Shearman & Sterling will expand its bank finance capabilities with the addition of Joshua W. Thompson, who will join the firm in New York as a partner.

Mr. Thompson comes to Shearman & Sterling from Proskauer Rose, where he was a member of the firm's bank finance group as well as co-head of the Infrastructure Group. He previously served as general counsel of Jefferies Finance.

"We are very happy to welcome Josh to Shearman & Sterling and to our bank finance group," said Rohan S. Weerasinghe, the firm's senior partner. "We know he will be an outstanding addition to what is already a market-leading team in the leveraged finance arena."

Added Maura O'Sullivan, Shearman & Sterling's bank finance group leader in the United States, "Josh brings to our firm considerable experience with financial services clients, as well as a fine reputation and great enthusiasm."

Mr. Thompson has considerable experience in complex financings, including acquisition financings and other leveraged lending (including leveraged buyouts, tender offers and other going private transactions), structured financings, second-lien financings and mezzanine investments. He brings to Shearman & Sterling his extensive experience representing debtors, creditors, management and investors in complex restructurings, work-outs, bankruptcies and acquisitions of troubled companies. In addition, as counsel for lead arrangers and private equity sponsors, he is involved in all aspects of deal structure, negotiation and documentation, including the negotiation of intercreditor relationships, compliance with margin regulations and, in the case of international transactions, structuring financings to maximize tax efficiencies.

"I am very excited about this new chapter in my professional career," Mr. Thompson said. "Shearman & Sterling's bank finance group is widely recognized for the excellence of its partners, and I look forward to the opportunity of working with my new colleagues."

Shearman & Sterling's bank finance group is regularly involved in many of the largest and most complex financing transactions completed internationally. The firm's worldwide presence facilitates the largest and most complex financings in both international bank financing and capital markets. Such transactions often involve multiple facilities, currencies and jurisdictions, the contemporaneous issuance of publicly offered or privately placed senior or subordinated debt and the refinancing of existing debt. Additionally, the Finance Group is noted for its skill in structuring a wide variety of acquisition financings of public and private companies, including tender offer financings, merger financings, leveraged recapitalization financings and stock and asset purchase financings, as well as its significant practice in investment grade financing.