Editors’ Note

June Dipchand is a New York-based corporate partner concentrating in mergers and acquisitions, securities law, and general corporate law matters. She advises public and private clients in connection with various U.S. and cross-border corporate transactions, including negotiated and contested acquisitions, dispositions, SPACs, mergers, joint ventures, leveraged buyouts, carveouts, strategic investments, financings, restructurings, recapitalizations, and reorganizations. She has been recognized in IFLR1000, has been repeatedly named by Lawdragon as one of its 500 Leading Dealmakers in America and has been named by MergerLinks as one of the top 10 M&A Lawyers for Canada. Further, she is active in pro bono and diversity initiatives, both within and outside the firm. She currently sits on the board of directors of the Legal Aid Society in New York and co-chairs the board’s diversity subcommittee

FIRM BRIEF

Founded in 1948, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and affiliates (skadden.com) is one of the world’s most highly respected law firms. Skadden has 21 offices, approximately 1,700 attorneys and more than 50 distinct areas of practice. The firm’s clients include more than 50 percent of Fortune 250 corporations, as well as financial and governmental entities, startup companies and nonprofits.

How do you describe Skadden’s culture?

The energy, vision, and tenacity that defined Skadden in its early days remain very much a part of our culture today, and I often feel as though I am part of a collective effort to continue to maintain and build upon that legacy. We are committed to excellence and going above and beyond for our clients – our approach to client service reflects the understanding that we do our best work as part of a diverse team, working together across offices and practices.

Will you provide an overview of your position and areas of focus?

I’m an M&A partner based in Skadden’s New York office, and I manage the Canadian cross-border M&A practice for our Toronto office. I focus on complex international transactions, governance matters, takeover preparedness, and other corporate law matters. I cover a broad array of transactions – varying by size, type, industry, and geography – as I have a diverse spectrum of clients. I spend considerable time traveling throughout Canada, where connecting in person with clients and local firms has been invaluable to building trust and enduring relationships in the region.

Will you elaborate on Skadden’s Canada M&A practice?

Our Toronto office was founded more than 30 years ago, and over the past three decades we have gained extensive experience advising clients in connection with transactions and capital markets matters involving Canada and Canadian companies. The practice has grown significantly over time, and it’s been exciting to be part of growing our footprint in the country.

I think what has helped us succeed in Canada is the strength and interconnectedness of our global platform – attorneys across the firm regularly work on multi-jurisdictional, multi-disciplinary teams, and Canada and the U.S. rank among the countries we most frequently see involved in cross-border deals. We also maintain strong relationships with local Canadian law firms to ensure we’re seamlessly providing our clients with full-coverage service on these matters.

Do you feel that there are strong opportunities for women to advance in their careers and take on leadership roles in the legal profession?

There’s still a lot of work that needs to be done in the legal field – and in the broader business community – when it comes to achieving equitable representation for women. But I’ve been encouraged by the progress I believe has been made since I started my career. People are more open to speaking about these issues, I’ve seen increased representation of women on both sides of transactions, and there are more women in senior positions internally at clients. I have been fortunate in my career at Skadden to feel supported in my professional growth, and I try to pay it forward to the next generation of lawyers through my role as a mentor. It’s one of the most direct ways I can help increase representation of women at all levels of the field.