Paul Tiger, who left Freshfields in early 2025, has joined White & Case as a partner in its global M&A group, the firm said Tuesday. “Strengthening our U.S. capabilities is a key element of our strategy, and we continue to add talent to our M&A team,” White & Case chair Heather McDevitt said in a statement. “Paul is known for his collaborative approach, and his skill set will support our listed corporate clients and global organizations conducting transactions in the U.S.” Tiger was previously a partner at Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton before moving over to Freshfields in 2019 alongside Ethan Klingsberg, who remains with Freshfields. After leaving Freshfields in early 2025, Tiger had taken some time away to deal with a personal health matter. As for why he made the move now to White & Case, Tiger said the firm's global platform and subject-matter expertise in ancillary practices were a difference-maker for his practice. “In the past few years, we have seen that big-ticket M&A requires two to three elements to succeed,” Tiger said in an interview. “You need a domestic platform that is aided by subject matter experts in areas like tax, CFIUS and executive compensation. And because so many businesses have a global facet, it is important to have a global offering. White & Case has a good mix of those elements.” White & Case said Tiger handles domestic and cross-border mergers and acquisitions and private equity investments across industries, including manufacturing, automotive, building materials, chemicals, logistics and retail, while also leveraging his strong technology and energy transition experience for both TMT and industrial clients.” Tiger said the timing of his move is somewhat reflective of the market, as there has been a lot of movement by M&A attorneys. And Tiger believes this is due to a pending boom for M&A. "We’re seeing a lot of disruption in the markets right now," Tiger said. "A year ago, it was tax policy and the broader regulatory environment; now it’s tariffs, inflation and the Fed, the effects of AI, and potential foreign conflicts. That disruption is having pronounced effects on international trade, the data center bubble, software companies, and the defense industry. Historically, if you look back, after periods of disruption like this, winners and losers have emerged, and significant M&A has followed on the back of that."