Choate, Hall & Stewart

Dr. Melissa Adams uses her multi-disciplinary understanding of the life sciences, patent law, and strategic intellectual property issues to help a wide range of early-stage to established biotechnology clients to grow and protect the value of their strategic IP portfolios. Focused on patent prosecution and portfolio development, intellectual property due diligence, and intellectual property-related strategic transactions, Melissa has particular expertise in biotechnology and pharmaceuticals including biologics, cell therapy, gene therapy, gene editing, immunology, and microbiology. Melissa’s Ph.D. research at Harvard University focused on utilizing next-generation sequencing and molecular biology to study energy-generating metabolisms in deep sea microorganisms. She has extensive scientific expertise in molecular biology, microbiology, genomics, and bioinformatics. Melissa also has experience as a Scientific Editor. She reviewed and revised research publications from non-native English speakers in a broad range of subject areas including cell biology, chemistry, genetics, neuroscience, physiology, and systems biology.

David Attisani, a partner in Choate’s top-ranked Insurance & Reinsurance Group (#1 reinsurance and litigation firm according to Reactions and highly rated by Legal 500), assists insurers and reinsurers in problem-solving, shaping, and winning high profile disputes. Using the thoroughly personal and intense service style his clients value, David also provides evaluations of coverage, wordings advice, and market intelligence. He has served as lead counsel with respect to the following industry-significant claims: COVID-19 BI and WC; NFL CTE; the California wildfires; 9/11 (WTC); “Obamacare”; life rate increase disputes; spousal continuation problems; Superstorm Sandy; Hurricanes Wilma, Katrina, Harvey; the Puerto Rico Hurricanes (Maria/Irma); the Las Vegas shooting; the “Big Dig” Tunnel Collapse; NY “reviver” molestation claims; Archdiocese of L.A., Society of Jesus, and other clergy abuse claims; Boy Scouts of America and school-related sex abuse problems; J&J talc exposures; the Nikita Levy/ Johns Hopkins “rogue” doctor case; and Sphere Drake. David’s clients include global insurers and reinsurers Swiss Re, Munich Re, Endurance/Sompo, Chubb, Liberty Mutual, The Hartford, Berkley, Partner Re, The Andover Companies, Aeolus, Symetra, and MIIA.

Adam Bookbinder

Adam Bookbinder, co-chair of Choate’s Government Enforcement & Compliance Group, is an experienced trial attorney and former Assistant U.S. Attorney who helps clients effectively address and mitigate a wide range of high-level enterprise risks. Having tried more than 25 jury trials to verdict, he is equally comfortable litigating in federal and state court, guiding clients through government investigations, and advising on cybersecurity, data privacy, and cyber incident response. In white collar defense and internal and government investigations, Adam represents institutional clients, charged defendants, potential criminal targets, and witnesses in federal and state investigations and prosecutions around the country. He represents corporations and individuals in wire fraud, securities fraud, money laundering, healthcare, computer network intrusion, environmental crime, and criminal tax prosecutions and investigations. He has also briefed and argued dozens of appeals in state and federal courts of appeal. Adam advises clients on a wide range of cybersecurity and data privacy issues. He counsels clients on responding to cybersecurity incidents, conducting internal investigations and cybersecurity reviews, preparing incident response plans, complying with U.S. data privacy laws and the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), interfacing with law enforcement agencies, and increasing preparedness to address national security cyber issues. He also defends clients in class action data privacy and data misuse litigation. Adam served 18 years as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts. He was chief of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Cybercrime Unit, where he supervised a unit responsible for the investigation and prosecution of computer and intellectual property crime, including computer intrusions, data breaches, network attacks, theft of trade secrets, copyright and trademark infringement, and online fraud. In this role, Adam worked with the FBI, Secret Service and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to identify and respond to priority cybercrime threats. He was also chosen as the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s National Security Cyber Specialist, investigating cybercrime committed by nation-states and hackers affiliated with foreign terrorist organizations, and serving as the U.S. Attorney’s Office liaison to the U.S. Department of Justice’s National Security Division for cyber matters. Adam also served in the office’s Economic Crimes Unit, and he led financial fraud, securities fraud and healthcare fraud investigations, prosecutions, and trials throughout his tenure in the office. Before joining the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Adam was an Assistant District Attorney in the Essex County District Attorney’s Office in Massachusetts and a law clerk for the Honorable Stephen Trott, U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit. Adam’s clients include Partners Healthcare, Massachusetts General Hospital, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Charles River Laboratories, and Leap Therapeutics.

Kristen Buteau, Chair of Choate’s Intellectual Property Department, counsels clients on protection strategies for small molecule therapeutics and other chemistry-related technologies and therapeutics. Her clients – comprised largely of pharmaceutical and biotech companies – benefit from her years of experience as a medicinal and process chemist in the Boston-area pharmaceutical industry. Working alongside scientists and/or in-house legal teams, she assists pharmaceutical and biotech companies in the strategic development of patent portfolios and product lifecycle management for clinical stage small molecules and related technologies. Kristen advises clients in all areas of drug discovery, from proof-of-concept through drug design, development, and product launch. She manages global patent portfolios for sophisticated pharmaceutical companies, while also facilitating investment acquisitions, financing, and licensing through IP due diligence and freedom-to-operate analyses. Her clients also look to her for advice on the Orange Book listability of patents, regulatory exclusivity estimates and timelines, and patent term extension applications.

Sarah Camougis, Co-Chair of Choate’s Private Equity and M&A Group, advises private and public companies, private equity and venture capital funds, angel investors and management teams to help them effectively manage a wide range of businesses in the United States, South and Central America, Canada, Europe, and Asia. Her transactional experience includes private equity transactions, mergers and acquisitions, bankruptcy sales, senior and subordinated debt financings, recapitalizations, leveraged buyouts, workouts, restructurings, start-ups, employment and equity incentive arrangements, and other general corporate matters. Sarah also served as a Law Clerk to United States Bankruptcy Judge Joan N. Feeney and later to United States Bankruptcy Judge Henry J. Boroff. Her clients include private equity funds and companies in the telecommunications, media and technology sector covering transactions in towers, fiber, wireless, spectrum, cable, data centers, cloud, managed services, and IT services.

Cameron Casey is Co-Chair of Choate’s Wealth Management Group, providing comprehensive estate planning advice to high-net-worth individuals and families. She works with her clients to develop plans that achieve clients’ goals for themselves, their families and the charitable organizations that are important to them. Strategic tax planning is integral to this process. Cameron serves as a trustee and family advisor for clients, helping them steward family capital, foster intergenerational transitions, and communicate philanthropic values. Cameron also advises tax-exempt organizations and corporate fiduciaries on charitable planning matters.

John Chambers draws on his deep technical knowledge of tax issues to counsel private equity funds, corporations, and technology companies in domestic and cross-border mergers and acquisitions, financing transactions, and restructurings. John helps clients navigate the tax aspects of their transactions in order to achieve their business objectives, including post-acquisition integration, operational structuring, and structuring of private equity, venture capital and other investment vehicles, including review and negotiation of fund operating agreements. John’s ability to understand the key issues of a transaction and distill complex tax matters into understandable and actionable solutions has made him a trusted advisor and resource for clients such as B/V Investment Partners, Mainsail Partners, M/C Partners, Silversmith Capital Partners, Summit Partners, and Serent Capital.

Gregg Cosimi has a deep and successful track record representing clients in all areas related to their transactional real estate needs. He provides counsel in structuring and evaluating investments across most real estate classes including industrial, research/lab, office, retail, and multifamily. Gregg also has extensive experience in negotiating loan facilities (borrower and lender side), acquisitions, development, joint venture, and lease documents. Additionally, he helps clients navigate distressed situations, advising lenders in workouts of troubled assets. Gregg is a LEED Accredited Professional (LEED-AP), a distinction earned through the Green Building Certification Institute, which demonstrates his thorough knowledge of green building principles and practices. To learn more about our Real Estate practice, please click here.

Sabrina Cua advises private equity sponsors and their portfolio companies, as well as public companies and privately-owned businesses, in a range of complex transactions including leveraged buyouts, mergers, minority investments, carve-outs and joint ventures. She also assists clients with general corporate governance matters and commercial contracts. Clients appreciate her dedication to understanding each client’s business and objectives. Sabrina has experience working with companies in a range of industries, including technology and software, media, consumer products, and manufacturing.

Andrew Erdmann’s technical skills, practical approach to solving complex problems, and collaborative attitude has made him a valuable resource for clients. He represents companies in private equity and M&A transactions, including purchases and sales of private businesses, public company mergers and tender offers, formations and dispositions of joint ventures, and other strategic investments. He also provides general legal counsel to clients on corporate governance, securities, corporate finance and legal compliance issues. Andrew has experience working in a variety of industries, including software, technology, professional services, consumer products, life sciences, asset management, media, and energy and has led and worked on deals ranging from several million to several billion dollars in value.

Department Chair of Choate’s Private Equity and Business & Technology Groups, Lee Feldman helps private equity funds and their portfolio companies to successfully complete buyouts, recapitalizations, growth equity investments and exit transactions, in a variety of industries, including software and technology, healthcare, business services, and financial services. He also represents private companies in mergers and acquisitions and other transactions across a variety of industries. Lee has represented numerous private equity sponsors, including Cove Hill Partners, Mainsail Partners, Riverside Partners, Serent Capital, and Sverica Capital. Previously, Lee served as Senior Vice President and General Counsel of American Dental Partners, Inc. (Nasdaq: ADPI), a portfolio company of Summit Partners. In addition to his practice, Lee is a former member of Choate’s Executive and Compensation Committees.

Jennifer Fenn, Co-Chair of Choate’s Finance & Restructuring Group, is a recognized leader both in and out of the office, and is routinely an integral part of some of Choate’s most high-profile transactions. Jen represents lenders in a broad range of complex financing transactions for both banks and institutional investors, focusing on asset-based transactions with an emphasis on the retail market. Jen’s ability to execute the full lifecycle of a variety of deal structures – including originations, distressed work, DIP financings, and emergence financings – has impressed clients and peers alike. Beyond her client work, Jen has a proven commitment to developing and mentoring the next generation of talent. As one of the Firm’s two Hiring Partners, Jen has played an active role in Choate’s hiring process for years.

Kevin Finnerty represents global insurers and reinsurers in significant coverage disputes, and helps financial services companies, biotech companies, and other industry-leading companies to resolve complex commercial litigation successfully and efficiently. He has handled cases in a variety of state and federal courts, and in arbitration. In 2017, Kevin served as a Special Assistant District Attorney with the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office. Kevin’s clients have included Starr Insurance Companies, John Hancock Financial, and Alnylam Pharmaceuticals.

Mike Gass, Co-Chair of Choate’s Business and Financial Litigation Group, helps companies and their management and boards to successfully resolve high-stakes disputes involving securities laws, shareholder claims, and corporate governance. With over 35 years of experience, Mike has a strong record of obtaining early dismissals of cases. Clients appreciate Mike’s substantial trial experience, his reputation as a “go to” resource for governance advice, his hands-on approach to serving clients, and the positive results he has achieved for them. Mike has represented a wide range of clients in both private litigation – primarily shareholder class actions and derivative actions – and in investigations and enforcement actions brought by government and industry enforcement agencies, including FCA enforcement. He is also highly sought by boards and their committees to help in exercising their oversight responsibilities, particularly with respect to the delicate and challenging task of investigating and remediating alleged misconduct within the organization. Mike also has substantial antitrust experience in both the commercial and higher education sectors. He is frequently been called upon by institutions of higher education to represent them in a range of admissions and financial aid matters, many of which relate to antitrust issues and related concerns. Mike is outside counsel to a consortium of more than 30 highly selective schools and colleges, providing guidance on the execution of its core missions of collecting relevant data and conducting research utilized by individual members to develop strategies to ensure educational access. He has represented COFHE and a number of individual institutions in connection with government investigations and civil litigation addressing these issues. Mike’s clients have included public and private companies including Microsoft, Akamai, Genzyme, Bruker, PTC, American Tower, and Sunbeam Television Corporation, as well as leading academic institutions including MIT, Amherst, Bates, Dartmouth, Tufts, and the Committee on Financing Higher Education (“COHFE”).

Brian Goldstein

Brian Goldstein, co-chair of Choate’s Business & Technology Practice Group, has more than 30 years of experience advising venture capital and growth equity investors and innovative, high-growth companies in health IT, healthcare services, life sciences, and medical device industries, on their most important transactions and helping them to increase the returns on their investments. Brian regularly advises on financings, strategic partnerships and licensing agreements, mergers and acquisitions, and general business counseling. His international practice includes cross-border financings and acquisitions, as well as advice on other U.S.-based activities, for companies headquartered or with significant operations in the United Kingdom/Ireland, Europe, and Israel. Brian previously served as Assistant General Counsel at Groundwater Technology, Inc., where he handled SEC reporting; acquisitions, divestitures, and joint ventures; and the sale of a controlling interest of the company to Fluor Daniel. Brian has advised sophisticated investment funds and globally-recognized investors and companies, including Answers Corp (WebCollage), Bain Capital Life Sciences, Perceptive Advisors (via Perceptive Xontogeny), Shire, and Transformation Capital.

Douglas Gooding

Douglas Gooding has more than 25 years of experience advising on financing and restructuring transactions, particularly on debtor-in-possession lending and the representation of holders of senior, second lien, and mezzanine debt in complex restructurings. He also specializes in advising troubled companies in various industries including healthcare and retail. Doug also has extensive experience in mass tort bankruptcy cases representing insurance providers. Doug has appeared in courts throughout the United States and in Canada and has been appointed as mediator in several bankruptcy disputes. Doug is a member of the Firm’s management committee, was a co-chair of Choate’s Business Department for seven years and the Practice Group Leader of the Finance and Restructuring Group for ten years.

Chris Henry represents private equity sponsors and their portfolio companies, as well as privately-owned businesses and public companies, in mergers and acquisitions, buyouts, growth investments, and joint ventures, as well as in equity and debt financings. Clients rely on his experience in a wide range of industries including technology and software, consumer products, professional services, financial services, and publishing and media. Chris regularly represents NexPhase Capital, Solamere Capital, Sightway Capital, Two Sigma Investments, and Treville Capital, as well as many of their portfolio companies.

J.P. Jaillet, Co-Chair of Choate’s Litigation Department, focuses on financial litigation. J.P. represents insurers, reinsurers, lenders, and secured creditors in court and arbitration. In addition to his practice, J.P. serves as Choate’s Hiring Partner, where he helps lead firm-wide attorney recruitment.

Brenda Herschbach Jarrell

Dr. Brenda Herschbach Jarrell, chair of Choate’s Life Sciences Group, is described by clients as an IP lawyer with keen business savvy. Her extensive technical credentials make her well-versed in a wide variety of technologies in the biotech, pharmaceutical, and specialty chemical industries. She represents companies and institutions at all stages of the life sciences business lifecycle, as well as those who invest in them, guiding IP protection and competitive positioning strategies, negotiating strategic transactions, and providing creative solutions to IP and technology-related challenges. Throughout her career, Brenda has advised multiple clients from Series A through their eventual IPOs. As one of the foremost respected IP strategists in the country, Brenda is routinely awarded the recognition of “Attorney of the Year” by several respected rankings providers across a variety of categories. Some of her clients include Adimab, Aleta Biotherapeutics, Angion Biomedica Corp., Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Atlas Venture, Base Genomic, Biogen, BioNTech, Casma Therapeutics, Celsius Therapeutics, Eirion Therapeutics, FogPharma, FORMA Therapeutics, Gilead, Ginkgo BioWorks, Kernal Biologics, LogicBio Therapeutics, Mereo BioPharma, Olema Pharmaceuticals, Progenics Pharmaceuticals, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, ReNetX Bio, Scipher Medicine Corporation, STIMIT Corporation, Syros Pharmaceuticals, Third Rock Ventures, WAVE Life Sciences, and Venrock. Brenda is a member of Choate’s Executive Committee.

Brian King has more than 20 years of experience providing strong legal counsel, along with practical business advice, to clients in all facets of commercial real estate matters. Brian routinely works with developers, lenders, retailers, investors, and other companies around the country that are involved with commercial real estate on acquisitions, financings, leasing, and development of every asset class of real estate, including office, retail, hotel, and multi-family properties. His clients have included The Hanover Insurance Group, Fidelity Investments, JPMorgan Chase Bank, Gordon Brothers Group, Wells Fargo, Ipsen Pharmaceutical, Massachusetts Department of Transportation, and Perkins School for the Blind. To learn more about our Real Estate practice, please click here.

Rob Kole helps domestic and foreign insurers and reinsurers to achieve successful outcomes in some of the most significant, cutting edge issues affecting them, including opioids, mass shootings, terrorism, asbestos, environmental, food contamination, oil and gas, catastrophic property damage, and catastrophe bonds. Clients value the experience he brings in providing insurance and reinsurance advice, coverage opinions, litigation representation, arbitration guidance, and appellate work. Rob has argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First, Second, Fifth, Ninth, and Eleventh Circuits as well as the Connecticut Supreme Court and the California Court of Appeals in connection with insurance and reinsurance disputes. He has successfully litigated in the trial court, and affirmed on appeal, two of the earliest opioid coverage decisions in the U.S.: Travelers v. Anda (11th Circuit) and Travelers v. Actavis (California Court of Appeals); successfully litigated an issue of first impression in the Connecticut Supreme Court regarding insurance coverage for crumbling home foundations (Karas v. Liberty Mutual; Vera v. Liberty Mutual); successfully litigated in the trial court, and affirmed on appeal, the first dispute in the U.S. concerning coverage under catastrophe bonds (Mariah Re); and successfully arbitrated dozens of reinsurance disputes on behalf of ceding companies and reinsurers A number of Rob’s clients cannot be disclosed publicly due to the confidential nature of the proceedings. However, past or current clients in public matters include Liberty Mutual, Travelers, St. Paul, Swiss Re, Hartford, and American Family Insurance. Rob is a member of Choate’s Executive Committee.

Paul Laudano is the Chair of Choate’s Real Estate Practice Group. He provides thoughtful and comprehensive solutions to his clients’ most complex problems. From global institutional clients to regional developers and operators, Paul advises clients on a range of transactions, including joint ventures, acquisitions, loan workouts, leases, and sale-leasebacks. He also advises on real estate disputes and restructurings. Hi practice over the past 25+ years has spanned all asset classes. Paul’s clients include prominent public and private real estate companies, investment banks, private equity sponsors, investors, non-bank lenders, technology and life sciences companies, Fortune 500 companies, retailers, and hotel and hospitality companies. Paul has served at various times on Choate’s Executive Committee, Opinion Committee, and Compensation Committee. To learn more about our Real Estate practice, please click here

Olivier Léger advises PE fund sponsors on U.S. tax matters at all stages of their operations, with a dual focus on fund formation and portfolio company acquisitions and divestitures. On the fund formation front, Olivier’s contribution to VC funds, buyout funds, funds-of-funds, and other PE fund clients begins with providing structuring advice to minimize the tax burden to the various fund constituents. In implementing the desired structure, and negotiating and drafting fund documents, Olivier provides clear and commercial solutions that allow maximum flexibility to execute on deal opportunities and facilitate the day-to-day operation and administration of the fund vehicles. Olivier also advises fund sponsors with respect to GP matters, secondary transfers, bridge financings, as well as isolated transactions such as GP sponsored secondaries (fund recaps) and the sale of management company interests. Separately, Olivier regularly represents funds-of-funds in connection with their primary and secondary investments in other funds. On the transactional front, Olivier advises PE fund sponsors on structuring leveraged buyouts and other M&A transactions in a tax-efficient manner, and planning for post-closing operation of the businesses so as to maximize available tax savings. Olivier also regularly advises closely held corporations and their individual shareholders with respect to various U.S. tax matters, including QSBS. In addition, Olivier advises public and privately owned companies with respect to taxable and tax-free mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, credit facility arrangements, and post-transactional integration, as well as inbound and outbound transactions. Olivier was recognized by The Legal 500 as “a name to note in the funds space.” Olivier’s clients include TrueBridge Capital, XPV Water Partners, Century Partners, Amplify Partners, SKK Group, Battery Global Advisors, Long Ridge Equity Partners, I-Qu, Horsley Bridge Partners, Riverside Partners, Great Hill Partners, QuestMarkPartners, Right Networks, Sverica Capital Management, Tribeca Holdings, Candescent Partners, and Marcy Venture Partners, LLC.

Brian Lenihan has more than 25 years of experience advising private equity funds in a broad range of financing transactions, including leveraged buyouts, majority and minority recapitalizations, and growth equity investments. Brian also represents private technology companies in a wide range of corporate transactions including mergers and acquisitions, venture capital financings, and cross-border transactions. Brian regularly acts as special counsel to Canadian and UK companies and investors in cross-border transactions with US funds or issuers. He has particular domain expertise in financial technology and IT solutions within the healthcare and financial services industries. Brian is a former member of Choate’s eight person Executive Committee.

Dr. Xiaodong Li works closely with pharmaceutical and biotech clients to devise IP strategies for technology and products at different development and commercial stages. He brings both strong intellectual property skills and impressive scientific credentials to serve clients domestically and internationally. In addition to IP strategy and prosecution, Xiaodong also assists technology and investor clients in due diligence, including monitoring and analysis of complex patent portfolios, and freedom-to-operate and invalidity analysis. He also represents clients in many IP transactions, including negotiation of agreements such as license, collaboration, research, manufacturing, supply, etc. Xiaodong has worked with biotech companies from their foundation to IPO, providing a broad scope of IP counseling including on global patent protection, enforcement, and defense strategies, life cycle management, and various types of transactions. He has represented clients as IP counsel in financing at different stages, including IPO. Xiaodong has extensive research experiences in both biology and chemistry. He obtained his PhD in organic chemistry from Harvard University, where he developed new technologies for preparing small molecule libraries for drug development. He conducted his postdoctoral research at Harvard Medical School/ Boston Children’s Hospital, focusing on epigenetics and its functions in human diseases.

Dr. Charles Lyon, co-chair of Choate’s Intellectual Property Practice Group, provides strategic insight to investors and life sciences companies, both VC-backed and publicly-traded, to help them maximize the value of their investments in intellectual property by condensing complex data into actionable insights. Through hundreds of due diligence and intellectual property analysis projects, Charles has helped clients to understand, evaluate, and respond to IP issues that arise in the context of business transactions or during the research and development of new products and technologies. His insights have helped clients to identify “hot” areas in the life sciences landscape which have driven their strategic investment decisions – notably in the areas of immuno-oncology, gene therapy, gene editing, and cell therapy. He also routinely provides advice and opinions regarding freedom-to-operate and intellectual property landscape issues to assist with R&D decisions and in the context of pre-litigation disputes including Hatch-Waxman and Biosimilar litigation. Charles has served investor clients including Bain Capital, Deerfield Management, 5AM Ventures, Third Rock Ventures, Venrock, Perceptive Advisors, and Broadview Ventures and life sciences companies including Takeda, Gilead, Biogen, GEMoaB, Editas Medicine, and Akouos.

Eric Marandett, Co-Chair of Choate’s Intellectual Property Litigation Practice Group, represents biotech, pharmaceutical, and technology companies in high stakes patent litigation and other intellectual property and commercial disputes in order to protect their mission-critical intellectual property portfolios. Clients appreciate how Eric combines a keen business savvy that comes from his years of experience in the biopharma space with the courtroom skills of a seasoned trial lawyer. He is a go-to resource for a range of “bet-the-company” disputes, from competitor patent infringement litigation including Hatch-Waxman and biosimilar litigation, to trade secret disputes and licensing/collaboration disputes. Eric also regularly handles IPR trials and other post-grant proceedings before the patent office and provides strategic counseling and diligence advice to clients in connection with their transformative transactions. Eric’s highly collaborative approach instills great confidence among his clients, which include, among others, Takeda, Shire, Alnylam, Biogen, Gilead, Celgene, Wyeth, and Bain Life Sciences.

Louis Marett, chair of Choate’s Tax Practice Group, helps private equity funds and their portfolio companies to minimize their tax burdens in connection with mergers and acquisitions and fund formations. Known for meticulous preparation and devising creative approaches to structuring and closing deals, he has advised clients on hundreds of major transactions. Louis’ clients include many private equity funds, such as BV, Candescent, Century, Columbia Capital, Cove Hill, Ecosystems, Essex-Woodlands, Falcon, Great Hill, HarbourVest, M/C Partners, New Heritage, Riverside, Serent Capital, Silversmith, Spectrum, Summit, Surveyor, Sverica, Symmetric, Tower Arch, Turn/River, Windjammer, and XPV.

Mark McPherson represents individuals, corporations, hospitals, and academic and research institutions in government and internal investigations involving healthcare fraud, securities fraud, the False Claims Act, and other civil and criminal matters. Mark also helps clients manage NIH, HHS, and/or DOJ investigations and enforcement inquiries concerning federal grant funding to U.S. academic and research institutions. This includes leading internal reviews in which allegations of research misconduct, conflicts of interest, undue foreign influence, or federal grants mismanagement have been raised, and helping to resolve material findings with appropriate government agencies. Mark recently served as a Special Assistant District Attorney with the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office, where he gained significant criminal trial and motion practice experience. Prior to joining Choate, Mark served as a pilot in the United States Air Force.

Sean Monahan, co-chair of Choate’s Finance & Restructuring Group, brings depth of experience and a business-oriented outlook to one of the preeminent sports law practices in the United States. He represents major financial institutions and teams in a range of high profile, complex commercial financing transactions. Sean advises clients with team loans, stadium construction loans, securitizations, investment banking transactions, and general business matters involving member clubs of Major League Baseball, the National Hockey League, the National Football League, the National Basketball Association, Major League Soccer, NASCAR, and Minor League Baseball, as well as major college conferences. He has long-standing relationships with key personnel at leagues, teams, and financial institutions and his extensive knowledge of ownership and debt and securitization rules, media contracts, and collective bargaining agreements enables him to resolve even the most challenging issues for his clients. Sean also represents banks and institutional investors in a full range of financings, including asset-based and cash flow financings. Sean’s clients include Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase Bank, U.S. Bank, Citibank, Truist Bank, PNC Bank, and John Hancock.

T.J. Murphy helps middle-market private equity funds to successfully close transactions across a range of industries. T.J. is lauded by clients for his pragmatic and business-minded counsel. T.J. advises clients in growth equity investments, recapitalizations, mergers, acquisitions, and leveraged buyouts across the U.S. and internationally. T.J. also frequently serves as outside corporate counsel for privately held companies in high-growth industries. T.J. has worked on transactions in a variety of sectors, including healthcare, software, fintech, media, business services, and consumer products. He has handled matters on behalf of the world’s most recognized fund sponsors, as well as many of their portfolio companies.

John Pitfield, co-chair of Choate’s Business & Technology Group, helps private equity and growth equity clients to maximize the value of their transactions and strategic initiatives. John excels in leading teams in mergers and acquisitions and public and private debt and equity offerings, bringing a unique business judgment to these matters. He regularly advises public companies on a range of disclosure, governance, and board level matters. Additionally, John has years of experience working with Canadian companies on a wide range of matters. A gifted collaborator, John utilizes Choate’s superior resources and expertise in the areas of intellectual property and healthcare to provide exceptional service to clients in the life sciences and health services industries. John’s clients include a range of investors and operating companies – particularly in the health services, life sciences, and technology, media, and telecom sectors – including Bain Capital, Candescent Partners, Summit Partners, Haemonetics, Pegasystems, and Forrester Research.

Paul Popeo helps the world’s premier technology and life sciences companies and their CEOs to successfully manage a wide range of high stakes litigation matters in federal and state courts. In his more than 20 years of experience, he has counseled some of the country’s leading companies and their Boards of Directors on a wide range of litigation and pre-litigation strategies concerning technology and intellectual property disputes, as well as fiduciary and governance issues. He has deep experience litigating disputes involving the misappropriation of trade secrets for market leaders in the bio pharmacological, medical device, and computer hardware and software fields. In addition, Paul represents public and private companies, hedge funds, and financial services firms in disputes arising from mergers and acquisitions, financial restructuring, bond issuance, and various debt structures. He is a seasoned trial lawyer who has successfully tried numerous cases in state and federal district courts across the country. Paul has served as a Special Assistant Attorney General for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and as a Special Assistant District Attorney for Suffolk County.

Dr. Brian Reese leverages his combination of technical, legal, and business expertise to provide unusually comprehensive and pragmatic counsel to clients in the life sciences industries. Brian helps clients navigate and position themselves within the marketplace, building exclusivity positions that embrace intellectual property rights, corporate agreements, and regulatory options. His creative and thoughtful approach explores sources of positioning that include supply chain management, product lifecycle, and competitive intelligence. Advising clients on a unique mix of IP protection, transactions, and due diligence with particular focus on handling complex patent portfolios as well as managing IP programs, Brian helps clients create and monetize value for their most important assets, be it through direct product development or a licensing or other commercial transaction. As a former stock analyst, Brian brings a unique perspective to his practice and understands many of the business realities that his clients face, as well as how intellectual property rights and corporate transactions can help them achieve their goals.

Alison Reif provides practical and efficient business-oriented counseling and advice on managing all aspects of a company’s relationship with its employees. This includes providing counsel on hiring and employment agreements, terminations and RIFs, disability and leave issues, wage and hour compliance and audits, harassment investigations, employment and severance agreements, employee handbooks and policies, non-competition, and other post-employment restrictions, independent contractor arrangements, employee classifications, and virtually all other issues facing modern employers. A seasoned negotiator, Alison specializes in finding workable, real world solutions to accomplish business objectives, avoid legal liability, and remain consistent with a company’s culture. She has a nationwide practice, with a sweet spot of mid-sized companies. She is routinely called on to advise international companies, particularly in the United Kingdom and Canada, who are starting operations in the United States and require assistance in navigating local labor laws. She also serves as counsel to a number of independent schools in the New England area. Alison has successfully represented companies in more than fifty lawsuits brought by their employees, involving a wide variety of claims. Alison is a member of Choate’s Executive Committee.

Kevin Sarro represents private equity funds, portfolio companies, and financial institutions in crafting pragmatic solutions to their complex U.S., international, and state and local tax issues. He advises on various tax matters, including the structuring and negotiation of private equity investments, growth equity investments, international (cross-border) activities, fund formations, reorganizations, financing transactions, debt restructurings, medical practice investments, and other general corporate and partnership matters. Kevin’s focus is always on the issues with the highest economic impact, a practical approach that clients appreciate as it keeps the team from getting bogged down with immaterial ancillary matters.

Christine Savage

Christine Savage, co-chair of Choate’s Healthcare Group and a member of the Government Enforcement and Compliance Group, regularly collaborates with a diverse range of healthcare services and life sciences companies to help them satisfy compliance obligations, protect reputations, deliver value, and ultimately facilitate their ability to focus on their patients or customers. Christine’s 25 years of experience working internal investigations and managing government inquiries related to healthcare fraud help inform her approach to compliance and risk management projects. As one of the few subject matter experts in the country, Christine is routinely called on to assist academic and clinical research institutions at all stages of the research cycle, from proposal to final close out. She provides legal counsel on contracting, ethical and human subjects protection oversight, effort reporting, and foreign influence issues, and helps craft investigative or disclosure plans in the face of identified problems or concerns. She had led multiple internal reviews related to conflicts of interest, foreign influence, and grants management concerns and resolved material findings with appropriate government agencies including NIH, NSF, OIG and DOJ. Her work includes helping emerging life sciences companies develop and implement key compliance initiatives to put them on the right footing once they have a viable commercial product. She also collaborates with more established pharma and device companies to assess legal risks related to promotional activities, foundation and charity relationships, Open Payments requirements, and patient assistance programs.

Stephanie Schonewald

Dr. Stephanie Schonewald counsels biotech and pharmaceutical companies on the strategic development of patent portfolios, patent prosecution, and post-grant patent challenges. She advises clients on a broad range of patent matters, including patent portfolio management and counseling, with particular experience in cell therapies, microbiome therapeutics, gene therapies, antibodies and other related immunotherapies, vaccines, antisense oligonucleotides and siRNAs, and diagnostic methods for various diseases. Advising clients who are involved in contentious patent scenarios, Stephanie has handled a variety of third party submissions, protests, and post-grant proceedings before the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). She has worked on over 55 inter partes review, post grant review, and covered business method review proceedings before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB). In addition, Stephanie also advises clients on the management of their US patent office activity alongside other global patent activity. For example, she routinely consults with clients on European third party observations and oppositions, and has consulted with clients on post-grant challenges in other key jurisdictions, including Australia, China, and Japan.

Mark Silva advises financial institutions and corporate borrowers on all matters related to financings. Known for his creative yet measured approach to complex transactions, Mark assists clients with international debt financings, debt workouts and restructurings, asset-based credit facilities, second-lien and split-lien credit facilities, leveraged acquisitions, retail finance, multinational credit facilities, and intercreditor arrangements. Mark works with a wide range of clients but has particularly deep experience in the retail, biotechnology, healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, and financial services industries. Mark is a member of Choate’s Executive Committee.

Kevin Simard works with clients to help them think out of the box and utilize creative structures in order to provide greater value to their borrowers. He has extensive experience advising national banks and private lenders on all aspects of providing asset-based credit facilities to borrowers in various industries, with a particular emphasis on retail and consumer products. With the perspective on both the upfront structuring and the back-end wind-down of facilities that comes from extensive experience, Kevin and his team represent clients for the full life cycle of their deals, from complicated front-end structuring, negotiation and documentation of transactions, to work outs and restructurings, to bankruptcy and exit financings. Kevin’s clients have included Bank of America, Bank of Montreal, Callodine Commercial Finance, Carlyle Private Credit, Citizens Bank, Eclipse Business Capital, First Eagle Alternative Credit, Gordon Brothers Funding LLC, Pathlight Capital, ReStore Capital, SLR Credit Solutions, and Wells Fargo. He has been at the center of some recent notable and high-profile bankruptcies in the country, including Rite Aid, Yellow Corporation, Sears Holdings, Tuesday Morning, Serta, J. Crew, Brooks Brothers, Lucky Brands, The McClatchy Companies, The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company, Payless Shoes, Sports Authority and Borders Books. Kevin plays an active role in the management of various aspects of the firm, and is a member of Choate’s Executive Committee.

Anita Spieth, co-chair of Choate’s IP Litigation Group, has more than 10 years of experience representing life sciences and technology companies in high stakes patent infringement, trade secrets, and other complex IP litigation. She provides an effective and user-friendly case management approach and counsels clients on litigation strategy to achieve their goals. She also represents clients in connection with inter partes review proceedings before the USPTO Patent Trial and Appeal Board, as well as in copyright issues (particularly related to software and artificial intelligence) and trade secret disputes. Anita makes her clients’ lives easier by taking tasks off of their plates and making their worries her own. She begins her work by gaining a thorough understanding of the internal workflow of her clients so that her work product is immediately useful and does not require additional cycles. She speaks in clear and plain terms that clients and – importantly – judges and juries can understand. Anita has developed a global strategy to help clients manage risk and protect US intellectual property while related cases proceed internationally, including directing EPO strategy and various litigations throughout the world. Anita’s team at Choate has experience mustering and managing various international law firms to ensure that international positions are consistent with those taken in the U.S. Anita’s clients include Takeda, Biogen, EMC/Dell, Alarm.com, and Pegasystems.

Tobin Sullivan is a versatile corporate and securities attorney who counsels growth equity and venture capital investors and growing life sciences and technology companies, ranging from start-ups to pre-IPO companies to global public companies, on a wide range of transactional and corporate law matters. With extensive experience in venture capital and late-stage, cross-over financings for life sciences, biotech and healthIT companies, he is described by clients as a highly responsive, strategic thinker who balances his strong market knowledge with practical business advice. Tobin provides general corporate guidance on a variety of business matters, including venture capital and growth equity financings, national and cross-border mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance matters, public company reporting, and SEC compliance. His clients have included Bain Capital Life Sciences, Surveyor Capital (a Citadel company), Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), Sectoral Asset Management, Transformation Capital, Pegasystems, Forrester Research, Riverside Partners, Summit Partners, and M/C Partners.

Caroline Trusty

Caroline Trusty represents companies and individuals in complex civil litigation matters at the trial and appellate level including securities litigation, complex commercial litigation, multi-party insurance coverage disputes and enforcement and regulatory matters.

John Ventola, co-chair of Choate’s Finance and Restructuring Group, has more than 25 years of experience representing banks, finance companies, hedge funds, and distressed investors and helping guide them through a wide range of complex lending and corporate restructuring issues, including Chapter 11 cases and out-of-court workouts. John is a Fellow of the prestigious American College of Bankruptcy and is a member of Choate’s Executive Committee. John’s lending experience includes representing financial institutions in complex, multi-tranche financial transactions, including asset based, cash flow, Term B, second-lien, DIP and mezzanine loans and preferred stock, and other junior capital investments. John also has deep restructuring experience, having practiced extensively in bankruptcy courts across the country in connection with a range of issues, including cash collateral disputes, equitable subordination and recharacterization, Section 363 sales, and contested plans of reorganization. He has particularly extensive experience in retail finance and other asset-based lending transactions and the heavily-negotiated intercreditor arrangements that are often the key element in successfully completing those financing arrangements. John also frequently works with alternative investors, including private equity sponsors and hedge funds, seeking to identify and acquire distressed companies or assets. John’s clients include Callodine Commercial Finance, SLR Credit Solutions, PNC Retail Finance, B. Riley Financial, Second Avenue Capital Partners, Wells Fargo, Bank of America Business Capital, and Great American Capital Partners.

Adam Zaiger helps sophisticated developers, investors, lenders, family offices and private institutions successfully navigate their most important real estate matters in Massachusetts and on a worldwide basis. With over 30 years of experience handling acquisitions, dispositions, development, leasing and financing transactions, Adam represents clients across virtually all asset classes. His work involves corporate headquarters for Fortune 500 companies, large-scale commercial/industrial complexes, distribution centers, data centers, research and laboratory facilities, major shopping centers, as well as specialty asset classes such as hospitality, educational use, professional sports facilities and self-storage. In addition, Adam frequently represents Choate’s private equity clients in connection with their mergers and acquisitions and assists Choate’s high net worth clients with their real estate investment needs. His clients include Bain Capital, PTC, JPMorgan, Arbor Financial, Jones Lang LaSalle, and Tribeca Holdings. Adam has been recognized as a BTI Client Service All-Star and ranked in Chambers USA. To learn more about our Real Estate practice, please click here.