13 Feb 2026
Sullivan & Cromwell Adds Partners Patrick Bright and William Needham in London and Yaira Dubin in New York
"Sullivan & Cromwell appoints Patrick Bright and William Needham as partners in London to bolster high-yield, private credit and restructuring capabilities; Yaira Dubin joins as partner in New York to strengthen Supreme Court and appellate litigation."
Patrick Bright joins Sullivan & Cromwell as a partner to lead the firm’s high yield capability. He is described as a preeminent capital markets lawyer who regularly represents leading investment banks, sponsors, corporates and bond investors on marquee high-yield offerings and leveraged finance transactions. His experience also encompasses bond restructurings, complex capital markets transactions and general U.S. securities law matters, giving him familiarity with capital structures across the debt cycle. Mr. Bright is ranked as a Leading Individual by Chambers UK for Capital Markets: High Yield Products, a Market Leader for Capital Markets: High Yield by IFLR1000 UK and as a Leading Partner for High Yield by Legal 500 UK.
William Needham joins the firm as a partner and as Co-Head of Sullivan & Cromwell’s European Restructuring and Special Situations practice. He is a leading restructuring and special situations lawyer with first-hand experience as a principal investor. His practice focuses on complex cross-border restructurings, distressed debt, bespoke capital solutions and private credit workouts for asset managers, sponsors and corporates across Europe. Mr. Needham has advised on a wide range of prominent restructurings and special situations, including creditor committee roles, sponsor-driven restructurings and complex capital solutions involving high yield, private credit and hybrid instruments, and is ranked by Chambers UK for Restructuring and Insolvency.
Yaira Dubin has joined Sullivan & Cromwell as a partner in the New York office from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of the Solicitor General, where she served as Assistant to the Solicitor General from 2021 to 2025. In that role she represented the United States in matters before the U.S. Supreme Court, supervised priority litigation in federal appellate and district courts, and advised agencies across the federal government. Ms. Dubin has argued six cases in the U.S. Supreme Court and filed over 100 Supreme Court briefs at the merits and certiorari stages across diverse areas of federal law. She previously litigated in federal and state appellate courts in private practice. Ms. Dubin will strengthen the firm’s litigation capabilities and expand its Supreme Court and Appellate Practice in New York. She earned her J.D., magna cum laude, from Harvard Law School and a bachelor’s degree in Biology, summa cum laude, from Yeshiva University, and clerked for Justice Elena Kagan on the U.S. Supreme Court, Judge Sri Srinivasan on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, and Judge James E. Boasberg on the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.