Overview
Melissa Villaveces is a special counsel and business lawyer with Foley & Lardner LLP. She focuses her practice on general corporate and business law, with an emphasis in securities law, corporate governance, mergers and acquisitions, and commercial contracting. Ms. Villaveces also has experience advising medical device companies on the governance and compliance matters unique to the medical device industry. Ms. Villaveces is a member of the firm’s Transactional & Securities, Corporate Governance, Mergers & Acquisitions, and Securities & Corporate Finance Practices.
Prior to joining Foley, Ms. Villaveces was in-house counsel for several global public and private companies, including Mako Surgical Corp., Stryker Corporation, and Lensar, Inc., where she provided legal, strategic, and risk management advice in a wide variety of legal matters, including corporate operations and governance, securities and financing matters, contract negotiation, and compliance matters.
Representative Experience
Ms. Villaveces’ diverse experience includes the following:*
- Advised executive teams and boards of directors on governance, risk management, and fiduciary duty matters, as well as disclosure and compliance matters related to the securities laws.
- Prepared all securities filings, including annual, quarterly, and periodic reports, proxy materials, Section 16 filings, registration statements and prospectuses for a global public company.
- Represented Mako Surgical Corp. in several public offerings and its acquisition by Stryker Corporation.
- Represented Lensar, Inc. in its acquisition by Alphaeon Corporation.
- Drafted and negotiated a variety of commercial contracts, including quotations, capital equipment sale and use agreements, domestic and international distribution agreements, supplier agreements, research agreements, development agreements, and license agreements.
- Developed, administered, and provided training on compliance programs addressing the AdvaMed Code, False Claims Act, Anti-Kickback Statute, and Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
*Certain representations undertaken prior to joining Foley & Lardner LLP
Education
Ms. Villaveces received her law degree, with honors, from the University of Florida Levin College of Law (J.D., 2001). She earned both a master’s degree and bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Florida Fisher School of Accounting (M.S., 2001, and B.S., 1997).
Admissions and Licenses
Ms. Villaveces is admitted to practice in Florida and is a Certified Public Accountant (inactive status).