Houlihan Lokey, a global investment bank, announced that Mark Mikullitz has joined the firm as a Managing Director in its Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) Group, to lead the firm’s shareholder activism defense practice and to strengthen its public company M&A focus. He is based in New York.

Mikullitz joins from Deutsche Bank, where he was Head of Activism and Contested Situations in the Mergers & Acquisitions Group. Mikullitz has advised on a broad range of engagements including M&A, shareholder activist situations, proxy contests, consent solicitations, and corporate governance matters, among others. Prior to Deutsche Bank, Mr. Mikullitz spent seven years in J.P. Morgan’s Mergers & Acquisitions Group and was previously an M&A attorney with the law firm of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom. 

“Mark’s prior work on both traditional M&A transactions and activist defense engagements is outstanding, and his experience and knowledge make him an excellent cultural match with Houlihan Lokey’s mission to provide thoughtful, expert, and independent advice” said Steven Tishman, Global Head of M&A. “We are confident that he will be an invaluable resource to our clients as we continue to grow the business, and we’re delighted that he has joined the firm,” he continued.

“As a market leader in mid-cap M&A, particularly in the U.S., and with a long and successful track record in activist defense, Houlihan Lokey offers an extremely exciting opportunity for me to contribute meaningfully to the intellectual capital and outstanding client results for which the firm is known,” said Mr. Mikullitz. “I look forward to partnering with my colleagues across the firm and continue to build on the firm’s momentum in both public company M&A advisory and in advising clients on how best to prepare for, and successfully manage, shareholder activist situations,” he added.

Mikullitz holds an A.B. in English from Colgate University and a J.D. from Georgetown University.=

In 2018, Houlihan Lokey was ranked for the fourth consecutive year as both the No. 1 M&A advisor for all U.S. transactions and a top 10 most active global M&A advisor, based on Thomson Reuters’ annual year-end league table data.