M&A Appointments

Accel-KKR – Technology-focused PE firm Accel-KKR opened a new office in Atlanta, Ga., headed by managing director Rob Palumbo, while the firm’s Menlo Park office will serve as the headquarters, and continue to be led by managing directors Tom Barnds and Ben Bisconti. Akerman Senterfitt – The firm recently added H. Frances Kleiner to its corporate department as a shareholder. She focuses on M&A. Before this, Kleiner had been a partner in Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal’s corporate and securities group. Alvarez & Marsal Transaction Advisory Group – The firm expanded its U.S. practice with the addition of five experienced dealmaking pros. In New York, Anthony Caporrino has been named a managing director; Jonathan Schrubbe, a director; and Deep Parekh, a manager. In Chicago, Eric Lorge has been tapped as a senior director and Raju Patel, a manager. Caporrino focuses on financial accounting due diligence for PE and strategic buyers. Prior to joining A&M, he was a director in the transaction advisory services unit of Duff & Phelps. Lorge, former director of transaction services at KPMG, provides buy-side financial due diligence services to PE investors. Schrubbe leads financial accounting due diligence for PE firms and strategic buyers. Previously, he had been a senior manager in Ernst & Young’s transaction advisory services group. Patel, former manager of Deloitte & Touche’s assurance and enterprise risk services practice, concentrates on accounting and financial analysis. Parekh, a specialist in accounting and financial analysis, had been a manager in the transaction services practice of KPMG before joining A&M. Banc of America Securities – Strengthening its financial institutions group, the firm roped in former U.S. Treasury Department senior adviser Michael Scott as a managing director and head of U.S. government entities and managing director Alan Ginsberg, former head of HSBC’s U.S. financial institutions group. Both are based in New York. Before working at the Treasury Department, Scott spent five years at consulting firm DMG-Maximus, where he was a manager. In other news, Andrew Castaldo joined the firm’s natural resources investment banking group as a managing director focused on energy M&A. He is based in New York. Castaldo joined the firm after spending seven years at Citigroup, where he was most recently a director in the firm’s M&A group, focused on the energy sector. Also, Mark Wittman joined the firm’s consumer and retail investment banking group as a managing director, with coverage responsibility for a portfolio of food and beverage companies. He is based in New York. Before this, he had been a managing director in Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein’s consumer products investment banking group. Behrman Capital – Former chairman and CEO of Tandem Health Care, Lawrence Deering, has been named an operating partner, in which capacity he oversees existing health care portfolio companies and identifies potential health care investmnets. Brown Raysman Millstein Felder & Steiner – Riaz Karamali has landed at Brown Raysman as a partner in the firm’s corporate and technology and media and communications practices, and is based in Silicon Valley. Before this he had been with Perkins Coie. Carl Marks Advisory Group – Peter Schaeffer is a new addition to the firm, joining as a partner focusing on M&A, capital sourcing, strategic advisory services, and restructuring in the retail and consumer goods industries. Formerly, he was a founding managing director and global leader of the retail and consumer products investment banking group at Giuliani Capital Advisors. Also, Charles Boguslaski joined the firm as an associate and focuses on M&A and on raising debt and equity capital. Before this, he worked for Gordian Group. Chadbourne & Parke – The London office recruited Charez Golvala as a partner in its corporate department. Before this, Golvala had been a senior corporate solicitor at Vinson & Elkins. Charlesbank Capital Partners – Moving up the ranks at the firm are Tami Nason, general counsel, and Ryan Carroll, VP. Nason has been with Charlesbank since its formation in 1998 and has served as its senior in-house legal professional since then. She joined its predecessor firm, Harvard Private Capital Group, in 1988. Carroll joined the firm’s investment team in 2000 as an associate and was promoted to senior associate in 2003. Previously, he was with LEK Consulting, where he worked on corporate strategy and PE projects. Clayton, Dubilier & Rice – The firm’s London office got a boost with the hiring of Marco Herbst, senior principal, formerly with Duke Street Capital. Cohen & Grigsby – Paul De Rosa has recently joined the firm as a director in its business group. He focuses his practice on corporate transactions, including M&A and venture capital, securities law compliance, and general corporate matters. De Rosa is a former partner and senior counsel in the business and finance group at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius. Davis Polk & Wardwell – Moving up the ranks in the firm’s corporate practice group were M&A attorneys Marc Williams (New York office) and Luigi De Ghenghi (London), both elevated to partner. DLA Piper Rudnick Gray Cary – DLA Piper’s Paris office recruited Frederic Bucher as a partner in its corporate group. Bucher, who had been with French law firm De Pardieu Brocas Maffei, covers M&A and private equity. And former Motorola Singapore president and Asia Pacific general counsel, Jeffery Ta, has been named as a partner, with responsibility for overseeing the firm’s corporate and technology practice in Southeast Asia. Dykema – Midwest-based Dykema added Kevin Slaughter to its corporate finance practice in Chicago. Slaughter came to the firm from Burris, Wright, Slaughter & Tom. Epstein Becker & Green – Arnold Bressler, a former managing partner and head of the corporate department at Milberg Weiss, became a member of the firm and co-head of the business law practice. Joining him as a member of the firm was Wai Chan, also a former Milberg Weiss partner. Evercore Partners – Former Rohatyn Associates managing director Gil Ha has been named a senior managing director at Evercore. Based in New York, he focuses on corporate advisory work. First Reserve – The PE firm brought in Neil Hartley as a director, Joshua Weiner as assistant VP, and Matthew Raben as assistant general counsel. Weiner and Raben are based in Greenwich, Conn., while Hartley is based in London. Before this, Hartley worked at Simmons & Co. International, where he lead three corporate finance teams working on energy deals. Weiner previously worked in the capital markets group at Warburg Pincus. Raben had been with Simpson Thacher & Bartlett before this, focusing on M&A and PE deals. Fish & Richardson – Bulking up its corporate department in its Austin, Texas, office, the firm added Edward Cavazos, Kinloch Gill III, and Steven Tyndall as principals and Millicent Lundburg and Gavino Morin as of counsel. Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson – Four corporate attorneys recently were elevated to partner: Michael Alter (Washington, D.C., office) specializes in federal income taxation, particularly taxable and tax-free corporate acquisitions, reorganizations, spin-offs, and divestitures. Craig Arnott (London) heads the firm’s European antitrust team, focusing on European, U.K., and multi-national merger approvals. Brian Mangino (Washington, D.C.) specializes in M&A and PE transactions. David Shaw (New York) concentrates on M&A, PE, and financing transactions. Fulbright & Jaworski – The firm added Johannes Gabel to its New York office as a partner in its international corporate practice. He joined Fulbright from Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe. Goodwin Procter – Bulking up its PE capabilities, the firm recruited Jeff Hess to its private equity practice in New York. Most recently, he was principal legal counsel for Second Solutions, a home health care and staffing company based in Boston. Before that, he served as VP and associate general counsel of American Capital Strategies. In addition to Hess, the firm recently added five partners to its PE practice: J. Hovey Kemp, Christopher Hagan, and James Hutchinson joined the practice in Washington, D.C., from Hogan & Hartson, and Thomas Meriam and Bruce Rader joined the practice in New York from Chadbourne & Parke. Greenbriar Equity Group – Former Credit Suisse M&A banker Alan Howard joined the firm as a managing director, in which capacity he focuses on transportation-related investments. GW Equity – Business valuation veteran Bob Berry joined the firm as managing director of corporate valuations, based in Dallas. Before joining GW, Berry worked in the mid-market M&A division of a leading Wall Street firm, where he supervised corporate valuations. In other news, New York City is home to the firm’s newest office, and Daniel Parrett has been appointed as managing director. Parrett came to GW after serving as a managing director at Citigroup Capital Strategies. Kaye Scholer – Robert Davis III joined the firm’s corporate and finance department as of counsel, based in Chicago. He joined from Kirkland & Ellis, where he was a partner, focused on M&A, divestitures, and private equity LBOs. Kelley Drye & Warren – Expanding the corporate practice in its Chicago office, the firm recruited former Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal partner W. Michael Ryan as a corporate partner. Kirkland & Ellis – Sam Pakbaz has rejoined the firm as a corporate partner in its London office. Pakbaz was at U.S. hedge fund Shumway Capital Partners, where he was general counsel and managing director. Kohlberg Kravis Roberts – Buyout giant KKR appointed a former executive of Japan’s Ministry of International Trade & Industry (MITI) as a senior adviser in its Japan office. Hisashi Hosokawa joined the firm after having worked for MITI for 40 years. Latham & Watkins – The firm added Jack Welch as of counsel in its corporate department, based in Los Angeles. Welch had previously worked as of counsel at Allen & Overy in New York and London. Lehman Brothers – Lehman snagged three technology investment bankers from Citigroup: Richard Gallivan, as head of West Coast tech investment banking and sector head of electronics companies; Laurence Braham, a managing director in technology investment banking; and Richard Hardegree, in technology M&A. All are based in Menlo Park, Calif. In other news, Lehman’s London office got a boost with the hiring of Magnus Scaddan as a managing director of its European investment banking consumer and retail group. Scaddan previously spent two years at HSBC, where he had been a managing director and head of consumer products investment banking for Europe. Also joining the consumer and retail group in London is George Hartley, executive director, who had been with Lazard before this. Levenfeld Pearlstein – The firm added Howard Berrington as a partner in its corporate and securities department. He came to the firm after spending 16 years as a partner in the corporate transactional practice at FagelHaber. Lincolnshire Management – Continuing to expand its origination capabilities, the firm brought in Nicholas Nedeau to its deal team and named him head of the Chicago office. Before this he had been VP, secretary, and general counsel of Stepan Co., a Northfield, Ill.-based specialty chemicals company. Loeb & Loeb – In recent weeks the firm elevated several corporate attorneys to partner: David Ansel (New York office) focuses on mid-market PE deals. Christopher Kelly (Los Angeles) specializes in general corporate and securities matters, including M&A, securities offerings, and SEC compliance and reporting. Mark Streams (Los Angeles) concentrates on M&A, strategic alliances, and debt and equity transactions. Magnetar Capital – Michael Gross, a founder and former senior partner of Apollo Management, came aboard as co-chairman of the investment committee and a senior partner. Gross also serves as CIO of Magnetar’s credit and private investment business. MBF Healthcare Partners – Former Miami city manager, Joe Arriola, recently became a managing partner of the firm, and is charged with assessing potential acquisitions and providing management expertise to the firm’s portfolio companies. Milestone Advisors C. Matthew Allen has joined the firm’s Washington, D.C., headquarters as a managing director. He leads the firm’s bank and thrift group and advises clients on M&A and corporate finance. Before this, he worked at Howe Barnes Hoefer & Arnett in Los Angeles and covered financial institutions, primarily in the Western U.S. Mirus Capital Advisors – Laura Kevghas has been named a principal of the firm. She focuses on M&A, buyouts, and recaps. Kevghas had previously served as VP of Mirus from 1988 to 1996 before joining Advanstar Communications, serving most recently at that company as director of corporate development. J.P. Morgan Securities – The firm hired Andy Sriubas as a managing director in its media investment banking group. Based in New York, Sriubas focuses on out-of-home media and entertainment companies. Before this, he had been a managing director in the media group at UBS. Morgan Joseph – Mid-market investment bank Morgan Joseph strengthened its technology practice with the hiring of Douglas Burke as managing director of the group. He is based in Los Angeles. Burke previously led the software and services practice at Pagemill Partners as a managing director. Morgan Stanley – It has been heard on the Street that the firm is adding four managing directors to its financial institutions group (FIG), replenishing a group that dwindled over the last year. Coming aboard are Merrill Lynch’s Maurice Marchesini and Credit Suisse’s Mike McMahon and Mike Ostow. Also, Morgan Stanley investment banker Mahmoud Mamdani, who specializes in capital raising for industrial companies, has moved into the FIG, as senior M&A banker. Marchesini will be based in Los Angeles and focus on banks and other clients on the West Coast. McMahon, who specializes in student loan, credit card, and mortgage companies, will be based in New York. Both will join in October. Ostow, who also will be based in New York, will focus on insurance companies in North America. He will start in early September. Also, the firm lured yet another banker away from Goldman Sachs, this time Randy Sesson, who will join the firm in October as a managing director and head of European transportation and infrastructure investment banking. A 17-year Goldman veteran, Sesson previously had led that firm’s European transportation group since 2000. Nixon Peabody – LBO attorney Jane Greyf, partner, is the newest addition to Nixon’s private equity team. She is based in New York. Greyf came from Latham & Watkins and focuses on M&A. North Fork Business Capital – Asset-based and structured finance loan provider North Fork named Christopher Gribble as VP, business development officer. Prior to joining the firm, Gribble held various positions in the mid-market leveraged lending groups at Fifth Third Bank, Provident Bank, and GE Capital. O’Melveny & Myers – Former FTC chief of staff Maryanne Kane joined the firm as of counsel in its antitrust/competition practice in Washington. The practice is co-chaired by former FTC chairman Timothy Muris and Richard Parker, a former director of the FTC’s Bureau of Competition. Omniture Inc. – Online business optimization software provider Omniture brought in former MyFamily.com executive Mike Dodd as SVP of corporate development. For the past four years, Dodd had served in various executive-level roles at MyFamily.com, an online family history source. Prior to that, he had been a partner at a venture capital firm and a technology investment banker at Robertson Stephens. Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker – David Dedyo, previously a partner at White & Case, joined the firm’s corporate department and is based in Palo Alto, Calif. Dedyo’s practice focuses on M&A, equity and debt financings, JVs, corporate governance, and compliance matters. Perella Weinberg Partners – Banc of America Securities’ former head of U.S. M&A, Andrew Bednar, joined Perella Weinberg as a partner, based in New York. Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman – Recently joining the firm was Simon Fielder, a partner in Pillsbury’s corporate and securities group in London. He came to Pillsbury from Osborne Clarke, where he focused on M&A and corporate finance, with a particular emphasis on London’s AIM market. roskauer Rose – Finance and junior capital attorney Peter Antoszyk joined the firm’s corporate finance group as a partner, and Michael Harrington came aboard as senior counsel in the firm’s M&A/PE group. Both are based in Boston. Antoszyk had been with Brown Rudnick Berlack Israels, where he had been a partner in the bankruptcy and finance practices, while Harrington joined from Goodwin Procter, where he was a partner in the firm’s business law department and private equity group. Also, the firm announced two moves in its PE transactions practice, tapping Daniel Eisner as a partner and Nigel Austin as senior counsel. They are based in New York. Both attorneys came from Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, where Eisner had been a partner and Austin was counsel. Rodman & Renshaw – In a bid to widen its life sciences coverage, the firm took on John Chambers as a senior managing director. In his role, he works on arranging financing and financial advisory transactions, serving a client base of life sciences companies. Chambers was previously a managing director and senior biotechnology specialist at SG Cowen. Seyfarth Shaw – Ernest Stern has joined the firm’s Washington, D.C. office as partner in its corporate and finance practice group. Stern’s practice is focused on corporate and securities transactions with an emphasis on high-tech clients. Previously, Stern was a partner at Schiff Hardin, where he was head of the business and technology practice group. Sidley Austin – In the corporate department in the firm’s London office, Jonathan Wallace has been promoted to partner and Nigel Dunmore has been recruited as a partner, after spending five years as a partner at Kirkland & Ellis. Silverfern Group – Mid-market M&A boutique Silverfern continued the expansion of its senior banking team with the addition of George Holder, a managing director. Prior to joining the Silverfern, he had been a managing director at Citigroup Capital Strategies, a division of Citigroup focused on mid-market M&A. Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal – Paul Gajer has been promoted to chair of Sonnenschein’s corporate practice group. Gajer, who has been with the firm since 2002, represents PE, buyout, and venture capital funds. Stanford Group – Houston-based investment banking and brokerage firm Stanford Group tapped a former Jefferies & Co. managing director, Tim Baughman, to build an investment banking presence for the firm in San Francisco. Baughman specializes in technology, media, and telecom companies. Trenwith Securities – The firm recently formed a cross-border structured finance group, which provides financing, repatriation, and capital structuring advice for foreign multinationals engaging in U.S. mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures. Two professionals, previously with BDO Seidman’s international tax practice, lead the practice in New York City: James Robbins joined as a senior managing director and Daniel Markiewicz joined as a managing director. Also, the firm appointed Frank Drazka as chairman of the board. He is the co-founder and a managing member of Fox Hall Investments, a private investment and financial services firm. Valufinder Group – Boutique investment banking firm Valufinder recently promoted Brian Levine to SVP. Before joining the firm as a VP in 1999 he had served as president of Actors Reps, a talent agency, and director of the London office of LCS Industries, a management consulting firm that specializes in telecommunications and database marketing. In other news, David Schenkel joined the firm as a VP. He previously was a senior executive focusing on post-acquisition organizational development. Wachovia Securities – John Ockerbloom, who most recently had been a managing director in the real estate investment banking group at Banc of America Securities, joined as a managing director in the firm’s real estate banking group. Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe – Former SVP of strategic investments at First Data, Richard Aiello, came aboard as senior operating executive, in which capacity he focuses on evaluating investment opportunities in the information and business services sector. He is based in New York. Winston & Strawn – Corporate partner Carl Liederman joined Winston’s Geneva office. Previously, he had been head of the European M&A practice at Herrington & Sutcliffe. (c) 2006 Mergers and Acquisitions Journal and SourceMedia, Inc. All Rights Reserved. http://www.majournal.com http://www.sourcemedia.com