David A. Harris > Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell LLP > Wilmington, United States > Lawyer Profile
Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell LLP Offices
CHASE MANHATTAN CENTER, 18TH FLOOR
1201 NORTH MARKET STREET
WILMINGTON, DE
DELAWARE
United States
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David A. Harris
Work Department
Position
David’s practice focuses on the fields of partnership, limited liability company and statutory trust law, with an emphasis on issues relating to the formation, operation and dissolution of private investment funds, mutual funds and other investment vehicles organized as Delaware entities.
His practice also includes state bank regulatory matters (including organization of Delaware limited purpose trust companies), mergers and acquisitions, financing transactions (including matters involving Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code (“UCC”)) and other general commercial law counseling.
He regularly delivers third-party legal opinions, including opinions with respect to private investment funds, special purpose entities, perfection of security interests and deal closings.
His clients range from large, multinational corporations to local startup ventures, and include private investment fund sponsors such as Advent International, Apollo Global Management, Ares Management and Insight Venture Partners, mutual fund sponsors such as Franklin Templeton and Invesco and Fortune 500 companies such as Bayer, Comcast and Sears Holdings. David is often called upon to provide counsel to other attorneys domestically and internationally on matters relating to Delaware law.
For more, visit his bio at https://www.morrisnichols.com/lawyers-david-a-harris.
Career
An active member of the Delaware State Bar Association (“DSBA”), David serves on the DSBA Limited Partnership and LLC Committee, which is responsible for reviewing and updating Delaware’s partnership and LLC statutes. He is a past-chair of the DSBA Commercial Law Section, which is responsible for reviewing and updating legislation involving commercial law matters, including laws relating to statutory trusts, the UCC and banking.
A frequent writer on alternative entities, he is the coauthor of the Bloomberg BNA Corporate Practice Series Portfolio Limited Liability Companies: Legal Aspects of Organization, Operation, and Dissolution.
Memberships
- American Bar Association
- Business Law Section (Mergers & Acquisitions Committee)
- Delaware State Bar Association
- Commercial Law Section (Chair, 2005-2007; Vice Chair, 2003-2005; Secretary, 2001-2003)
- Corporate Law Section (Limited Partnership and LLC Committee)
Education
- J.D., with honors, 1996, University of North Carolina School of Law
- B.A., summa cum laude, 1993, Salisbury University
Lawyer Rankings
United States > M&A/corporate and commercial > Delaware counsel
Hailed as ‘one of the top firms in Delaware, whose name everyone knows‘, Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell LLP‘s practice offers an ‘unparalleled knowledge of Delaware law‘ as the team was involved in writing many of the Delaware corporate laws. Daniel Matthews, Jeffrey Wolters, David Harris, and Louis Hering lead the team, and Eric Klinger-Wilensky, known as ‘very responsive, knowledgeable and practical’, is a driver of corporate work within the group, with his practice focusing on corporate advice in the context of transaction and governance litigation. Aside from this, Sara Gelsinger stands out for her ‘commercial and solutions focused’ work. The team is praised for its ‘strong local regulator relationships’ and assists both publicly traded and privately held companies. On the private side, the group has recently seen an increase in ‘business divorce’ cases, where a private company partnership and stakeholders disagree on changing course, liquidating, dissolving or investing to address stressors connected to the pandemic. Melissa DiVincenzo is a key name to note for advising clients on Delaware General Corporation Law. Jason Russell‘s expertise lies in areas such as Delaware alternative entities and limited liability partnerships.