Monica J. Shilling

Shilling, a partner with the Los Angeles office of Kirkland & Ellis, has watched the transactional marketplace evolve throughout the coronavirus pandemic – from deals on pause to business restructurings and bankruptcies, to concern about potential changes in tax policy ahead of the U.S. presidential election.

Amidst it all, Shilling has maintained a broad corporate and securities law practice, working with clients to raise almost $2 billion in various transactions since the pandemic began.

Shilling represents public companies, financial advisors, investment banks, and issuers in areas including mergers and acquisitions, capital markets offerings, leveraged buyouts, general corporate law and corporate governance, securities laws, and stock market-compliance.

She’s made a name for herself in the area of business development companies, or BDCs. They’re closed-end investment companies that help small and midsize companies meet their capital needs, while being subject to unique federal regulation and tax structures.

“They can get a little bit tricky,” she said. “There’s not that many of us who do it.”

Among her longtime clients is one of the largest BDCs by market value, Ares Capital Corp. Recent matters include Ares’ underwritten public offerings of $750 million in January 2020 and June 2020, and the launch of its “at-the-market” offering program for the offer and sale of shares of its common stock with an aggregate price of up to $500 million.

“I really enjoy what I do, which is to help people achieve their business goals. That’s the long and the short of it,” she said.

Shilling joined Kirkland & Ellis as part of last year’s migration of lawyers and support staff from Proskauer Rose LLP. She was with Proskauer Rose LLP for 15 years, and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP for nine.

Before earning her law degree at Georgetown Law, she studied creative writing and French at the University of Redlands. Beyond complex legal transactions, she still uses her creative side by collecting family narratives for a future book and serving as board chair of the KCRW Foundation. KCRW is a public radio station broadcasting music and news from the campus of Santa Monica College.

— Jennifer McEntee