Bio

As co-chair of Cahill’s M&A and Corporate Advisory practice group, Kimberly Petillo-Decossard advises corporations, boards, private equity firms and family offices on complex business law matters, focusing on mergers and acquisitions and other strategic transactions. She also advises on acquisition finance, growth equity and other minority investments, governance, disclosure and compliance matters. Recognized as a Dealmaker of the Year by The American Lawyer in 2022, Kimberly has also been named one of the “Most Influential Women in Mid-Market M&A” by Mergers & Acquisitions magazine, has been featured in The Deal’s Women in Dealmaking, is listed on Lawdragon's The 500 Leading Lawyers and The 500 Leading Dealmakers guides, and recognized as Highly Regarded and as a Women Leader by IFLR1000, and named a Top 50 Attorney of New York by Attorney Intel, as well as a leading Corporate/M&A lawyer by Chambers USA in the New York region. She is recognized as a Leading Lawyer by The Legal 500 nationally with one client remarking, “Kimberly Petillo-Décossard is a stand-out partner. Her ability to quickly and succinctly understand the unique situation of our company and provide reasonable alternatives to achieve our objectives has proven invaluable.” Kimberly was named a Mergers & Acquisitions MVP by Law360 in 2021 and was recognized in The American Lawyer's 2021 inaugural list of Northeast Trailblazers. She has also been named among the Notable Women in Law by Crain’s New York Business for 2020 and 2022. Kimberly was shortlisted for IFLR Americas Awards 2022 Women Dealmakers Hall of Fame and in 2021 she was shortlisted for Women in Business Law Lawyer of the Year: M&A. She was also shortlisted for IFLR1000’s Lawyer of the Year: M&A in 2020. In 2018, Kimberly was selected as a Rising Star by the New York Law Journal and an Emerging Leader by The M&A Advisor. Noted in Chambers as an attorney who “is smart, practical and gives legal advice based on the business ramifications and risk assessment,” Kimberly has experience practicing in a variety of industries, including: biotechnology, energy, financial services, health care, insurance, manufacturing, media, pharmaceutical, retail and technology. Current representations include 1-800-Flowers, Arch Capital Group Ltd., Broadridge Financial Solutions, Dyadic International, Inc., ICON plc, Kaspien Holdings, North European Oil Royalty Trust, Shutterstock, Inc., and other privately and publicly-held companies. A highly-sought speaker and author on M&A, transactional matters and corporate governance topics, Kimberly has written pieces for The Deal, Corporate Board Member, New York Law Journal and Directorship, a publication of the National Association of Corporate Directors. She has both moderated and spoken on panels at The Deal Economy Conference in New York, served on a panel sponsored by the ABA’s Women in M&A Task Force, moderated an M&A discussion at BIO’s CEO Conference and co-chaired Thomson Reuters’ NY M&A Forum, among others. Kimberly currently serves as Cahill's Co-Administrative partner. She founded the Women’s Leadership Initiative (“WLI”) at Albany Law School and chairs the WLI Advisory Committee. Kimberly also serves on the Board of Trustees at Albany Law School and on New York-Presbyterian’s Leadership Council on Children’s and Women’s Health. She has previously served as co-chair of the Association for Corporate Growth (NY) Women of Leadership Committee, on the Dean’s Leadership Council at Albany Law School, on the Board of Trustees at Tuxedo Park School, on the Leadership Advisory Committee of the National Women’s Law Center and on the Board of Directors of PowerPlay NYC, a non-profit dedicated to advancing the lives of girls through sport.