Christopher J. Rasmussen
Partenaire
Chris Rasmussen is a partner and business lawyer with Foley & Lardner LLP. He represents clients in transactional matters throughout all stages of the corporate life cycle, with a focus on mergers and acquisitions (M&A), joint ventures, securities, finance, corporate governance (including tax-exempt not-for-profit organizations), and general commercial transactions. Chris represents clients across a range of industries, including financial services; insurance; sports, media and entertainment; food and beverage; technology; construction; health care; and manufacturing. He is a member of the firm’s Manufacturing Sector, and Sports, International, and Food & Beverage Industry Teams.
Expérience des représentants
M&A, Securities, and Finance Matters
- Served as principal legal advisor to Sun World International, LLC in its strategic joint venture with Pairwise.
- Represented Chicago Bar Company, LLC d/b/a RXBAR in the sale of the company to Kellogg Company (NYSE: K).
- Represented Club Automation, LLC in the sale of the company to Daxko Holding LLC.
- Represented a Fortune 500 financial services company in its acquisition of a dividend income-focused asset management firm.
- Represented a Fortune 500 manufacturer of building materials in multiple acquisitions of operating companies.
- Represented a Fortune 500 financial services company in its acquisition of a software company.
- Represented a multinational dairy and food ingredient cooperative in multiple acquisitions of dairy and food ingredient companies and assets.
- Represented Guggenheim Baseball Management, the group headed by Mark Walter, Earvin “Magic” Johnson and Stan Kasten, in the acquisition of the Los Angeles Dodgers, the largest transaction at the time for a professional sports franchise.
- Represented the Ricketts family in its acquisition of a controlling interest in the Chicago Cubs and Wrigley Field and a related ownership interest in a regional sports network, all through a complex leveraged partnership structure, the single largest transaction ever for a North American sports franchise.
- Represented Rangers Baseball Express (the investment group led by Chuck Greenberg and Nolan Ryan) in its acquisition of the Texas Rangers, a complex transaction that culminated in the purchase of the club through a Chapter 11 bankruptcy auction.
- Represented a fertilizer company in the sale of its business to Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ: CENT).
- Represented a publicly traded financial services company in its acquisition of both a registered securities broker-dealer and a registered investment advisor.
- Represented a grocery company in the sale of certain supermarket facilities and related assets.
- Represented a number of hospital groups, physician ownership groups and private equity funds in the purchase and sale of (and investment in) hospital systems, physician-owned hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers.
- Represented both mature and early-stage issuers in connection with various equity and debt financing transactions and securities offerings, including non-public offerings under Rule 144A.
- Represented both borrowers and lenders in secured and unsecured credit transactions in a variety of industries.
Additional Sports, Media, and Entertainment Industries Matters
- Represented Guggenheim Baseball Management (the ownership group for the Los Angeles Dodgers) in the formation of American Media Productions, LLC (AMP), the related launch of the SportsNet LA regional sports network, and the related media rights agreement between the Dodgers and AMP, granting AMP the rights to air Dodgers games.
- Represented Rangers Baseball Express (the investment group led by Chuck Greenberg and Nolan Ryan) in its acquisition of the Texas Rangers, a complex transaction that culminated in the purchase of the club through a Chapter 11 bankruptcy auction.
- Represented an institutional lender in loan arrangements with professional athletes.
- Represented Chicago 2016 in its efforts to secure real estate use agreements for Chicago’s bid to host the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
- Represented MLB and NFL clubs in a variety of day-to-day legal matters, including matters relating to financing, consulting arrangements, general corporate matters, league compliance, and the negotiation of strategic joint ventures and various commercial agreements.
- Serving as outside general counsel to the Windy City Rollers (a member league of the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association), including advising the league on internal restructuring, general strategic counseling, and a variety of commercial transactions.
- Counseling numerous artists and producers in the fields of music, theater, animation, radio broadcasting, podcasting and streaming services and fashion design on a variety of legal matters, including corporate formation and governance, licensing, distribution, and the negotiation of a variety of commercial transactions.
Prix et reconnaissance
- Chris was selected for inclusion in the 2015 Illinois Super Lawyers–Rising Stars® list.
Affiliations
- 2017 – 2018 chair of the Chicago Bar Association’s Business Law Committee
- Member of the ABA Task Force on Legal Project Management in Mergers & Acquisitions
- Member of the Sports Lawyers Association
- Member of the Business Law and Sports & Entertainment Law Sections of the ABA
- Member of the Illinois State Bar Association
- He is admitted to practice in Illinois
Engagement communautaire
Before attending law school, Chris worked for several years as a professional musician, arranger, and music teacher, and he spent two years as a stage performer with the Broadway, London, and United States touring productions of Blast!, a Tony- and Emmy-award-winning musical theater show. He remains active as a percussionist with the Northshore Concert Band in Evanston, Illinois, and he is a board member for both the Northshore Concert Band and Third Coast Percussion.
Foley représente Sun World International dans le cadre d'un partenariat stratégique avec Pairwise pour le développement d'une cerise sans noyau.
Foley & Lardner LLP est fier d'avoir été le conseiller juridique de Sun World International, LLC dans sa joint-venture stratégique avec Pairwise, un pionnier de l'édition de gènes agricoles, pour collaborer au développement de fruits spécialisés, en commençant par le développement d'une cerise sans noyau de haute qualité.
Foley conseille Pyrotek Special Effects dans le cadre de son acquisition par Gladstone Investment Corporation
Foley & Lardner LLP a été le conseiller juridique américain de Pyrotek Special Effects, Inc. pionnier du divertissement en direct pour les services et solutions d'effets spéciaux, basé en Ontario, dans le cadre de son acquisition par Gladstone Investment Corporation.
Foley représente Sun World International dans l'acquisition de Biogold
Foley & Lardner LLP a été le principal conseiller juridique de Sun World International, LLC dans le cadre de sa récente acquisition stratégique de Biogold Group, un important gestionnaire mondial de droits sur les variétés de fruits basé en Afrique du Sud.
Foley représente Sharethrough dans sa fusion avec Equativ
Foley & Lardner LLP est fier d'avoir été le conseiller juridique américain de Sharethrough, société basée à Montréal, dans le cadre de sa fusion avec l'entreprise mondiale de commerce électronique Sharethrough.
Foley conseille Snap One dans le cadre de l'acquisition de Clare Controls
Foley & Lardner LLP a représenté Snap One dans le cadre de son acquisition de Clare Controls, s'appuyant sur le succès de son accord de distribution existant avec Clare Controls.
Foley Represents Snap One in Acquisition of Parasol
Foley & Lardner LLP represented Snap One, a provider of smart living products, services, and software to professional integrators, in its acquisition of Parasol, a powerful 24/7 remote support service based on OvrC.