Overview

Jesse Sheley is a partner in the Hong Kong office of Kirkland & Ellis. Jesse focuses his practice on mergers and acquisitions where he represents private equity firms and public and private companies, including SPACs and their targets, in a variety of public and private cross-border transactions. Jesse’s transactional practice spans the range of M&A activity, including LBOs, de-SPACs, take private transactions, PIPEs, equity investments and other complex cross-border transactions.

Jesse has spent more than a decade based in Asia advising global private equity sponsors on their complex and multi-jurisdictional transactions and investments.

Chambers Asia-Pacific highlights Jesse’s adeptness “at handling cross-border M&A transactions in the Asia-Pacific region” and cites his focus on representing private equity sponsors in innovative and sophisticated business transactions while noting that clients praise him as “very diligent, extremely responsive and detail-oriented” and “truly in his element when it comes to US-related transactions.” In 2015, Law360 selected Jesse as one of five Private Equity “Rising Stars” in its list of top attorneys under 40.

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Thought Leadership

Seminars

Moderator, “Exits and Liquidity,” Asia Private Equity Forum 2015, Hong Kong, 21 January 2015

Instructor, “Deal Protection and Risk Allocation,” Private Equity Fundamentals Course 2014, The Hong Kong Venture Capital and Private Equity Association, Hong Kong, 8 October 2014

Instructor, “Principal China Regulatory Issues,” Private Equity Fundamentals Course 2014, The Hong Kong Venture Capital and Private Equity Association, Hong Kong, 18 September 2014

Panelist (chair), “Mergers & Acquisitions,” Asialaw, Asia-Pacific In-house Counsel Summit, Hong Kong, 22 March 2012

Panelist, “Taking US-Listed Chinese Companies Private,” Chinese Financial Executive Institute, The CFO Forum, Shanghai, China, 1 December 2011

Speaker, “Cross-border M&A – Structures, Issues and Pitfalls to be Avoided,” Association Internationale des Jeunes Avocats, Mumbai, India, 3 December 2010

Lecturer, “Doing the Deal: Emerging Issues in M&A by Outbound Chinese Investors,” Tsinghua University China Center of Financial Research, Private Equity and Venture Capital Institute, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China, 14 May 2010

Lecturer, “Doing the Deal: Minority Private Equity Investments in China,” Tsinghua University China Center of Financial Research, Private Equity and Venture Capital Institute, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China, 23 March 2010

Panelist, “How to Make Cash in 2010,” International Financial Law Review, Asia Private Equity Forum 2009, Hong Kong, 15 September 2009

Publications

Author, “The Evolution of Entrepreneurialism: An Introduction to Private Equity,” Private Equity, Does China Need It? April 2007 (with David Patrick Eich and Chuan Li)

Recognition

Recognized as “Highly Regarded” in M&A – Hong Kong by IFLR1000 (2022–2024)

Recognized as “Highly Regarded” in Private Equity – Hong Kong by IFLR1000 (2022–2024)

Recognized as a key individual in Private Equity: Buyouts by Chambers Asia-Pacific (2012–2018)

Recognized as a 2015 Rising Star in Private Equity by Law360

Credentials

Admissions & Qualifications

  • 2011Hong Kong
  • 2003Illinois

Languages

  • English
  • Mandarin

Education

  • Indiana UniversityJ.D.cum laude2003
  • Indiana UniversityM.P.A., International Affairs2003
  • Indiana UniversityB.A., Political Sciencewith High Distinction1999