Helene R. Banks

Through her decades-long career in Cahill’s corporate practice, Helene has advised publicly held and private companies in significant corporate and securities matters, with particular emphasis on mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance and capital markets transactions. She represented sellers, acquirers, targets, financial institutions, shareholders and investors in M&A transactions, spin-offs, joint ventures, private and public equity and debt offerings, and tender offers. Her work has ranged from managing complex international transactions for large public companies to guiding owners through investments in their privately held businesses to advising companies on governance matters. Her breadth of experience gives her a unique ability to spot and solve issues and understand all aspects of complicated situations.

Helene has been recognized as a leading M&A and Corporate Governance lawyer by The Legal 500 and for both M&A and Capital Markets Debt & Equity by IFLR1000. In 2024, Helene was named an honoree at NOW-NYC’s 2024 Women of Power & Influence Awards and highlighted as a notable ESG thought leader and grant-making trailblazer for women’s rights entities. In 2023, Helene was recognized as a Notable Leader in Sustainability by Crain’s New York Business and in Lawdragon's 500 Leading Dealmakers in America guide. Helene has been shortlisted for the Women in Business Law Awards Americas, Corporate Governance Lawyer of the Year in 2021 and 2022. She was also named among the Top 100 Women Leaders of New York for 2021 by Women We Admire and the 2020 and 2026 Notable Women in Law by Crain’s New York Business.

Helene frequently speaks and writes on M&A, corporate governance, ESG, and board diversity issues. She has been published in Practical Law, NACD BoardTalk, NACD Directorship, Law360, The Deal, New York Law Journal and Corporate Secretary and has spoken on these topics at numerous industry events including The Deal’s Corporate Governance conference and Middle Market Seminar, S&P Global Sustainable1’s “Beyond ESG” webinar series, Mergers & Acquisitions’ Most Influential Women in Mid-Market M&A Speak and PE Innovators in ESG Speak events, and ACG NY’s Women of Leadership Summit.

Helene was the first female partner elected in Cahill's corporate practice group and has mentored many of the female corporate partners and associates of the firm. Helene spearheaded the firm’s Women Initiatives Committee and its Leadership Program and served as an Administrative Partner helping the firm navigate through the COVID-19 pandemic. Helene recently completed her nine years of service on the board of the New York Women's Foundation, including as its Chair. She also served as a member of the National Women’s Law Center Leadership Advisory Committee, the development committee of the YMCA of New York City, the Grants Advisory Committee of the New York Women’s Foundation, on the Board of Trustees of the Tada! Youth Theater, and was the Board Chair at the Brooklyn Heights Montessori School where she is a Trustee Emeritus. Currently, Helene serves on the Board of the Baruch College Fund and Mitchell College.