Milbank advises Cushman & Wakefield in $2 billion merger with DTZ

In a transaction creating a major new player to the upper ranks of global commercial real estate services, Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP has advised leading commercial property and investment firm Cushman & Wakefield Inc. in its merger with DTZ, a real estate concern backed by leading private equity firm TPG Capital. The merger creates a global real estate powerhouse with revenues of more than $5.5 billion, and over 43,000 employees in 250 offices worldwide. After the transaction's expected close later this year, the new entity will operate under the well-known Cushman & Wakefield name and be among the largest real estate firms globally. Milbank Corporate partners David Zeltner and Alex Kaye led the deal team on behalf of Cushman & Wakefield, a legendary 98-year-old name in New York real estate that provides property brokerage, management and investment services worldwide. Other attorneys working on the transaction included partner Mike Shah, who handled employment, compensation and benefits, banking partner Mark Hanrahan, and associates Dean Sattler, Monica Arduini and Kelly Bartley. The Cushman and Wakefield internal legal team was led by Gene Boxer, executive vice president and global general counsel, with the assistance of Rick Cenkus, North America general counsel. "We are excited to be advising Cushman & Wakefield on this transformative transaction, which is a significant milestone in the company's illustrious history," said Zeltner. "It has been our privilege to work with the highly talented deal team at Cushman & Wakefield in the strategic process leading to this transaction."