Joanne De Silva is a Lecturer in Law and an Experienced Practitioner in Residence. Her courses aim to give students a significant advantage in their careers by bridging the gap between law school education and the realities of legal practice and client service.
Joanne brings over thirty years of experience as a finance lawyer at leading international law firms, primarily as an equity partner. Her practice focused on complex finance transactions and debt restructurings in the United States, Europe, and Asia.
She has represented business development companies, banks, and other institutional investors in a broad range of transactions, including senior, junior, and unitranche loans, private placements of notes, and equity co-investments. She has particular expertise in acquisition finance. During the Global Financial Crisis, she advised lender groups on workouts and restructurings, and she subsequently contributed to the emergence and growth of private credit as a distinct asset class.
Joanne has been a featured speaker at Continuing Legal Education programs with the American Bar Association, Practicing Law Institute, and Strafford on acquisition finance, unitranche financing, and intercreditor arrangements. She has led numerous client presentations on private credit, market trends, and credit agreement fundamentals.
Throughout her career, she has been committed to mentoring and training. As a member of her firm’s Women’s Leadership Committee, she helped design initiatives to expand opportunities for women lawyers. On her firm’s Hiring Committee, she played an integral part in the recruitment and integration of new and lateral lawyers. She regularly oversaw the associate review process for her practice group.
She also provides training programs for lawyers at AmLaw 100 firms, and she is a certified lawyer coach.
Joanne earned her law degree from Oxford University (Jurisprudence) in 1991 and has been admitted to the bar in New York, England, and Singapore.