Kirkland & Ellis announced today that leading hospitality attorney Meghan Cocci has joined the Firm as a partner. “Meghan is widely known as one of the top hospitality lawyers in the market,” said Jon A. Ballis, Chairman of Kirkland’s Executive Committee. “Her arrival strengthens our leading real assets platform and bolsters our rapidly growing entertainment, sports and media experience. We’re thrilled to welcome her to Kirkland.” Ms. Cocci’s practice focuses on the hospitality industry, where she advises private equity funds, real estate investment trusts, hotel brands, real estate developers and family offices. She has advised on some of the most significant hospitality transactions in the United States and globally, including in the Middle East, Europe and Asia. She counsels clients on acquisitions and dispositions; joint ventures; hotel management and holding company mergers and acquisitions; and hotel and restaurant management, licensing and franchise agreements. Her practice entails all areas of hospitality, including university- and sports-adjacent branded mixed-use projects and entertainment districts, hotels, resorts, branded condominium development projects, golf courses and other types of leisure and entertainment assets. Ms. Cocci joins Kirkland’s real estate team of more than 100 attorneys, which counts a number of high-profile recent additions over the last 18 months including Michelle Kelban, Yaman Shukairy and Vicky Shusterman. “Meghan is at the top of her game and is a highly respected and trusted advisor within the industry,” said Michelle Kelban, a Kirkland real estate partner. “We’re excited to bring her hospitality experience on board as we continue to add market-leading talent to Kirkland’s existing preeminent real assets platform. Her hire further strengthens our offerings across the industry and is synergistic with our growth and commitment to our sports practice given market activity in sports-adjacent entertainment districts and development generally.” Ms. Cocci has been recognized by Chambers USA as a Band 1 lawyer for Leisure and Hospitality with clients lauding her as “top tier in terms of expertise and experience in the space.” She has also been ranked by The Legal 500 U.S. and the National Law Journal, and she has earned Law360 Hospitality MVP honors three times. She joins from Latham & Watkins LLP, where she was a partner. “Kirkland is an incredibly exciting place right now with its deep platform for sophisticated private equity and real estate transactions and a demonstrated and clear commitment to the real assets sector,” said Ms. Cocci. “Kirkland is well poised to take advantage of any and all opportunities within the hospitality industry, and I can’t wait to start working with the team to help further grow and strengthen our relationships with clients in their most complex and exciting hospitality-related transactions.” Kirkland’s Real Estate Practice Group is made up of experienced, multidisciplinary lawyers who apply their highlevel real estate knowledge to a wide range of complex business transactions. The practice regularly represents the industry’s most active and sophisticated private equity sponsors, as well as publicly traded REITs, sovereign wealth funds, family offices, major pension organizations and other institutional investors in connection with their real estate and real estate-related activities from capital solutions, fundraising and structuring through deployment of capital and final disposition, mergers and take-private transactions, recapitalizations and restructurings.