The Week at Ropes & Gray: Deals for Blackstone and Body Glove; Socially Responsible Investing; Tokyo Women’s Forum Networking Event

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

• In one of the largest health care deals of the year, Blackstone announced it will acquire TeamHealth Holdings for $6.1 billion. TeamHealth provides outsourced emergency, surgical and other health care services to some 3,400 facilities and physicians groups around the United States. Ropes & Gray advised Blackstone on health care regulatory issues. Ropes & Gray was named “firm of the year” for health care by Chambers in 2015.
• Surf’s up! Marquee Brands (advised by Ropes & Gray M&A lawyers) announced it will acquire Body Glove, the California outdoor sports and surf brand. Ropes & Gray previously advised Marquee Brands in its acquisition of UK men’s label Ben Sherman last year.
• Socially responsible investing and commitment to environmental, social and governmental (ESG) issues are at the top of the agenda for many investors and asset managers today. This week, Ropes & Gray’s hedge funds group partnered with the Alternative Investment Management Association to host a collaborative event for the United Nations-backed Principles for Responsible Investment. Discussions at the event addressed responsible investments into hedge funds and how asset owners consider ESG factors when allocating to hedge funds, as well as how they evaluate the evolving nature of their demands.
• The role of mentoring for professional women in Japan was the focus of a Ropes & Gray Women’s Forum networking event in Tokyo. Keynote speaker Shelagh Sayers, the FBI representative to the Japanese government, discussed how mentoring helped her overcome obstacles during her 20-year career.
• Coming up:  With Election Day right around the corner, a Ropes & Gray pro bono litigation team, together with the ACLU of Massachusetts and the ACLU’s national Voting Rights Project, filed suit in Massachusetts challenging the state’s 20-day voter registration cutoff law.