Title: Partner
Company: K&L Gates LLP
Location: New York, New York, United States
Anthony R.G. Nolan, partner at K&L Gates LLP, has been recognized by Marquis Who’s Who Top Lawyers for dedication, achievements, and leadership in legal services.
With over three decades of experience, Mr. Nolan has built a successful career in legal services, specializing in securitization and structured finance law, banking and finance law, and derivatives and futures law. He has excelled as a partner at K&L Gates LLP, a position he has held since 2007. His experience also includes serving as a lecturer in law at Columbia University from 2008 to 2016, a partner at Goodwin Procter LLP from 2004 to 2007, and counsel at Shearman & Sterling LLP from 1998 to 2004. He has also held leadership roles as the global head of the finance practice at K&L Gates for five years and as a member of the firm’s opinion committee and management committee for five years.
Mr. Nolan also dedicates his time as co-chair of the Securitization and Structured Finance Committee at the Association of the Bar of the City of New York and is involved with the American Bar Association. He is also a donor to various charities and cultural institutions, engages in pro bono work at K&L Gates LLP, and has contributed to efforts in refugee camps in Southeast Asia. Laying a solid educational foundation, he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Modern History from the University of Oxford in 1983 and a Master of Arts from the University of Oxford in 1992. He then pursued a Juris Doctor from Columbia Law School, graduating in 1991, and was admitted to the New York Bar in 1998.
Reflecting on his path, Mr. Nolan describes his entry into the legal field as serendipitous, initially driven by a shift from refugee relief work and real estate ventures that didn’t align with his career goals. Transitioning to law as a backup plan, he unexpectedly found himself specializing in commercial mortgage-backed securities during his early years as a junior associate. This specialization blossomed due to an unforeseen partnership opportunity with a senior colleague at his firm, leading to a successful collaboration from 1995 to 2004. He takes pride in two significant achievements. Firstly, despite a downturn in his transactional practice due to the financial crisis, he successfully reimagined his approach to align with post-crisis regulatory changes, demonstrating resilience and a broad knowledge base. Secondly, his five-year leadership role and appointment as one of the global heads of the firm’s financing bankruptcy practice served as a validation of his expertise and provided valuable insights into the firm’s operations. Now, at age 64, he is working toward retirement and anticipates continuing to fulfill the role of the head of the opinion committee until his retirement, following in the footsteps of his predecessor.
Mr. Nolan advises newcomers to the legal field to maintain an open mind about their career path, as opportunities may diverge from initial expectations. He emphasizes the importance of curiosity and finding ways to keep the work engaging and dynamic rather than routine. Reflecting on his own experience, he finds fulfillment in continuously learning and tackling intriguing challenges, which makes his work feel more like solving puzzles than mere labor.
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