New York deal-machine Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom and Canadian leader Stikeman Elliott have bagged plum roles advising mining giant Alcoa on its $33bn (£16.5bn) hostile bid for rival Alcan.

New York corporate partners David Fox, Margaret Wolff and Neil Stronski are spearheading the Skadden team acting for Alcoa, while Stikeman chairman Pierre Raymond is leading for the Canadian outfit alongside Montreal corporate partners Marc Barbeau and Erik Richer La Fleche.

Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton has also bagged a role, advising Alcoa on competition issues in the US and Europe, with Washington DC partner David Gelfand leading the team.

Elite Manhattan firm Sullivan & Cromwell is a front-runner to bag the lead role advising Alcan.

The deal comes after a period of consolidation in the mining sector over the last 18 months. Last year Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Sullivan gained lead roles in the £11bn bidding war for Canadian mining giant Falconbridge, when Freshfields acted for Xstrata and Sullivan advised rival bidder Inco.