Recognized by Chambers USA 2014 as a Corporate M&A “Up and Coming” lawyer, Melissa Sawyer is a partner in the Firm’s Mergers & Acquisitions Group, focusing her practice on a variety of corporate governance, M&A and private equity matters in the United States and abroad. Among other things, she is experienced in dealing with activist shareholders, takeover offense and defense, poison pills, carve-out transactions and joint ventures. Her experience spans multiple industries, including consumer and retail, healthcare and life sciences, insurance and industrials. Melissa is currently a Lecturer in Law at Columbia Law School and a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation and often speaks on corporate governance and M&A matters.