New York and Houston, June 22, 2026 — Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP announced today that Austin Lee has joined the firm as a partner in the M&A Group within the Corporate Department, resident in Houston. Lee advises public and private companies on the acquisition and divestiture of oil and gas properties, as well as on transactional and operational matters related to projects in the energy industry.
“Austin is an experienced M&A lawyer with a multifaceted skillset, who has worked on a wide range of energy transactions and projects,” said Angelo Bonvino, global head of the Corporate Department at Paul, Weiss. “We are thrilled to welcome him to the firm.”
“We are excited to have Austin, a talented and versatile energy lawyer, on our growing Houston team,” said Sean T. Wheeler, global co-chair of M&A and head of the firm’s Houston office. “Austin’s extensive knowledge and deal experience, particularly in the upstream space, will enhance our ability to serve our clients, many of whom are focused on investment in energy and infrastructure assets.”
In addition to his experience in oil and gas M&A, Lee has represented clients on midstream and downstream energy projects, produced water and salt water disposal projects, and projects involving gas storage and related energy storage facilities. He has represented lenders and borrowers on the financing of oil and gas properties, pipeline systems and other midstream assets, and development facilities. Lee’s experience additionally includes advising energy clients on distressed situations, including restructuring financial arrangements. He previously worked as an in-house upstream legal counsel at an independent exploration and production company, where he worked with a business unit covering areas of South Texas.
Lee’s recent representations include advising Diamondback Energy and certain affiliates in the sale of producing non-operated properties in the Delaware Basin to Riverbend Energy Group; Apache Corporation and certain affiliates on multiple transactions, including the sale of certain unconventional producing assets in New Mexico to Permian Resources Corporation and a separate divestiture of non-core properties in the Permian Basin to an undisclosed buyer; and Grit Oil & Gas Management, LLC and its affiliate in the divestiture of Grit Oil & Gas II, LLC to Jonah Energy LLC.
Lee has been recognized by various publications including by Chambers USA for Nationwide Energy: Oil & Gas (Transactional) since 2021, Chambers Global for Energy: Oil and Gas (Transactional) since 2022, and The Legal 500 US for Energy Transactions: Oil and Gas since 2023. In 2018, he was named to Hart Energy’s Oil and Gas Investor Forty Under 40 list and recognized by Law360 as an Energy Rising Star.
Lee earned a B.A. and an M.A. from The University of Texas at Austin and a J.D., with honors, from The University of Texas School of Law.
The Paul, Weiss Mergers & Acquisitions Practice works with leading private equity firms and many of the world’s largest, most prominent publicly traded and privately held companies, as well as financial advisors and other financial institutions and investors, on the full range of business-critical transactions. The firm’s Infrastructure Group, in particular, provides comprehensive counsel to leading global companies, investors and financial sponsors on complex transactions spanning the infrastructure sector.
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Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP is a global law firm of more than 1,500 lawyers focused on helping clients navigate their most complex legal and business challenges. Known for the depth and excellence of its corporate, litigation and restructuring practices, Paul, Weiss works collaboratively to deliver commercial and innovative solutions, supported by a firmwide commitment to developing and empowering exceptional legal talent and an unwavering dedication to client service. The world’s largest and most important public and private corporations, asset managers and financial institutions look to the firm for advice.
