Willkie Farr & Gallagher has added a private equity and mergers and acquisitions partner from Cravath, Swaine & Moore in its New York office, the latest in a series of transaction-focused partners to make lateral moves in recent months. Maurio Fiore joined Willkie’s corporate & financial services department on Wednesday and its private equity and M&A practice groups, according to the firm’s announcement. Fiore was a partner at Cravath for three years in New York, after serving as an associate there. Fiore is one of several transaction-focused attorneys to make moves during the especially active lateral market of the past year, and only the latest of the finance and transaction partners that Willkie has already brought on in 2026. The firm already added Jesse Kean, an asset management partner from Sidley Austin, and private wealth partner Kenneth Halcom, a former Cravath partner himself who joined Willkie from a Florida-based trust. Fiore is at least the fifth partner to leave Cravath in 2026, with others headed to competitor firms such as Paul Hastings and Davis Polk & Wardwell, while another partner moved to a fintech company. A representative for Cravath said in an email to Law.com that the firm wishes Fiore well in his future endeavors. Jeffrey Poss, co-chair of Willkie’s private equity practice and incoming joint chairman of the firm as a whole, said in a statement on Fiore’s arrival that his knowledge and talents will benefit the firm and its clients in the transactional space. “Maurio is an accomplished dealmaker, and his broad experience advising private equity sponsors and corporations on complex, high-value transactions makes him an excellent fit for Willkie and further enhances our ability to deliver best-in-class solutions to clients across the transactional landscape,” Poss said. Poss’ sentiments were echoed by Adam Turteltaub, co-chair of the firm’s M&A practice group, who said that Fiore “has played a significant role in some of the most sophisticated M&A and private equity transactions in the market in recent years.” In a statement on his move to Willkie, Fiore said the firm is “widely regarded for its strength across corporate sectors” and that he had long-admired the firm’s global transaction platform. He said he looked forward to working with the practitioners at his new firm and helping his clients navigate “dynamic changes shaping private equity and other key markets.”