Associate

BCL Legal; New York (NY); On-site; USD 190,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

The New York office of BCL Legal houses one of the firm’s most active corporate groups, representing public companies, private equity sponsors, financial advisors, boards, and special committees on headline transactions.

The team advises on multi‑billion-dollar take-private matters, large all‑stock mergers, and cross-border business combinations, with depth in antitrust, capital markets, tax, and M&A litigation.

Responsibilities

• Staff and help run public and private M&A transactions across the deal lifecycle — due diligence, drafting and negotiating transaction agreements, disclosure schedules, and closing mechanics
• Work directly with sponsors, strategic acquirers, boards, and special committees on both buy-side and sell-side mandates
• Gain exposure to activism defense and special situations work alongside traditional M&A
• Coordinate with antitrust, capital markets, tax, and executive compensation specialists on complex, multi-disciplinary deals — broadening technical exposure beyond a pure M&A lane
• Take on increasing deal ownership and direct partner/client contact as a mid-level associate, rather than remaining diligence-heavy

Job description

A full-service Am Law 20 firm with a top-10 global M&A and private equity practice by both deal count and deal value. The firm holds Band 1 rankings across dozens of practice areas in Chambers USA and Chambers Global, and its corporate/M&A group is consistently recognized among the most active advisors in the market — handling the full spectrum of public and private M&A, from multi-billion-dollar take-privates and mergers-of-equals to mid-market sponsor-backed deals. What differentiates the platform is genuine depth in complementary practices — antitrust, capital markets, executive compensation, tax, and M&A litigation — meaning associates aren't just staffed on diligence, they're exposed to the full transactional picture.

The Team

The New York office houses one of the firm's most active corporate groups, representing a broad mix of public companies, private equity sponsors, financial advisors, boards, and special committees on high-profile, often headline transactions. The team has recently advised on matters including a multi-billion-dollar take-private transaction for a public company's special committee, a large-scale all-stock merger-of-equals in the industrials/materials space, and a several-billion-dollar cross-border business combination — reflecting a docket that spans public company M&A, activism defense, and sponsor-side buyouts and exits. The group is also noted in the market for leading shareholder activism defense work out of New York, giving associates exposure beyond straightforward deal execution.

The Role

• Staff and help run public and private M&A transactions across the deal lifecycle — due diligence, drafting and negotiating transaction agreements, disclosure schedules, and closing mechanics
• Work directly with sponsors, strategic acquirers, boards, and special committees on both buy-side and sell-side mandates
• Gain exposure to activism defense and special situations work alongside traditional M&A
• Coordinate with antitrust, capital markets, tax, and executive compensation specialists on complex, multi-disciplinary deals — broadening technical exposure beyond a pure M&A lane
• Take on increasing deal ownership and direct partner/client contact as a mid-level associate, rather than remaining diligence-heavy

What's on Offer

• Standard Am Law 100 billable hour target
• High-profile, market-leading deal flow — the kind of matters that build a strong exit or partnership-track resume
• A genuinely full-service platform, reducing reliance on outside counsel for ancillary issues and giving associates broader deal management responsibility earlier