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ARTICLE · 03 SEPTEMBER 2004

Why And How to go Private

Foley & Lardner LLP
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Why And How To ‘Go Private’ Concerns over the high costs of complying with Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) and other corporate governance reforms are causing an increasing number of public companies — especially small- and mid-cap companies — to consider going private.

United StatesFinance and Banking
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By Patrick Daugherty, Timothy P. Hanley, Christopher C. McMahon and Peter C. Underwood

Why And How To ‘Go Private’ Concerns over the high costs of complying with Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) and other corporate governance reforms are causing an increasing number of public companies — especially small- and mid-cap companies — to consider going private. Such a decision, said Peter C. Underwood, a member of the Transactional & Securities Practice Group in the Foley & Lardner Milwaukee office, "is like a reverse IPO." Traditionally, going public was a sign that a company had reached a certain threshold of size and profitability to attract public investors.

Mr. Underwood introduced a panel of experts at a breakout session, "Why and How to ‘Go Private’," that was part of the 2004 National Directors Institute (NDI) held May 19, 2004, in Chicago. The theme of this year’s conference was "Corporate Governance Reform: What’s Working and What Isn’t."

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