Christopher J. Rasmussen
Partner
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.
Representative Experience
M&A, Securities, and Finance Matters
- 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.
Awards and Recognition
- 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
Community Involvement
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 Advises Snap One in Acquisition of Clare Controls
Foley & Lardner LLP represented Snap One in its acquisition of Clare Controls, building upon the success of its existing distribution agreement with 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.
FoodBev Exchange
The 10th Annual FoodBev Exchange will be offering the best of two subject matter areas - Regulatory Compliance and Litigation Trends.
Foley Deal Wins 2022 M&A Atlas Award
Foley & Lardner LLP is pleased to announce that a transaction handled by the firm received an award at the 2022 USA M&A Atlas Awards, sponsored by the Global M&A Network.
Foley Advises Zehnder Group in Acquisition of Airia Brands
Foley & Lardner LLP acted as U.S. counsel to Zehnder Group AG, a Switzerland-based worldwide provider of advanced heating, cooling, and ventilation technology, in its acquisition of the Canadian ventilation company Airia Brands, Inc., which has been active in the development, manufacturing and distribution of heat recovery ventilation systems for more than 35 years.
Podcast Episode 80: Chris Rasmussen, Partner
This episode of The Path & The Practice features a conversation with Christopher Rasmussen. Chris is a partner in Foley’s Chicago office with a practice focused on transactional matters.