Several high-profile relationship developments involving lawyers at leading Manhattan law firms have sparked significant attention within the legal community, following a series of workplace romances and recent personnel moves.
William “Bill” Savitt, 63, a prominent corporate litigator formerly at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, recently joined rival firm Gibson Dunn in a move reportedly worth $96 million over three years. Savitt, who played a key role in securing a unanimous jury verdict for OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman in a $150 billion lawsuit against Elon Musk, brought along senior partner Sarah Eddy and four other senior litigation partners from Wachtell Lipton. Eddy, a Harvard Law School lecturer and a divorced Canadian, worked alongside Savitt but was not his subordinate. According to sources, Savitt and Eddy had a romantic relationship that began after Savitt separated from his wife, designer Nazak Savitt, with whom he has been estranged for three years. The pair are no longer believed to be together, though the exact timeline of their relationship’s end remains unclear.
Savitt is currently finalizing his divorce from Nazak Savitt, with whom he shared a $5.4 million apartment in the Upper West Side’s Chatsworth building. Despite rumors and the personal nature of their past relationship, Savitt denied that his involvement with Eddy constituted an affair. Legal insiders also note that Wachtell Lipton does not maintain a formal non-fraternization policy, meaning no firm rules were violated by their relationship.
Separately, another relationship scandal emerged involving Nathaniel Cullerton, 45, and Kelsey Borenzweig, 29, both of whom worked at Wachtell Lipton’s litigation team that represented OpenAI in the same high-profile lawsuit. A widely circulated video showed the pair kissing in Central Park, leading to significant repercussions. Sources indicate Cullerton, who was reportedly poised to join Gibson Dunn as part of the broader team transition, had his lucrative job offer rescinded following the viral footage. He was placed on leave as the firm investigated the incident. Cullerton is believed to make around $4 million annually as a junior partner at Wachtell Lipton, which is known for offering some of the highest partner compensation in the legal industry.
Neither Wachtell Lipton nor Gibson Dunn offered public comments on the situation. Both Cullerton and Borenzweig also did not respond to requests for comment.
The recent developments highlight ongoing tensions and complexities in the traditionally conservative legal sector, where workplace relationships among senior attorneys can intersect with high-stakes personnel moves and formidable compensation packages. As prominent lawyers shift firms and personal matters become public, the episodes have stirred conversations about the dynamics of Big Law firms and the impact of private conduct on professional trajectories.