A partner in Paul, Weiss' Executive Compensation Group, Christopher Gonnella advises clients on a wide range of executive compensation matters. His transactional practice involves advising on mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, spin offs, joint ventures and private equity transactions. He also regularly counsels both corporate and individual clients on the design, negotiation and implementation of employment agreements and incentive compensation programs. Additionally, Gonnella handles securities law compliance matters relating to executive compensation, including new and evolving regulatory matters, such as clawback rules, pay vs. performance disclosure and related matters.
In 2025, Gonnella was recognized as a “500 X – The Next Generation” lawyer by Lawdragon.
Lawdragon Honors
| Honor | Year | Practice |
|---|---|---|
| The 2026 Lawdragon 500 Leading Corporate Employment Lawyers | 2026 | Executive Compensation & Benefits |
| The 2025 Lawdragon 500 X – The Next Generation | 2025 | Executive Compensation & Benefits |
Gonnella's notable transactions include representing:
- QXO in its successful $11 billion unsolicited bid to acquire Beacon Roofing Supply
- Crown Castle in:
- the combined $8.5 billion sale of its small cells business to EQT Active Core Infrastructure fund and the sale of its fiber solutions business to Zayo Group Holdings
- its successful proxy fight against Boots Capital
- IBM in its $6.4 billion acquisition of HashiCorp
- Dana Incorporated in its approximately $2.7 billion sale of its off-highway business to Allison Transmission Holdings
- The Special Committee of Avangrid, a U.S. subsidiary of Iberdrola, in the $2.6 billion acquisition of the company’s remaining shares by Iberdrola
- Funds managed by affiliates of Apollo Global Management in:
- their ¥311 billion investment (approximately $2.05 billion) to acquire a majority stake in Panasonic Automotive Systems Co. from Panasonic Holdings Corporation
- its approximately $1.5 billion acquisition of Bridge Investment Group Holdings
- General Mills in its $1.45 billion acquisition of Whitebridge Pet Brands’ North American premium Cat feeding and Pet treating business from NXMH
- Casey’s General Stores in its $1.145 billion acquisition of Fikes Wholesale
- Restaurant Brands International in its $1 billion acquisition of Carrols Restaurant Group
- Rodina Capital in its acquisition of Rubicon Technologies’ fleet technology business unit and convertible preferred equity
- Eaton Corporation in its acquisition of Resilient Power Systems
- Sandvine in its in and out-of-court restructurings, including in its chapter 15 proceedings in the United States
- TPG Capital in its investment in G&A Partners
Prior to Paul, Weiss, Christopher’s experience includes advising:
- Altra Industrial Motion in its $5 billion sale to Regal Rexnord
- Amazon in its $8.45 billion acquisition of MGM
- British American Tobacco in its $97 billion merger with Reynolds American
- FS Investments in its combination with Portfolio Advisors, creating a $75 billion alternative investment firm
- Global Blood Therapeutics in its $5.4 billion sale to Pfizer
- IBM in multiple transactions, including the sale of its healthcare and data analytics assets, part of the Watson Health business, to Francisco Partners
- Mylan in its $50 billion combination with Upjohn, a division of Pfizer, to form Viatris
- Newcrest in its $28.8 billion acquisition by Newmont
- Pinnacle Foods in its $10.9 billion acquisition by Conagra Brands
- Viatris in its divestitures totaling $6.94 billion in value, including the $3.335 billion combination of its biosimilars portfolio with Biocon Biologics and the pending divestitures of its Over the Counter, Women’s Healthcare and Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients businesses