The Week at Ropes & Gray: Steady Deal Volume Continues; Freedom after 30 Years in Prison; Evaluating International Risk; Changes at the SEC; A Rising Star in Chicago

In The News
October 20, 2017

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

  • October continues to be a busy month for our corporate clients, which announced a number of new deals:
    • Genstar Capital, the leading private equity firm, announced the purchase of Tekni-Plex, Inc., a global company focused on developing packaging materials, medical compounds and medical tubing, from affiliates of American Securities.
    • Castanea Partners made a minority investment in Tatcha, a luxury skincare brand distributed online and at major specialty retail stores, including Sephora North America and QVC. It’s the second beauty-focused deal in the last month, coming on the heels of our work on Bain’s sale of Carver Korea Co.
    • And one of the largest and fastest growing generic pharmaceutical companies in the United States, Amneal Pharmaceuticals LLC, will grow considerably next year through a definitive business combination in an all-stock transaction with Impax Laboratories, Inc. The new company, Amneal Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will rank as the fifth-largest genetics business in the United States. Ropes & Gray advised TPG Capital in connection with the transaction.
  • A three-decade fight for justice finally came to an end for a pro bono client of the firm. On Oct. 18, prosecutors representing the Commonwealth of Massachusetts filed paperwork with the Massachusetts Superior Court dismissing the indictment against George Perrot, who was wrongfully imprisoned for nearly 30 years. The case involved a novel legal approach, as the hair evidence used to convict Mr. Perrot had been lost or destroyed. Our team leveraged the FBI’s admitted errors in the case to make a successful bid for his release. Our work was recognized by the Financial Times Innovative Lawyers in 2016 and earned the firm a spot on the National Law Journal’s 2017 Pro Bono Hot List.
  • Large corporations face a persistent need to evaluate the scope of risks involved as they expand their business overseas. Attorneys from several of our practice groups and offices led discussions about international risk.
    • In this new video, government enforcement partner Ryan Rohlfsen highlights findings from our "Risky Business" report. Ropes & Gray and FT Remark, a research service from the Financial Times, conducted a survey of 300 senior-level executives at corporations across many industries to examine trends in risk. The full report is available here.
    • Following President Trump’s decision not to re-certify Iran’s compliance with the JCPOA nuclear agreement, government enforcement counsel Brendan Hanifin was quoted on uncertainty for companies seeking to do business with Iran in The Wall Street Journal’s Morning Risk Report.
  • Bitcoin continues to dominate the news; two months after the SEC warned investors that some digital tokens or coins may qualify as securities under the federal securities laws, the SEC brought its first enforcement action in connection with an initial coin offering (ICO). Read the Ropes & Gray alert on the SEC’s action, which argues that this will be a key enforcement focus in the future. Another regulator, the CFTC, released a primer outlining virtual currencies and associated risks, as well as the CFTC’s role in enforcement. An alert from our attorneys assesses the document as regulators seek to assert their authority in this area.
  • At Life Sciences Quarterly, chair of Ropes & Gray’s securities and governance practice, Keith Higgins, securities & public companies partner Pat O’Brien and mergers & acquisitions partner Chris Comeau reviewed the status of new and existing initiatives by Congress and the SEC. You can access the full video here, along with the transcript.
  • Congratulations to business & securities litigation partner Nick Berg, who was recognized on The Chicago Daily Law Bulletin’s 40 under 40. The profile of Mr. Berg highlights his achievements on a range of matters, including handling some of Ropes & Gray’s most complex and contentious cases.
  • Follow us on Twitter @RopesGray for legal insights and the latest firm news.