Jahkeem Wheatley is an associate in Ropes & Gray’s corporate group whose practice focuses on M&A and private equity transactions. He represents private equity sponsors and portfolio companies in leveraged buyouts, add-on acquisitions, exit transactions and other complex corporate matters across a range of industries, including manufacturing and supply, food retail, entertainment, education, insurance, healthcare, and intellectual property and data. Jahkeem regularly serves as the day-to-day point of contact for clients and opposing counsel, helping drive transactions from term sheet through closing. He drafts and negotiates transaction and governance documents, manages due diligence, coordinates cross-functional teams, and supervises and mentors junior associates.
Before joining Ropes & Gray, Jahkeem was an associate at a global law firm, where he focused on corporate M&A and private equity matters. During law school, he served as a law clerk at a Fortune 500 automotive components company, where he worked on intellectual property matters, master services agreements, and compliance.
Experience
Acquisitions
- Advised a middle-market private equity firm in its acquisition of an industry-leading producer and supplier of high-quality water treatment solutions.*
- Advised a leading ESG and sustainability software company, a portfolio company of a global alternative asset manager, in its acquisition of a cloud-based ESG platform for supply chain transparency.*
- Represented a technology-focused private equity firm in its platform acquisition of an IT and cybersecurity training company serving federal agencies and the Department of Defense, including debt financing from a global asset management firm and a specialty credit fund.*
- Represented a financial products compliance company, a portfolio company of a lower-middle-market private equity firm, in a complex corporate carveout acquisition of a division of a large automotive services company connecting lenders with providers to process product cancellation refunds.*
- Represented a Pittsburgh-based private equity fund in its platform acquisition of two mechanical seal manufacturers that serve the oil and gas industry.*
- Represented a lower-middle-market private equity firm in its platform acquisition of an automotive digital marketing services firm, including debt financing from a specialty credit firm and complex rollover equity and employment arrangements.*
- Represented a leading consulting and engineering services company, a portfolio company of a middle-market private equity firm, in its acquisition of a CPM scheduling and construction claims firm in New Jersey.*
- Represented a national distribution platform in its eighth add-on acquisition.*
- Represented a consumer finance company operating as a title lending business, along with its management team, in connection with its acquisition by a private equity firm through convertible debt, including an equity package, management services agreements, and ABL facility assumption.*
Sales & Exits
- Represented a Chicago-based private equity fund in the $300 million sale of a national before- and after-school care provider to a Canadian private equity firm through a competitive auction.*
- Represented a specialty food distributor in its $196.4 million sale to a lower-middle-market private equity firm, plus the related $41 million sale-leaseback of its real property.*
- Represented an ophthalmology holding company in the sale of a retina specialty practice in Southwest Florida to a national retina specialty platform backed by a healthcare-focused private equity firm.*
*Experience prior to joining Ropes & Gray