LOS ANGELES (August 27, 2026) – Holland & Knight has added to its nationally recognized mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and private equity practices with the addition of Kristie Shu as a partner in Century City. She was previously a partner with Kirkland & Ellis.
Her practice is concentrated in the areas of private equity, M&A and corporate governance. She represents buyers, sellers, private equity funds and their portfolio companies in a variety of business transactions, including M&A, leveraged buyouts, carve-outs, joint ventures, restructurings and other complex strategic transactions. She also advises clients with respect to general corporate and governance matters.
Ms. Shu will also be a member of Holland & Knight's Legal Services Transactions Team, which is highly regarded for its sophisticated approach to law firm operations and is a market leader in management services organization (MSO) structuring, alternative business structures (ABS) and regulatory compliance. She is one of six recent additions to the legal services team, following Partners David Jargiello in San Francisco, Jessica Berkowitz in Dallas, Michael Zhang in Chicago and Courtney Miller in Washington, D.C., and Associate Sam Schaffer in Miami. Her arrival in Southern California follows that of corporate and M&A Partner Jean Lee in Newport Beach.
"As demonstrated by our placement atop middle-market M&A and private equity league tables, which rank us the second-most-active law firm for the first half of 2026, the demand for our services is very high. Kristie's deep training and technical skills in private equity M&A strengthen our ability to handle complex transactions," said Stephen Dietrich, practice group leader for the Firm's Corporate Central/West group. "Her experience in middle-market and upper-middle-market transactions is increasingly valuable to our clients, and she will be an immediate contributor to our growing platform."
"Holland & Knight has cultivated an exceptionally collaborative, supportive and entrepreneurial environment for its corporate attorneys and has seamlessly adapted to evolving client and market demands to continue delivering excellent value to clients. The Firm's business strategy is in perfect alignment with the needs of my clients," Ms. Shu said. "The Firm has one of the most active M&A and private equity practices in the world, with deep industry experience in a multitude of sectors, including healthcare, tech, real estate and consumer products, and I am so excited to begin contributing to its rapidly growing M&A and private equity practice."
Ms. Shu received a J.D. degree from Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law and a B.A. degree from Claremont McKenna College.
Recently recognized as the Private Equity Law Firm of the Year by the Global M&A Network and M&A Law Firm of the Year by M&A Advisor, Holland & Knight regularly ranks among the leading M&A and private equity law firms in reputable, benchmarking league tables published by Bloomberg, LSEG, Mergermarket, PitchBook and The Deal. Through the HK Deal Flow℠ program, Holland & Knight facilitates deal leads for clients and prospective clients by matching acquisition or capital raising opportunities with buyers and investors.