Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, a provider of legal services to growth enterprises and the financial institutions that invest in them, has named Christopher W. Kirkham as a partner at the firm. Kirkham (pictured) will be based in the firm’s San Francisco office. Kirkham specialises in the representation of private equity sponsors, commercial borrowers, and financial institutions in secured and unsecured senior and mezzanine debt financing transactions and related workouts and restructurings. In addition, he has experience advising on cross-border financings and leveraged acquisition transactions, as well as structuring distressed acquisition financings and negotiating credit facilities for investment funds. Prior

ATG Media, a provider of information and services to the auction industry backed by Matrix Private Equity Partners, has increased its headcount to 58 full time members of staff in the last three months. Eight new roles, six internal promotions and a growing business have created 14 job vacancies. The business has experienced significant growth since Matrix Private Equity Partners backed the management buyout of ATG Media from Daily Mail and General Trust 18 months ago. The hires include a new board member, Richard Lewis, who joins ATG Media as business development director. Having spent ten years at DMG world

Matrix Private Equity Partners, the small buyout specialist, has expanded its team with the appointment of Christopher Price as an investment manager.    The hire comes on the back of two Matrix new deal completions: iglu.com and Country Baskets. Price (pictured) joins the firm from Foresight Group. Mark Wignall, chief executive of Matrix Private Equity Partners, says: “Having completed three investments and two exits since the summer, we’re confident that there are good prospects for new investments in 2010. As an experienced deal doer, Chris will hit the ground running and ensure that we are well resourced to capitalise on the

Marwyn, an alternative asset manager, has appointed Glynn Thomas to lead the origination and execution of acquisitions in the support services sector. Thomas joins from VT Group, the defence, engineering and support services company, where he was group corporate development director for the corporate head office. Since joining VT Group in 2001, Thomas has been pivotal in the transformation and diversification of VT Group from shipbuilding into a support services business that has more than trebled its revenue and market capital growth. Thomas qualified as a chartered accountant with PwC in London before joining the strategy team at Marks and

Private equity firm Avista Capital Partners has added Jim Nussle to its advisory board. Nussle brings to Avista his insight into the intersection of business and federal regulation and public policy, honed over his more than 20 years in Washington. A former White House cabinet member and long-time Iowa congressman, Nussle currently serves as president and chief executive of The Nussle Group, a multi-discipline public policy and strategic consulting firm. Thompson Dean, Avista’s co-managing partner and co-chief executive, says: "We are very pleased to welcome Jim Nussle to our Advisory Board. Over the course of his career, Jim has developed

Yorkville Advisors, a US based investment manager to a family of funds, has appointed Lester D. Garrett as managing director and Jason Dawkins as senior vice president. They will be responsible for managing and growing Yorkville’s energy portfolio. Garrett and Dawkins join from BlueCreek Energy, a Denver based company that was acquired by Yorkville in December 2009. They aim to expand Yorkville‘s energy portfolio through standby equity distribution agreements, a type of financing pioneered eight years ago by Yorkville, equity investments, mezzanine debt, and acquisition opportunities.  “This is a great new challenge for us. I believe there is a lot

Law firm Herbert Smith today has appointed James MacArthur to its private equity practice. MacArthur is a corporate lawyer with a growing reputation in the private equity sector and over recent years has established a strong base of private equity experience. He joins from the London office of Kirkland & Ellis, where he was a partner in the corporate and private funds group.  Prior to joining Kirkland & Ellis, MacArthur was at White & Case from 2002 to 2006. He joined White & Case from Herbert Smith, three years post-qualification. Gavin Davies (pictured), who heads the private equity practice, says:

RJD Partners, a lower middle market private equity firm, has appointed Richard Court as an investment executive.  Court joins RJD from Dresdner Kleinwort Investment Bank where he was an associate in the securitised and principal finance group. His role included structuring and negotiating debt and equity packages for a variety of significant transactions, including the Laurel Pub Company, Care Management Group and La Tasca Group. He has experience across a variety of sectors including leisure, financial services, healthcare and industrials. Prior to joining Dresdner Kleinwort in 2006, Court qualified as a chartered accountant with PricewaterhouseCoopers.  RJD Partners is currently investing

GMT Communications Partners, a European independent private equity group focused exclusively on the communications sector, has made two senior promotions.  Natalie Tydeman (pictured) has been promoted to partner and Vikram Krishna has been promoted to principal. Tydeman joined GMT in 2007 as a senior adviser and has over ten years’ experience in digital and traditional media. She was previously at Fremantle Media where she was senior vice president, business diversification.  Krishna joined GMT in 2005 as a portfolio reporting analyst. He was promoted to associate in 2006 and to senior associate in 2009. Krishna was formerly a manager at PricewaterhouseCoopers,