Paul, Weiss Appoints Jonathan Ashtor and Claudine Meredith-Goujon Global Co-Heads, Intellectual Property & Technology Transactions

Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP announced that Jonathan H. Ashtor and Claudine Meredith-Goujon were appointed global co-heads of Intellectual Property & Technology Transactions. Jonathan and Claudine will lead the group of more than 20 lawyers around the world.

The practice addresses clients’ critical intellectual property and technology needs, including stand-alone tech transactions; structures the complex IP aspects of large domestic and cross-border M&A, carve-outs, joint ventures and other transactions, as well as technology licensing and collaboration deals; advises on valuation, licensing and monetization of AI and machine-learning tools in the transactional context; and guides clients through the legal risks and opportunities posed by AI and other emerging technology. Jonathan and Claudine will build on the strong foundation laid by the former head of the group, Charles H. Googe, now global chair.

Jonathan specializes in technology-focused M&A transactions, spinoffs and joint ventures, IP licenses and collaboration agreements, dispute resolution and advisory work across a variety of industry sectors, including high-tech, biotech and life sciences and emerging technologies. He also represents clients in connection with major licenses, M&A and other transactions involving complex AI systems, such as autonomous driving, natural language understanding, identity analytics and generative AI applications. In 2023, Jonathan was recognized by Bloomberg Law in its “They’ve Got Next: 40 Under 40” special feature and was named among the “500 Leading Dealmakers in America” by Lawdragon. Jonathan has also been ranked among the Top 10 Intellectual Property Lawyers in North America by MergerLinks.

Claudine, who is also a deputy co-chair of the Corporate Department, is the primary IP counsel to some of the world’s largest private equity firms and companies, including marquee consumer and luxury brands, and has handled some of their most transformative deals of the past 20+ years. She manages the full suite of IP issues within the firm’s transactional practices, including M&A, complex financings and restructurings, and handles licensing of brands, copyrights and software, as well as sponsorship agreements, publicity rights and enforcement and maintenance of IP assets. She is recognized as a leading lawyer in technology in Chambers USA and is a member of the Advisory Board of the Fashion, Arts, Media & Entertainment Law Center of Cardozo School of Law.

The Intellectual Property & Technology Transactions team’s recent deals include, among others, advising Inhibrx in its sale of assets to Sanofi in a deal valued at up to $2.2 billion and the spinoff of its drug discovery pipeline into a new publicly traded company; IBM in its sale of The Weather Company; Carrier Global Corporation in its €12 billion acquisition of Viessmann Climate Solutions; Merck in its $10.8 billion acquisition of Prometheus Biosciences; Revlon in its successful reorganization under chapter 11; General Electric in the spinoffs of its healthcare and energy businesses, in a series of transformational spinoffs for the business; The Estée Lauder Companies in its $2.8 billion acquisition of the Tom Ford brand; Qualcomm Incorporated in its $4.5 billion topping bid for Veoneer, a Sweden-based automotive technology company; and global technology company Aptiv in its $4.3 billion all-cash acquisition of Wind River from TPG Capital. In December, the group welcomed its first international partner, John Patten, and elected a new partner, Bonnie Chen.