Kirkland Represents Ultra Petroleum on Cooperation Agreement with Fir Tree Partners to Add New Directors

Kirkland & Ellis LLP advised Ultra Petroleum Corp. (NASDAQ: UPL), an independent energy company engaged in domestic natural gas and oil exploration, development and production, in a cooperation agreement with its largest shareholder, Fir Tree Partners, to add two new directors to its Board. Fir Tree Partners is a private investment firm which owns an approximate 20% stake in Ultra Petroleum. As part of the agreement, Evan Lederman, Partner at Fir Tree, will join the Ultra Petroleum Board of Directors.  In addition, a new independent director selected by a process agreed between Fir Tree and Ultra Petroleum will also be added to the Board. Ultra Petroleum also announced today that Chairman and CEO, Michael D. Watford, will be retiring from his role effective February 28, 2018.  Brad Johnson, Senior Vice President, Operations, will become interim CEO on that date. The full release is available here.

A combined New York and Houston team was led by corporate partners Sarkis Jebejian, David Feirstein, Doug Bacon, Matt Pacey and associates Lukas Richards and Gilad Zohari.