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Michael Best & Friedrich LLP
100 East Wisconsin Avenue
Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53202-4108
Telephone: 414-271-6560
Telecopier: 414-277-0656
Approach
At Michael Best & Friedrich LLP, the practice of business law involves teaming with our clients to achieve their strategic objectives. Our clients rely upon us to serve as counselors, providing both legal advice and business experience.
Clients
Our business law practice is extensive, both in terms of the type and size of our clients, as well as in the spectrum of services we provide. As general, regional or local counsel, we represent individuals, partnerships, limited liability companies and public and closely held corporations, operating in virtually every segment of our economy.
Attorneys
More than 40 attorneys provide counsel to our corporate and business clients. For each project we assemble the appropriate resources to achieve our client's goals in the most expedient and cost-effective manner.
To more directly address the changing needs of our clients and the marketplace, we have formed specialized practice groups in areas such as venture capital, electronic commerce, start-up enterprises, agribusiness and communications.
Practice
Business law is a core competency of the firm. The range of our services includes assisting in the organization, financing and operation of business ventures, through and including mergers, acquisitions, divestitures and joint ventures. Our experience in corporate finance has resulted in representation of venture capital investors, mezzanine lenders, and start-up and later-phase companies in all facets of business, including distribution, manufacturing and emerging technology. Our firm also has a substantial practice in securities work representing both issuers and underwriters in public and private offerings of all forms of equity and debt securities.
Our extensive business law experience includes the following areas:
Closely Held Businesses
A large number of partners and associates devote all of their time to advising closely held business. Services to closely held businesses include advice on: choice of entity; tax and estate planning; shareholder, partnership and operating agreements; financing arrangements, including start-up and later-stage debt and equity financing; distribution, dealership and supply arrangements; securities law; regulatory compliance; intellectual property; employee benefits and executive compensation; labor relations and real estate.
Public Companies
We serve as general or special counsel to a large number of public companies engaged in business throughout the world. We routinely are requested to provide advice in such diverse areas as public company mergers; joint ventures (domestic and foreign); all aspects of compliance with federal and state regulations; export controls; internal investigations and issues relating to Internet commerce.
We have several partnering arrangements in place with inside counsel. For example, upon request we assign partners and associates to the inside team to assist during periods of high demand for legal services; we serve as of counsel to clients and are involved in all facets of their business; we routinely assist in training managers and executives. Often such services are provided at an agreed upon monthly rate. We also provide task-based billing to facilitate client budgets.
Commercial Finance and Lending
Our commercial lending practice includes the representation of locally and nationally prominent financial institutions as well as borrowers in secured and unsecured credit facilities of all sizes, loan syndications and participations, leveraged buyouts, ESOP loans, asset-based financings, letters of credit and the purchase of entire loan portfolios. We provide advice to clients in commercial leasing, equipment finance and sales and secured transactions under the Uniform Commercial Code. Several of our attorneys concentrate their practice on loan workouts, bankruptcy and the restructuring of problem and special loans.
Merger and Acquisitions
Our attorneys structure, negotiate and close mergers, acquisitions and divestitures for a full range of clients from individuals to large publicly held companies. In addition to traditional merger, asset and stock purchase transactions, we frequently assist clients in completing recapitalizations, management and non-management leveraged buyouts, reorganizations and other complex restructurings.
Public Finance
Michael Best has a recognized practice in the area of public finance. Since 1993, we have acted as Bond Counsel for over $6 billion of financings for industrial, office and housing developments, health care facilities, business improvement districts, redevelopment authorities and professional athletic stadiums. These offerings include both general obligation and revenue bonds. We also represent underwriters and borrowers in bond placements, as well as financial institutions that provide credit enhancements for bond offerings.
Distribution and Franchising
For businesses seeking to reach new markets, we provide counsel in the development of mutually-beneficial distribution, licensing or franchise relationships. Together with our Litigation and Intellectual Property Practice Groups, we negotiate and litigate distributorship, dealership, licensing and franchising matters of all types for clients throughout the United States.
International Business
Several of our international business attorneys have placed particular emphasis on structuring international joint venture and distribution arrangements for our clients. In addition, our attorneys assist clients with international mergers and acquisitions, import and export transactions and immigration. Through our membership in Lex Mundi, the world's largest network of private law firms, we can provide our clients with excellent legal resources in virtually every nation in the world.
Venture Capital
Michael Best's venture capital team brings together attorneys from different disciplines in order to provide efficient and effective representation for our venture capital clients. Our team structures creative solutions to the range of complex problems faced in bringing a venture capital transaction to a successful conclusion, including formation of an advantageous tax structure, creation of a management team and layering of necessary tiers of finance. The firm is also experienced at representing our clients in the commercial finance and lending transactions necessary to finance many venture capital acquisitions so that both the acquisition and the lending portions of the deal can proceed in a cohesive and coordinated manner. We routinely advise clients concerning appropriate methods of structuring incentive compensation and employment agreements.
Referrals and Relationships
In all aspects of the business practice our primary goal is to add value whenever possible. Close relationships with clients make our practice rewarding and we seek to help our clients beyond legal services. Upon request, we provide referrals to help clients obtain debt and equity financing, recruit employees, retain outside accounting, public relations, advertising and marketing assistance and to pursue the sale of their business.
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