The Week at Ropes & Gray: August Dealmaking Continues into September; Same-Sex Couples Win Important Parental Rights; Kudos to a Tax Lawyer

In The News
September 9, 2016

Weekly highlights of what’s happening at Ropes & Gray:

  • August was one for the dealmaking books. Ropes & Gray ranked as the second most active global M&A legal adviser for the month by Dealogic. The firm’s lawyers advised on transactions with a combined value of $19.8 billion, including Pfizer’s proposed acquisition of Medivation.
  • September started off as August finished for M&A deals. A Ropes & Gray team led out of San Francisco advised GI Partners, the middle market private equity firm, in its proposed acquisition of Daxko, which provides SaaS solutions to membership-based organizations like health clubs and wellness centers; meanwhile, a team led out of New York represented EXL, a leading operations management company, in its acquisition of IQR Consulting Inc., a provider of marketing solutions for the banking industry.
  • In a major win for same-sex couples seeking parental rights, the New York Court of Appeals concluded that a person who is not a biological or adoptive parent may obtain standing to petition for custody or visitation under state law. A Ropes & Gray pro bono team submitted briefs on behalf of several advocacy organizations, including the National Center for Lesbian Rights, the American Civil Liberties Union, the New York Civil Liberties Union, and the New York City Gay and Lesbian Anti-Violence Project.
  • The spotlight is on our tax controversy partner Kat Saunders Gregor, who was selected by the Boston Business Journal as one of the brightest professionals under the age of 40. Watch this video of Ms. Gregor discussing IRS discovery-style tactics.
  • Coming up: One government enforcement partner from Ropes & Gray’s 300-lawyer New York office headline Corporate Counsel’s 10th Annual Hedge Fund General Counsel and Compliance Officer Summit in New York on Sept. 28-29. On the panel “Insider Trading Bulletin: A View from the Trenches,” Chris Conniff will participate as a panelist.  For more information on the event, click here