Women in M&A: 40 Years of Progress in ABA Business Law Section

Summary

• Women have historically been underrepresented in Mergers and Acquisitions, facing explicit and implicit biases and structural barriers. The leadership of women in the M&A Committee of the ABA Business Law Section, however, has opened doors for women dealmakers.
• Women have participated in the M&A Committee since the very beginning, starting with Leigh Walton, who later became the first woman to chair the Committee.
• The Women in M&A Subcommittee, established in 2013, focuses on increasing the participation and retention of women in M&A. Its initiatives include studying gender disparities and engaging with law students to give them early exposure to the field.
• Women who have seized the opportunity for visible leadership opportunities in the M&A Committee have helped to challenge entrenched biases and open new pathways for advancement.

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To mark the forty-year anniversary of the American Bar Association Business Law Section’s Mergers & Acquisitions Committee, Emily Marco, vice chair of the Women in M&A Subcommittee, reflects on the rise of women in M&A in the last forty years.

There is a saying that by small means, great things can come to fruition. Leigh Walton (Bass, Berry & Sims; Nashville, TN), who served as the first female leader of the Mergers & Acquisitions Committee, can attest to this. When a male partner at her firm could not attend an ABA conference in 1986, she attended in his place. She then found herself discussing the need for practice-oriented guidance for M&A practitioners as part of the ABA Business Law Section. More than two decades later, Walton became the first woman vice chair and then the first woman chair of the M&A Committee.

As John Clifford noted in the article The Mergers & Acquisitions Committee—40 Years On, women have historically been underrepresented in the field of M&A, including within the M&A Committee itself. He explained that “[w]omen have participated in the M&A Committee from its beginning and have held important leadership positions, although the number of women lawyers who actively participated often has been small.”

At the close of Walton’s tenure as chair of the M&A Committee in 2012, Jen Muller (Houlihan Lokey; San Francisco, CA), became the second woman vice chair of the M&A Committee. One enduring initiative was launched shortly thereafter: the Women in M&A Task Force, which set out to evaluate female engagement in M&A. Together, Walton and Muller led the task force until Rita-Anne O’Neill (Sullivan & Cromwell; Los Angeles, CA) (who today is the current chair of the M&A Committee), succeeded Walton. Muller and O’Neill then became the founding co-chairs of the Women in M&A Subcommittee, established in 2013 to focus on increasing the level of participation and retention of women in M&A.

Through its work, the Women in M&A Subcommittee furthers women’s involvement in M&A and enhances opportunities at the top of the deal team.

Early Exposure and Engagement Act as Catalysts for Women’s Advancement in M&A

The Women in M&A Subcommittee began to conduct biennial studies in 2014 to more deeply assess the gender disparity in M&A and create a baseline on which to measure improvements going forward. The studies measure the composition of lawyers at each level within top law firms in North America, both in corporate groups and in M&A specifically. The early Women in M&A surveys identified, as expected, that across all disciplines, including M&A, the percentage of women decreases as the role becomes more senior. But what was interesting is that the participation of women was lower in M&A from the outset. This caused the Women in M&A Subcommittee to investigate the experience women have during law school and prompted the creation of the subcommittee’s Law School Initiative. This initiative brings senior women M&A practitioners to law schools to speak about their experience in M&A and encourage women to participate in the field, among other efforts. Encouragingly, the studies have shown that from 2014 to 2024, the percentage of M&A lawyers who are women increased from 27 percent to 37 percent. The involvement of women in the M&A Committee has risen in tandem.

Ultimately, as argued by legal scholar Afra Afsharipour, “[u]nderstanding, documenting, and disclosing the gender disparity in leadership in M&A beyond the board is critical for increasing accountability and for determining the solutions that may work to reduce such disparities.” And for the Women in M&A Subcommittee, the “small means” that can lead to great things include providing early exposure to M&A. The knock-on effects of this early and ongoing engagement are shown to result in the participation and retention of women in M&A.

Women’s Involvement in the M&A Committee Is a Lever for Change

The evolution of women’s participation in the M&A Committee has become a powerful lever for change, both within the profession and in the broader market. As the field of M&A has historically been dominated by men, the increasing visibility and leadership of women in the ABA M&A Committee has helped to challenge entrenched biases and open new pathways for advancement.

Research consistently demonstrates that gender bias—both explicit and implicit—remains a significant barrier to women’s advancement in M&A leadership. This bias manifests in a variety of ways, from the types of assignments women receive to the opportunities for client exposure and leadership roles. For example, as described by Afsharipour, “[w]omen are often assigned support work while men are given the plum assignments that further enhance their leadership and client connections.”

Empirical data further underscores these disparities. Women are more likely to be in the third, fourth, or fifth positions on deal teams (comprising 28–32% of those roles) while their representation in the top spot is just 19%, and in the second spot, 23%. This pattern reflects both the persistence of gendered expectations and the structural barriers that limit women’s access to the most visible and influential positions on major transactions.

Involvement in the M&A Committee offers visible leadership opportunities that can accelerate the advancement of women practitioners. This dynamic is especially important given that, as Afsharipour notes, “much of M&A practice and advancement seems to rely on social contacts and client development norms that perpetuate the exclusion of women and people of color from leadership in practice.”

Jessica Pearlman (K&L Gates; Seattle, WA), vice chair of the M&A Committee, reflected on the transformative impact of her involvement with the M&A Committee:

I’ve been coming to the M&A Committee meetings since I was a third-year associate. So, it’s been a part of my now 26+ year career since almost the very beginning. As an associate, the exposure to the thought leadership of the Committee kept me up to date on the latest in M&A practice; since then, the M&A Committee has provided me with countless opportunities to be part of that thought leadership, not only at M&A Committee meetings but also through panels at top law schools and through publications (such as my interview of Marty Lipton that was published in the 75th anniversary volume of The Business Lawyer). And I’m not a one-off; this is the experience of women in M&A who not only join the M&A Committee but attend the meetings. Women in M&A often do not get the same benefit of the doubt as their male counterparts that they truly know what they are doing; the opportunities provided by the M&A Committee can bridge that perception gap.
Pearlman’s sentiments are shared by other Women in M&A Subcommittee leaders and members. Visible leadership is a core focus of the subcommittee.

Women Dealmakers Are Paving the Path for the Future

As the number of women in visible leadership positions in M&A increases, it creates a virtuous cycle where, through mentorship and sponsorship, the path to leadership becomes more attainable. Current M&A Committee Chair O’Neill selected Pearlman, Charlotte May (Covington; Washington, DC) and Jenny Hochenberg (Freshfields; New York, NY) to serve as her vice chairs of the M&A Committee. Prior to assuming the chair role, Rita-Ann was vice chair of the Committee, along with Pearlman and Patricia Vella (Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell; Wilmington, DE). All of these women dealmakers are also leading landmark deals. These women M&A leaders set new standards for practice and demonstrate the value of diverse perspectives in high-stakes negotiations.

Reflecting on the progress made since co-founding of the Women in M&A Subcommittee, Muller explained, “Early in my career, it was often notable simply to be a woman in the room. Today, that reaction is far less common—the focus has shifted to the quality of advice and leadership, not who is delivering it. That progress reflects the sustained efforts of many men and women to address the underrepresentation in the field, and while it’s not complete, it has meaningfully reduced the noise and allowed women to be more effective and fully heard.” This shift continues to benefit rising M&A leaders of all genders.

Walton’s journey—from stepping in for a male colleague at an ABA conference to becoming the first woman chair of the M&A Committee—illustrates how early exposure and a willingness to seize an opportunity grew into a legacy of leadership, connection, and inspiration. Her path is a powerful reminder that by opening doors for women in M&A today, we are building a generation of future women leaders.

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