite-level professional in his field.” He has guided large deals that have re-shaped industries.

Ariel’s recent M&A experience demonstrates his broad capabilities; it includes advising:

• Baring Private Equity Asia in connection with its sale to EQT
• Advance, a founder and major shareholder of Discovery in its combination with AT&T’s WarnerMedia Business with Discovery
• Oak Hill Advisors in its acquisition by T. Rowe Price
• Conair Corporation in its sale to affiliates of American Securities

Ropes & Gray is a preeminent firm for complex transactions. Since 2020, its lawyers have regularly been named to The American Lawyer’s prestigious “Dealmakers of the Year” for guiding the world’s most complex and interesting deals, and the firm was named The American Lawyer’s “Corporate Department of the Year – Pharmaceutical/Healthcare” in 2022. By volume, in 2022, the firm advised on M&A transactions with an aggregate total value of more than $185 billion.

“Through carefully managed and strategic growth, Ropes & Gray continues to offer a leading M&A practice in the world’s most influential centers of business,” said David Djaha, managing partner. “Ariel is known as a trusted advisor in New York, and globally. He brings additional excellence in M&A to our elite team and helps expand our capabilities in New York.”

“Clients appreciate Ariel’s thoughtful and creative advice, his ability to handle a broad range of deals, and his ability to negotiate great outcomes for clients,” said Chris Comeau, partner and head of the firm’s mergers & acquisitions practice. 

“I am excited to join Ropes & Gray because its platform is among the industry’s best, and for the opportunity to serve and expand relationships with new and existing clients. The firm’s strong presence, depth and client-focused approach across industries complements the various aspects of my practice, including asset management and public company representations and make this a great fit,” Ariel said. “I am excited to work with the team’s phenomenal lawyers to grow the firm’s M&A practice.”