Marissa C. Wesely is a member of the Firm’s Corporate Department, specializing in domestic and international bank financing with an emphasis on leveraged acquisition finance and recapitalization transactions, principally advising corporate borrowers and equity sponsors.  Recent representations include: Algeco Scotsman in connection with a multi-jurisdictional ABL facility as part of its global recapitalization; Affinia Group in the financing of the spin-off of its brake business; L-3 Communications in the financing of its spin-off of an independent, publicly-traded government services company; Peabody Energy Corporation in the financing of its acquisition of MacArthur Coal; Sealed Air Corporation in the financing of its acquisition of Diversey; and CB Richard Ellis in the financing of its acquisition of the real estate management business of ING Group N.V.  Ms. Wesely also has extensive experience representing sponsors of private equity, mezzanine, energy/infrastructure and real estate funds in connection with their subscription facilities and other secured financings providing fund-level leverage to facilitate and support their investments.

Ms. Wesely speaks regularly on issues relating to her practice, most recently on developments in acquisition financing at PLI’s Leveraged Financing Conference in May 2012 and on multi-lender issues in syndicated lending at a Strafford Publications’ webinar in July 2012. She also speaks regularly on issues relating to women in the profession and women in leadership, including as the keynote speaker at Duke Law School’s Women and the Law conference in January 2012 and at the Womensphere Emerging Leaders Global Summits in 2011 and 2013. Earlier in her career, Ms. Wesely designed and taught courses in China and Indonesia on international trade and financing for the former Harvard Institute of International Development.

Ms. Wesely was named Finance Lawyer of the Year at the Chambers 2013 Women in Law Awards.  She has been recognized as a leading lawyer in banking and finance by Chambers & Partners, The Best Lawyers in America, Euromoney’s Leading Women in Business Law and PLC’s Which Lawyer? over many years.  She is a 2010 recipient of the Diversity Champion Award from the Association of the Bar of the City of New York. In 2009, she received the Kay Crawford Murray Award from the New York State Bar Association in recognition of her efforts to mentor women and promote diversity in the legal profession.

Ms. Wesely is a member of the Executive Committee of DirectWomen and a member the Boards of Directors of Legal Momentum (The Women’s Legal Defense and Education Fund) and The Global Fund for Women. Ms. Wesely is a co-founder of The Kate Stoneman Project, a leadership organization for women partners of 10 leading New York-based law firms. She is also a member of the Board of Trustees of the Wenner-Gren Foundation, a private operating foundation dedicated to the advancement of anthropology throughout the world.

Ms. Wesely joined Simpson Thacher in 1980 and spent three years in the Firm’s London office. She graduated from Williams College in 1976, magna cum laude, and received her J.D., cum laude, from Harvard Law School in 1980. 

Honors/Associations

•	Chambers USA - Banking & Finance
•	"The Best Lawyers in America" - Banking & Finance
•	PLC's Which Lawyer? - Banking & Finance
•	2010 Recipient of NYC Bar Association's Diversity Champion Award
•	2009 Recipient of NYS Bar Association's Kay Crawford Murray Award
•	Association of the Bar of the City of New York
•	New York State Bar Association
•	International Bar Association
•	American Bar Association

Publications

•	Marissa C. Wesely Authors Article in Practical Law – The Journal
•	"What's Market: An Expert's View" on certain Mid-year Trends in Loan Terms, Practical Law - The Journal, Volume 3, Issue 6, July-August 2011
•	"The Acquisition Finance Market Returns: Impact of the 2007 Crash on Post-Crash Terms," PLI 2011
•	"A Snapshot of the Acquisition Finance Market: Where We Have Been – Where We Are Now – Where We Are Headed," PLI 2010
•	Private Equity Investments in Portfolio Company Debt: An Overview of Legal Issues, 2009
•	"Financing Commitments and the M&A Process," PLI 2008
•	"Securitization Tequniques in International Trade and Project Financing," Review of Banking and Financial Services, 1996

Speaking Engagements

•	Marissa Wesely Speaks at 15th Annual Global Private Equity Conference May 16, 2013
•	Patrick Ryan to Co-Chair and Speak and Marissa Wesely to Speak at PLI’s "Leveraged Financing 2013 Program on May 8, 2013 April 2, 2013
•	Marissa Wesely Speaks at Womensphere Global Summit January 17, 2013
•	Marissa Wesely Speaks at Strafford Publication's "Syndicated Loan Agreements: Multi-Lender Issues" Webinar July 16, 2012
•	Patrick Ryan to Co-Chair and Speak and Marissa Wesely to Speak at PLI’s "Leveraged Financing 2012" Program on May 2, 2012 April 3, 2012
•	Women Partners Spoke at Harvard Law School March 7, 2012
•	Marissa Wesely and Alexis Coll-Very Speak at Duke January 23, 2012
•	Marissa Wesely Speaks at PLI's "Where Are the Women in Commercial Litigation?" Program June 22, 2011
•	Frank Huck and Marissa Wesely Speak at PLI’s Leveraged Financing 2011 Program June 7, 2011
•	Marissa Wesely to Speak at LSTA Program on Leveraged Finance February 17, 2011
•	Marissa Wesely Speaks at the Womensphere Emerging Leaders Global Summit January 27, 2011

Admissions

•	New York 1981

Education

•	Harvard Law School, 1980 J.D. cum laude
•	Williams College, 1976 B.A. magna cum laude; Phi Beta Kappa