COURSE DESCRIPTION
Taking a minority ownership stake in a closely held company is a common occurrence. An investor may have taken a minority stake to fund growth in the business or someone may have provided essential, non-cash services – technical expertise, sales skill, management expertise – in exchange for equity. But there are substantial drawbacks with minority stakes. The minority stake holder may have limited access to information to the business and little or no control or influence over the ultimate success of the business. The majority stake holder(s) may also seek to force out minority stake holders. This program will provide you with a real-world guide to structuring minority stake investments in anticipation of the majority stake owner eventually forcing the buyout of minority stake owners.
- Structuring minority stake ownership for eventual buyout by the majority stake owner
- How to avoid undue dispute and litigation through planning
- Framework of law protecting minority stake owners
- Equitable structuring of minority stake governance, information, and other rights
- Differences between passive minority-stake owner and those who actively participate in the business
- Valuation and buyout finance issues for majority stake owners
- Liquidity rights for minority stake owners
- Counseling techniques to help avoid open dispute among owners
Speaker:
Frank Ciatto is a partner in the Washington, D.C. office of Venable, LLP, where he has 20 years’ experience advising clients on mergers and acquisitions, limited liability companies, tax and accounting issues, and corporate finance transactions. He is a leader of his firm’s private equity and hedge fund groups and a member of the Mergers & Acquisitions Subcommittee of the ABA Business Law Section. He is a Certified Public Accountant and earlier in his career worked at what is now PricewaterhouseCoopers in New York.
Molly Merritts is an attorney in the Washington, D.C. office of Venable, LLP, where she focuses her practice on a wide range of corporate law matters, including mergers and acquisitions, debt and equity financing, and real estate investment trusts. She also advises clients on corporate governance matters, transactional and commercial contract negotiations, and corporate reorganizations.