Corporate and Business Transactions

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Our corporate lawyers work hand in hand with our clients to achieve their business goals and execute strategic plans. We guide companies in all industries through their entire lifecycle, from formation and financing to successful exits and liquidity events.

Overview

Nationally recognized for our middle-market transactional practice, we advise emerging companies to Fortune 100 companies on their strategic transactions and business deals. Our industry experts and cross-practice teams understand your company, its industry, and its goals and create tailored legal solutions to meet your company's business priorities, with culture and growth in mind. We provide the experience, analysis, and guidance needed to make informed decisions, and provide counsel every step of the way to ensure your success. In addition to transactional services, we provide corporate governance and principle outside counsel services, debt and equity finance, private securities, and tax counseling, along with other supportive services unique to our full-service law firm.

Expertise

Mergers & Acquisitions

We take a practical approach to transactions, serving as strategic deal lawyers and advisors you need to get the deal done in the timeline required. Whether this is your first, 10th, or final transaction, we work closely with you and your other advisors to understand your goals and achieve your desired results, and you will be equipped with a team that understands you and your target's industry. We have experience advising on both buy- and sell-side middle-market transactions for public and private companies and private equity firms. As a full-service firm, we are able to bring in subject matter experts, such as tax, executive compensation, regulatory, real estate, environmental, technology, national security, etc., to support transactions. We frequently advise on transactions and are well-versed in the fast pace of deal work, ensuring your transaction runs efficiently and remains compliant with all applicable laws.

Emerging Companies & Venture Capital

We have a team of experienced lawyers who focus primarily on representing emerging companies and the funds that invest in them. We advise entrepreneurs and investors in all stages of a company's life cycle, from company formation through successful exit.

Private Equity

Our private equity lawyers advise investment firms and institutional investors on buyouts, growth equity transactions, add-on acquisitions, and other investment opportunities. In conjunction, we provide counsel on investor rights agreements, target company due diligence, and related tax implications and compliance, and we ensure our clients maximize value while mitigating risks in complex deals. For portfolio companies, we serve as primary outside counsel, advising on governance, restructuring and reorganization of corporate and partnership enterprises, and regulatory compliance.

Debt Finance

Our debt finance team represents clients in complex debt financing transactions, including acquisition financings, debt restructurings, asset-based credit facilities, working capital loans, and dividend recapitalizations. Our team works closely with our M&A practice team, providing full-service capabilities to corporate transactions. We have experience with senior secured, second lien, subordinated, and unsecured financings, with notable expertise in restaurant and franchise financing issues.

Tax

Our tax lawyers advise clients with structuring operations and transactions to take full advantage of federal, state, and local tax opportunities to maximize your company's return. Our taxation lawyers advise companies on federal, state, and local tax compliance, tax planning, and emerging tax issues and have a keen understanding of the laws that affect equity and financing transactions, mergers, acquisitions, and other business combinations, as well as the issues unique to nonprofit companies.

Trusts & Estates

Whether it is for a simple will or a complex trust, we take the time to understand your objectives and customize plans that are understandable and actionable. Our team's practice goes far beyond merely drafting a last will and testament. We focus on structuring comprehensive, tax-efficient estate plans that include multi-generational planning, family business succession and charitable planning; probate and trust administration; estate and trust dispute resolution; and prenuptial, postnuptial, and other property status agreements.

Industry Teams

Healthcare

Our team of healthcare lawyers is committed to assisting our clients with their mergers, acquisitions, and joint ventures in this highly regulated industry. Focused on the issues unique to the healthcare industry, our lawyers provide guidance on corporate and tax restructuring, due diligence, regulatory and multistate regulatory approvals, and anti-kickback and Stark compliance.

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Technology

Transactions for technology companies need experienced and apt lawyers who can remedy issues ranging across the IP spectrum, including those related to software copyright, patent, open source, or license transfer issues. Firmwide, our IP specialists collaborate with our M&A teams to assist with due diligence, identify issues, and craft solutions to manage or allocate risks that arise from IP issues in technology and software M&A.

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Food + Beverage

We know there is more to our clients' businesses than what ends up on the shelves. Our food and beverage lawyers eat, drink, and breathe this industry and assist our agricultural, food, and alcohol clients with transformational events as well as day-to-day counseling. Food safety and compliance, agricultural liens, family business transition, labeling and marketing, brand development and protection, contract brewing and distilling, custom crush agreements, and retail strategies—this listing is just a sample of our capabilities.

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Consumer Products

Our consumer products practice is a multidisciplinary team that brings industry knowledge in food and beverage, health and fitness, franchising, antitrust, and supply chain management, together to provide our clients with a well-rounded understanding of their regulatory environment and potential growth within their industry. We regularly advise on all aspects of mergers and acquisitions, antitrust regulations, consumer protection laws, and other legal issues that may arise. We are aware that growth is a vital element in the success of consumer- related companies and can help guide you through a strategy that best fits your goals and sets you up for the future.

Financial Services/Fintech

In this evolving industry, in which regulatory and technology expertise is vital to all players, our lawyers combine transactional and finance experience with a knowledge of the most current regulatory and compliance issues and changes to bring holistic solutions to our clients. We assist public and private financial institutions with the sale of branches, the organization of state and national banks and foreign subsidiaries, data breaches and cyber security responses, and compliance with federal and state securities laws. Working with our fintech and digital asset industry lawyers with focuses on corporate, litigation, regulatory, and cyber security, we help fintech, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cloud computing, SaaS, and big data companies achieve their ultimate goal while mitigating risk and enforcement actions.

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Energy

Within the evolving energy industry, our experience covers wind, solar, geothermal, hydro facilities, natural gas, oil, and coal-fired plants. We represent clients in the wholesale and retail sale of electric power, natural gas transportation, energy storage, supply arrangements, and the purchase and sale of energy assets. In addition, we work closely with our environmental and ESG lawyers to address a client's environmental and climate goals, including energy transition, real estate, and emissions goals. Our lawyers include past environmental consultants, engineers, and government officials—we have an "insider" understanding of every side and can speak the language of all parties. We know the process, get the science, and are as enthusiastic about our clients' aims as they are.

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Manufacturing

Whether processing raw materials or finding a foreign supplier, our lawyers understand the challenges manufacturers face. We advise industrial, timber and other raw materials, homebuilder, and consumer goods companies, among others, on developing strategies for growth and reducing risk routinely, helping with matters related to M&A, compliance, real estate development, environmental issues, contracts, employment and labor, and all aspects of intellectual property. We guide clients through the many aspects of their business, assisting them with development, growth, sales, and distribution.

Transactional Experience

The team at Davis Wright Tremaine is honored to have assisted these and other outstanding companies in furthering their goals last year.
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Industry Recognition

Our corporate and M&A practice is consistently ranked by Chambers for our strong skills handling complex regional and national transactions across a variety of industries. More than a dozen of our transactional lawyers are individually recognized.
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Family Business Resource Center

Insight and commentary on ownership and leadership transition, family wealth, and business succession.
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Project W

We partner with other organizations to help female founders develop the relationships and skills they need to succeed.

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Practice Contacts

Chan, Christina Y.
Christina Y. Chan
Partner
Co-chair, Corporate and Business Transactions Practice
Seattle
206.757.8293
Drew Steen
Drew Steen
Partner
Co-chair, Corporate and Business Transactions Practice
Seattle
206.757.8081

Our Team

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