K&L Gates’ Orange County lawyers serve a wide range of major industries, including life sciences and technology, local and global investment companies and investment banks, service organizations, aviation leasing companies and financial institutions, as well as other entrepreneurial and public enterprises located in this fast-growing and highly diversified area of Southern California. Our office has a full-service practice and is composed of seasoned lawyers who have deep roots in the legal and business communities.
Our Orange County corporate and securities lawyers represent companies from inception through maturity. We have significant experience in representing publicly traded and privately held companies in complex securities engagements including private and public equity and debt financings (including initial public and follow-on offerings as well as alternative public offerings), joint ventures, mergers and acquisitions, licensing and corporate governance. Our lawyers also regularly represent leading investment banking firms in their capacities as underwriters and placement agents in securities offerings and as financial advisers in connection with acquisitions and dispositions. Our lawyers have developed a substantial number of longstanding relationships with leading private equity and venture capital firms. Our lawyers are well-versed in structuring cross-border acquisitions and navigating the regulatory landscape to handle foreign investment projects. We have had much experience and success conducting cross-border transactions in the Korean market, including acquisitions, auction sales, joint ventures and reverse triangle mergers. Our lawyers have represented Korean companies on the establishment and dissolution of subsidiaries in North America and beyond. Specifically, our lawyers recently completed a significant deal within the media broadcast industry that was the first transaction to be consummated after Korea abolished the 49% shareholding limitation on indirect investments by American companies in Korean channel operators pursuant to the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (direct investments are still prohibited).
The Orange County office has one of the leading capital markets practices in the region. In addition, our capital markets lawyers have established themselves as key players in handling equity, debt and public offerings for leading corporations located in our region. We routinely represent buyers, sellers, investment banks, strategic partners and investors in capital markets transactions involving both private and public companies, including initial public offerings (IPOs), follow-on capital raisings and Private Investments in Public Equity (PIPEs). Our capital markets lawyers work collaboratively with our preeminent IP group to help clients acquire intellectual property from third parties, including necessary due diligence and IP valuation. Both practice groups are active in helping clients identify potential issues that might significantly affect their ability to acquire sufficient rights or to market their products.
Our Orange County intellectual property practice is composed of lawyers and other professionals having significant industry experience, advanced scientific degrees and bench experience. In addition to assisting clients in the protection of trade secrets and other intellectual property through the procurement of patents, copyrights and trademarks, our professionals assist clients in enhancing and protecting the value of their IP portfolios through efforts such as enforcement and licensing. Additionally, our lawyers have specialized licensing experience in entertainment law, including broadcast format licensing and program licensing for entertainment companies and option deals for film and television. Our Orange County product liability group has broad trial experience in defense of complex civil actions in state and federal courts. The practice includes product liability litigation involving pharmaceutical, medical device, food, cosmetics and other products. Our Orange County group consistently defends prominent national and international life sciences companies and has in-depth experience working with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in relation to labeling, warning letters, adverse events and product counterfeiting.
Our sophisticated tax practice handles local, state, federal and international tax planning for investment funds, companies, family offices and individuals and organizations ranging in size from closely held entities to some of the largest public companies in the region.