Alternative/hedge funds

Laurel FitzPatrick

Partner

Udi Grofman

Click here for attorney bio. 

Stephanie Breslow

Stephanie R. Breslow is co-head of the Investment Management Group and a member of the firm’s Executive Committee. She maintains a diverse practice that includes liquid funds, private equity funds and the structuring of investment management businesses. She focuses her practice on the formation of private equity funds (including LBO, mezzanine, distressed, real estate and venture) and liquid-securities funds (including hedge funds, hybrid funds, credit funds and activist funds) as well as providing regulatory advice to investment managers. She also represents fund sponsors and institutional investors in connection with seed-capital investments in fund managers and acquisitions of interests in investment management businesses and funds of funds and other institutional investors in connection with their investment activities, including blockchain technology and virtual currency offerings and transactions. Recently serving as chair of the Private Investment Funds Subcommittee of the International Bar Association, Stephanie is a founding member and former chair of the Private Investment Fund Forum, a member of the Advisory Board of former Third Way Capital Markets Initiative, a former member of the Board of Directors and current member of 100 Women in Finance, a member of the Board of Visitors of Columbia Law School and a member of the Board of Directors of the Girl Scouts of Greater New York. Stephanie has received the highest industry honors. She was named to the inaugural Legal 500 US Hall of Fame in the category of “Investment Fund Formation and Management: Alternative/Hedge Funds.” Stephanie is also listed in Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers, Chambers Global: The World’s Leading Lawyers, Crain’s Notable Women in Law, IFLR1000, Best Lawyers in America, Who’s Who Legal: The International Who’s Who of Business Lawyers (which ranked her one of the world’s “Top Ten Private Equity Lawyers”), Who’s Who Legal: The International Who’s Who of Private Funds Lawyers (which ranked her at the top of the world’s “Most Highly Regarded Individuals” list), Who’s Who Legal: Thought Leaders: Global Elite, Who’s Who Legal: Thought Leaders: Private Funds, Expert Guide to the Best of the Best USA, Expert Guide to the World’s Leading Banking, Finance and Transactional Law Lawyers, Expert Guide to the World’s Leading Women in Business Law and PLC Cross-border Private Equity Handbook, among other leading directories. Stephanie was named the “Private Funds Lawyer of the Year” at the Who’s Who Legal Awards 2014 and the Euromoney Legal Media Group’s “Best in Investment Funds” and “Outstanding Practitioner,” both at the Americas Women in Business Law Awards. She is also recognized as one of The Hedge Fund Journal’s 50 Leading Women in Hedge Funds and was named one of the 2012 Women of Distinction by the Girl Scouts of Greater New York. Stephanie’s representation of leading private investment funds has won numerous awards, including most recently Law360’s Asset Management Practice Group of the Year. She is a much sought-after speaker on fund formation and operation and compliance issues, and she regularly publishes articles on the latest trends in these areas. Stephanie co-authored Private Equity Funds: Formation and Operation (Practising Law Institute), co-authored Hedge Funds: Formation, Operation and Regulation (ALM Law Journal Press), contributed a chapter on “Hedge Fund Investment in Private Equity” for inclusion in PLC Cross-border Private Equity Handbook 2005/06 (Practical Law Company), contributed a chapter on “Advisers to Private Equity Funds — Practical Compliance Considerations” for Mutual Funds and Exchange Traded Funds Regulation, Volume 2 (Practising Law Institute), and wrote New York and Delaware Business Entities: Choice, Formation, Operation, Financing and Acquisitions (West) and New York Limited Liability Companies: A Guide to Law and Practice (West).

Jennifer Dunn

Jennifer “Jenny” Dunn is a partner in Proskauer’s Corporate Department and a member of its Private Funds Group and Hedge Funds practice. Jennifer focuses her practice on advising hedge funds, closed-end funds (including debt funds), hybrid funds, co-investment platforms and investment advisers in connection with their structuring, formation and ongoing operational needs, general securities laws matters, and regulatory and compliance issues. Her practice includes structuring and negotiating seed and strategic investments, advising investment managers regarding the structure and sale of their platforms and the structure of their compensation arrangements. She also represents investment managers in connection with managed accounts and single investor funds.

David Solander

Partner

Sarah Davidoff

Partner

Kelli Moll

Kelli Moll is a partner of Proskauer's Private Funds Group and Co-Head of the Hedge Funds practice. With over 25 years of experience amassed advising large institutional asset managers to independent sponsors across the spectrum of asset classes, Kelli is considered a leading lawyer in the funds industry. Kelli’s practice particularly focuses on counseling investment advisors on the formation and ongoing operations of hedge funds, credit funds and growth equity funds. Kelli regularly advises fund sponsors on fund formation, co-investment arrangements, upper tier arrangements, seed capital arrangements, asset manager M&A, complex fund restructurings, funds-of-one, managed accounts and various regulatory issues. Kelli is also a staple at industry events, where she is regularly engaged for her thought leadership on business and regulatory trends in the marketplace. Kelli is passionate for the arts and serves as a member of the American Ballet Theatre charitable board.

Deborah Tuchman

Please see https://www.willkie.com/professionals/t/tuchman-deborah-a

Allison Yacker

Allison Yacker is the co-chair of the Investment Management and Funds practice and represents a wide variety of sponsors (both hedge and private equity) and investors in transactional, fund formation, regulatory and corporate matters. Her significant experience representing institutional and emerging asset managers as well as all manner of buy side investors gives her unique insight into market trends as they develop. This enables Allison to provide customized and solution-oriented counsel to her sell-side and buy-side clients in an efficient and timely manner.Recognized by Best Lawyers in America, Chambers USA and The Legal 500, clients view Allison as a trusted source for comprehensive and commercial guidance with respect to the broadest panoply of issues relevant to asset management market participants. She represents hedge funds, private equity funds, commodity pools and managed account platforms that engage in a wide variety of strategies, including quantitative trading, private credit, distressed debt, futures and FX, litigation finance, securitized products, affordable housing, renewable energy and carbon credits, to name a few. Allison also regularly advises her clients with regards to seed and early stage investment opportunities, and provides counsel with respect to insurance dedicated funds and PPLI and GACs and the use of similar structures.Allison spends a significant portion of her time representing institutional investors looking to deploy capital to hedge funds, private equity funds and other ventures. These clients include sovereign wealth funds, foundations, insurance companies, pension plans, family offices and endowments and high-net-worth investors. She also advises these clients on global regulatory issues that arise in connection with investments in funds and managed accounts.Allison regularly counsels investment management clients with respect to ongoing regulatory matters (including reporting, disclosure and registration issues), corporate, employment and intellectual property matters. She provides counsel on regulatory compliance and advises clients on security token offerings and other cryptocurrency- and ICO-related matters.Allison is a member of the firm's board of directors and is on the Steering Committee of Katten's Women's Leadership Forum, which supports the strategic retention and advancement of women attorneys at the firm through mentoring and professional development programs. She also has a long-standing relationship with 100 Women in Finance as an Angel Member. Allison was recently recognized as a Working Mother of the Year in Working Mother Magazine.

David Efron

David J. Efron is co-managing partner of the firm. He serves as co-head of the Investment Management Group and as a member of the Executive Committee. With more than 25 years of experience, David has a broad practice advising private fund managers that employ a wide range of investment strategies. He represents many of the world’s largest private fund managers on formation, structuring, organization, compensation, operations, seed capital and joint venture arrangements and restructurings, among other types of matters related to their funds and management companies. Notably, David has advised on many of the largest start-up hedge fund launches in the industry over the past few years. Additionally, David also represents private fund managers in connection with SEC regulatory issues and compliance-related matters. Schulte’s Investment Management Group, which David co-heads, has been described as the “preeminent name in this area” and at “the forefront of this industry” by Chambers, a prominent industry publication that ranks firms and lawyers. David is listed in Chambers Global, Chambers USA, Expert Guide to the World’s Leading Banking, Finance and Transactional Law Lawyers, The Legal 500 US and Who’s Who Legal: The International Who’s Who of Private Funds Lawyers. In particular, The Legal 500 US has praised his “superb judgment and deep expertise” and recognized him as “an extraordinarily capable attorney. He has a mastery of the pertinent matters, but he also brings a pragmatic approach.” Chambers Global and Chambers USA noted that David is “an outstanding lawyer, with excellent judgment and the necessary soft touch during the delicate negotiations that occur during a start-up/launch” and that “he is attuned to the business considerations and provides measured, reasoned advice that reflects his deep experience and industry knowledge.” A published author on subjects relating to investment management, he is a sought-after speaker for hedge fund industry conferences and seminars and a frequent guest lecturer at New York-area law schools and business schools. David received his B.A. from Vassar College, his J.D. from Syracuse University College of Law and an LL.M. degree in securities regulation, with distinction, from Georgetown University Law Center.