Key Takeaways
- • Akin Gump expanded its global private equity platform by recruiting Dilen Kumar as a corporate partner in Dallas, reinforcing the firm's M&A and capital solutions capabilities across alternative asset managers and financial sponsors.
- • Kumar's addition follows recent high-profile hires including the return of U.S. private equity head Gerald Brant and partners Jeffrey Kochian and Brittany Harrison to New York, plus Jonathon Hamil's arrival in London, signaling coordinated global platform strengthening.
- • Kumar advises private equity sponsors and public/private companies on acquisitions, divestitures, carve-outs, minority investments, and governance matters across healthcare, technology, energy, and consumer sectors, with specialized experience in distressed transactions and complex board-level matters.
- • Akin's corporate practice operates 300+ transactional lawyers across three continents, serving alternative capital providers including private equity, private credit, infrastructure, and sovereign wealth funds on M&A, capital markets, and fund formation matters.
Summary
Akin Gump announced on June 9, 2026, that Dilen Kumar has joined the firm's corporate practice as a partner in the Dallas office. The appointment is part of a broader expansion initiative designed to strengthen Akin's integrated global private equity platform and enhance service delivery to sponsors and portfolio companies navigating complex investment environments.
Kumar's recruitment builds on a series of recent strategic hires across Akin's alternative capital practices. In the past months, the firm secured the return of Gerald Brant as U.S. private equity head and onboarded partners Jeffrey Kochian and Brittany Harrison in New York, while also bringing Jonathon Hamil into the London office. This sequenced expansion reflects a deliberate effort to deepen bench strength across key financial centers and reinforce cross-border transaction capabilities.
In his practice, Kumar advises private equity sponsors as well as public and private companies on a comprehensive range of transaction types, including acquisitions, divestitures, carve-outs, and minority investments. His work extends to governance matters and complex board-level advisory, with demonstrated expertise across healthcare, technology, energy, and consumer industries. He has particular experience with distressed transactions and special situations—areas of increasing importance in volatile capital markets.
According to Abid Qureshi, Akin co-chair, the expansion reflects the firm's strategic priority to build "a scaled and integrated private equity platform." Zachary Wittenberg, corporate practice co-head, emphasized that Kumar's multidimensional transaction experience addresses client demand for counsel capable of navigating increasingly complex deal structures across market cycles. Kumar himself cited Akin's integrated platform across transactional, capital solutions, and restructuring capabilities as key to his decision to join, noting that clients require seamless counsel across the full investment lifecycle.
Akin's corporate practice comprises more than 300 transactional lawyers operating in major financial centers across three continents. The practice serves alternative capital providers including private equity funds, private credit managers, infrastructure investors, and sovereign wealth funds on M&A, special situations, debt and equity financings, capital markets transactions, and fund formation matters.
Kumar's recruitment builds on a series of recent strategic hires across Akin's alternative capital practices. In the past months, the firm secured the return of Gerald Brant as U.S. private equity head and onboarded partners Jeffrey Kochian and Brittany Harrison in New York, while also bringing Jonathon Hamil into the London office. This sequenced expansion reflects a deliberate effort to deepen bench strength across key financial centers and reinforce cross-border transaction capabilities.
In his practice, Kumar advises private equity sponsors as well as public and private companies on a comprehensive range of transaction types, including acquisitions, divestitures, carve-outs, and minority investments. His work extends to governance matters and complex board-level advisory, with demonstrated expertise across healthcare, technology, energy, and consumer industries. He has particular experience with distressed transactions and special situations—areas of increasing importance in volatile capital markets.
According to Abid Qureshi, Akin co-chair, the expansion reflects the firm's strategic priority to build "a scaled and integrated private equity platform." Zachary Wittenberg, corporate practice co-head, emphasized that Kumar's multidimensional transaction experience addresses client demand for counsel capable of navigating increasingly complex deal structures across market cycles. Kumar himself cited Akin's integrated platform across transactional, capital solutions, and restructuring capabilities as key to his decision to join, noting that clients require seamless counsel across the full investment lifecycle.
Akin's corporate practice comprises more than 300 transactional lawyers operating in major financial centers across three continents. The practice serves alternative capital providers including private equity funds, private credit managers, infrastructure investors, and sovereign wealth funds on M&A, special situations, debt and equity financings, capital markets transactions, and fund formation matters.
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