Holland & Knight - Search Funds

www.hklaw.com

SEARCH FUNDS

Holland & Knight is among the few law firms with a team of attorneys dedicated to providing legal counsel to search fund entrepreneurs and the companies that they acquire. The practice features attorneys with impressive track records in all aspects of search fund transactions – from formation and fundraising through acquisition, operation and disposition. As a full-service international law firm, we seamlessly augment our representation when necessary with attorneys in tax, employee benefits, executive compensation, real estate and other practices with deep experience across industry sectors. Our teams’ reputation and experience in the market helps entrepreneurs and search funds build relationships and trust with sources of capital when pursuing entrepreneurship through acquisition.

In addition to the U.S., our team has significant experience working with international search funds in emerging and established markets throughout the world. In particular, our presence in Central and Latin America enables us to offer clients investing in those markets crossborder support throughout the search fund’s life cycle.

The depth of our experience, knowledge of the players in this specialized investment space and understanding of the market help differentiate Holland & Knight. Our approach to these transactions is to stay involved with clients as they operate their newly acquired businesses and partner with them as they proceed through each stage of advancing the business, including recapitalizations, add-on transactions and dispositions.

HIGHLY RANKED

Holland & Knight regularly ranks among the most active law firms for venture capital, private equity, and mergers and acquisitions (M&A) transactions in reputable, benchmarking league tables published by Bloomberg, The Deal, LSEG, Mergermarket and PitchBook. The Legal 500 and Chambers also recognize Holland & Knight for its work in the space.

Ranked 2nd Global Private Equity

Ranked 3rd U.S. Private Equity

IN-DEPTH INDUSTRY EXPERIENCE

Ranked 3rd U.S.

Ranked 4th Buyouts

Holland & Knight takes a collaborative, industry-focused approach, drawing on resources across the firm to ensure clients have a deep understanding of the complex legal issues at hand. Firm attorneys stay abreast of industry trends and developments and translate that information into actionable, strategic advice for clients across sectors.

HK DEAL FLOWSM

Search fund clients also benefit from HK Deal FlowSM , our proprietary service that generates deal leads through the combined network of Holland & Knight’s lawyers and professionals, investment bankers and other deal intermediaries. We strategically match leads with our clients and friends of the firm seeking opportunities.

The HK Deal FlowSM program also offers capital connection capabilities where we connect independent sponsors seeking co-investors and private equity funds seeking LP investors with our firm’s network of family offices and other institutional investors. The result: a robust matchmaking program connecting a range of acquisition and investment opportunities and sizes to more than 700 capital sources.

A PARTNER FOR THE ENTIRE BUSINESS CYCLE

As a result of our participation in dozens of search fund transactions over time, we offer advice that addresses risks and ensures that entrepreneurs are armed with the knowledge they need to be successful. In the event that search fund entrepreneurs do not have direct experience in the businesses they acquire, we are able to rely on our own extensive experience with search funds and the experience of colleagues in Holland & Knight's various dedicated industry groups. Our timely advice helps entrepreneurs every step of the way as they pursue their dreams of owning a business through the search fund model.