Mergers & Acquisitions

February 22, 2012
Turkish PE Firm Spins Out €200M Youth-Oriented Fund

Six members of Turkish investment group Rhea Asset Management's private equity team have left the company to launch a new, independent firm that will raise up to €200 million ($265 million) to harness the purchasing power of Turkey's burgeoning youth population.
February 22, 2012
United Retail Set For Auction With Stalking Horse Bid

Plus-size women's clothing retailer United Retail Group Inc. is set to sell itself after a New York bankruptcy judge approved sale procedures Wednesday, following a contentious hearing over whether the proposed sale unfairly benefits would-be buyer Versa Capital Management LLC.
February 22, 2012
Sheen, Asner Among SAG Members Fighting AFTRA Merger

Actors Martin Sheen, Ed Asner and other members of the Screen Actors Guild filed a lawsuit Wednesday in California federal court seeking to block a vote on a proposed merger with the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists.
February 22, 2012
Bunge Buys UK Carbon Fund As C02 Prices Plummet

U.S. agricultural commodities company Bunge Ltd. will buy London-based carbon fund manager Climate Change Capital Ltd., after the plan was approved by Britain's financial regulator earlier this week, Bunge said Wednesday.
February 22, 2012
Citi, Levant Bag $100M Stake In Saudi Supermarket Chain

Investment funds advised by Citigroup Inc.'s venture capital arm and Dubai-based Levant Capital Ltd. have closed a $100 million deal to jointly acquire a controlling stake in one of Saudi Arabia's biggest supermarket chains, the companies said Wednesday.
February 22, 2012
Kirkland Energy M&A Pro Jumps To Baker Botts

Baker Botts LLP's Washington, D.C., office has lured a former Kirkland & Ellis LLP partner with experience counseling energy companies on mergers and acquisitions, the company said Wednesday.
February 22, 2012
J&J Backs Down To EU Over $21B Synthes Deal

Johnson & Johnson has offered unnamed concessions meant to ease the European Commission's antitrust concerns over the company's proposed $21.3 billion acquisition of leading orthopedic device maker Synthes Inc., the regulator said on Wednesday.
February 22, 2012
Pryor Cashman Lands New Investment Management Partner

New York law firm Pryor Cashman LLP has lassoed a hedge fund and corporate transactions expert from D.E. Shaw & Co. LP, a global investment and technology development company, to co-head the firm's investment management group, the firm announced Wednesday.
February 22, 2012
T-Mobile Wants FCC To Block Verizon's $4B Spectrum Buys

T-Mobile USA Inc. told the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday that Verizon Wireless' efforts to snatch up wireless spectrum licenses from Comcast Corp., Cox Communications Inc. and others for about $3.9 billion would harm competition and consumers.
February 21, 2012
Wells Fargo To Buy BNP Paribas Energy Loan Unit

Wells Fargo Bank NA has agreed to buy BNP Paribas SA's reserve-based energy lending business, which has about $9.5 billion in loan commitments and $3.9 billion in outstanding loans, the banks said Tuesday.
February 21, 2012
Dental Center Co. Seeks Sale To Root Out Fraud Claims

Dental center manager Church Street Health Management LLC told a Tennessee federal judge Tuesday that it would seek to sell its assets to a stalking horse bidder, one day after fallout from Medicaid fraud claims forced the company into bankruptcy.
February 21, 2012
Akin Gump Expands Asia Footprint To Hong Kong

Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP will soon open an office in Hong Kong, expanding its footprint in Asia, and has snagged a former Shearman & Sterling LLP partner to lead the office and the firm's Asia practice, the firm announced Monday.
February 21, 2012
Thompson & Knight Nabs M&A Vet from Bracewell

Thompson & Knight LLP’s Houston office has added longtime Bracewell & Giuliani LLP attorney Geoffrey A. Long to its corporate and securities practice group as partner, the firm announced Tuesday.
February 21, 2012
K&L Gates Snags Bryan Cave Partner For LA Corporate Team

K&L Gates LLP has lured to its corporate practice a Bryan Cave LLP transactional partner with experience representing domestic and international companies and private equity funds in the aerospace and technology sectors, the firm announced Monday.
February 21, 2012
Genomma Bids $834M For Prestige Brands

Mexican pharmaceutical and personal care company Genomma Lab Internacional SAB de CV has offered to acquire health care and household products company Prestige Brands Holdings Inc. for about $834 million, Genomma announced Tuesday.
February 21, 2012
Grubb & Ellis Pursues Sale To BGC Through Ch. 11

Commercial real estate services company Grubb & Ellis Co. on Monday filed for Chapter 11 protection in New York to sell itself to BGC Partners Inc. in a bid to preserve its business.
February 21, 2012
WP Carey Will Convert To REIT Following Merger

W. P. Carey & Co. LLC, a publicly traded real estate firm, on Tuesday announced plans to convert to a real estate investment trust and merge with its listed, nontraded REIT affiliate, Corporate Property Associates 15 Inc.
February 21, 2012
Zell's Equity Raises Archstone Bid To $1.5B

Multifamily real estate developer Equity Residential has upped its bid for half of Bank of America Corp. and Barclays PLC's 53 percent stake in apartment company Archstone to nearly $1.5 billion as Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. prepares to take control of the company, Equity said Tuesday.
February 21, 2012
White & Case Helps Fortis In $1.5B CH Energy Buy

Canadian utility Fortis Inc. will purchase New York-based energy distributor CH Energy Group Inc. for $1.5 billion in cash as it wades into the U.S.-regulated market, Fortis said Tuesday.
February 21, 2012
Omnicare Abandons $441M Offer To Buy PharMerica

Omnicare Inc. has dropped its plan to purchase PharMerica Corp. in a $440.8 million hostile takeover after the Federal Trade Commission moved last month to block the deal amid concerns the merger would harm competition, the would-be buyer said Tuesday.

Expert Analysis

Deal Market Trends For 2012

While the M&A market recovery lost steam in the second half of 2011, corporations and private funds still have capital to deploy, leading pundits and practitioners alike to be cautiously hopeful that the M&A market in 2012 may show signs of renewed vitality. With that in mind, we look back at 2011 for lessons learned in the M&A space with implications for the coming year, say David Fox and Daniel Wolf of Kirkland & Ellis LLP.
Review: Recent Securities Litigation, Rising Trends

While credit crisis-related litigation continued in 2011, it has extended beyond the securities class action realm, as evidenced by a recent surge in mortgage-backed securities actions. Another trend has been the increase in M&A-related securities litigation, something we expect to continue in the coming year, say attorneys with Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP.
Law School, Meet Litigation PR ...

The single most important thing law schools can do to manage their reputations in the face of litigation is apply the lessons learned from Wall Street during the recent financial crisis and strive for transparency in all communications. One need only look to Goldman Sachs’ woes or the struggles of Jon Corzine’s MF Global as examples of the catastrophic results of a campaign based on anything but complete honesty, says Spencer Baretz of Hellerman Baretz Communications.
High-Growth Markets: An Attractive M&A Option

Although high-growth market merger and acquisition activity in 2011 failed to sustain the spectacular growth it experienced in 2010, the looming threat of a double-dip recession in developed economies could push managers to swiftly seize high-quality M&A opportunities in high-growth markets in the near term, say attorneys with Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP.
Preparing Corporate Minutes: Time Well Spent

As most practitioners are aware, few rigid legal guidelines exist relating to the preparation of minutes, and the task is as much art as science. But following some basic principles can promote the goals of corporate boards while limiting their exposure to liability, say Steven Boehm and Vlad Bulkin of Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP.
Recent Trends In Green Energy M&A

The financial turmoil that began in the summer of 2011, particularly in Europe, has raised concerns regarding the availability of financing in 2012. Recent discussions at the Infocast green energy mergers and acquisitions conference provide insight on potential financing sources, as well as emerging deal structure trends, says Jonathan Melmed of Chadbourne & Parke LLP.
Examining Comcast's Calif. SBE Loss

The California State Board of Equalization recently ruled against Comcast Corp., holding that Comcast was unitary with QVC Inc. and the fee Comcast received for a failed merger with MediaOne Group Inc. was business income. Although the case results in a taxpayer loss, discussions by the board demonstrate that a unitary analysis is subjective, say attorneys with Reed Smith LLP.
Revised Removal Statutes — Possibilities, Pitfalls: Part 2

The Federal Courts Jurisdiction and Venue Clarification Act of 2011 has brought about substantial clarification in the federal removal, jurisdiction and venue statutes. But the act still leaves substantial ambiguity in place when it comes to the scope of these statutes, say Colin Wrabley and Douglas Allen of Reed Smith LLP.
Case Study: Messner V. Northshore

Following Dukes, the Seventh Circuit decision in Messner v. Northshore University HealthSystem approves intensive examination of merits issues at the class certification stage, and highlights the critical role that reliable expert testimony plays by mandating Daubert review at the class certification stage when expert opinions are material to the decision, say attorneys with Mintz Levin Cohn Ferris Glovsky and Popeo PC.
Protecting Employee IP In A Global Environment

A U.S. multinational employer can take steps to protect IP created by its non-U.S.-based employees at hiring, during employment, at termination and during transactions. The challenge is effectively taking advantage of these junctures in the employment relationship, say attorneys with Baker & McKenzie LLP.