K&L Gates Advises Matthews International Corporation in US$232.1 Million Sale of Warehouse Automation Business

Global law firm K&L Gates LLP advised Matthews International Corporation in the US$232.1 million sale of its Warehouse Automation business to Duravant LLC. Under the terms of the definitive agreement, Pittsburgh-based Matthews received US$225.4 million in cash and Duravant assumed certain liabilities of the Warehouse Automation business. The transaction was completed as part of Matthews’ ongoing strategic review and is expected to further strengthen the company’s balance sheet.

The K&L Gates M&A team was led by Pittsburgh partner Ron Aulbach and Charlotte partner Kevin Stichter, and included Charlotte partner Nick Kitko, Charlotte associates Kristin Taylor, Torie Ainsztein, and Andreas Myers, as well as Nashville associates Brad Kilborn and Mary Blomquist. Other key members of the K&L Gates team advising on the deal included Pittsburgh partners Ragae Ghabrial (intellectual property) and Lauren Crossett (employee benefits), and Washington, DC partner Vishal Mehta (antitrust), among many others. The team guided Matthews through all aspects of the transaction, including negotiation of the equity purchase agreement, management of complex diligence matters, structuring of transition services arrangements, and resolution of regulatory and contractual issues.

Aulbach stated: “We are thrilled for our long-standing client Matthews. This deal was an important part of the Matthews strategic alternatives plan. It was a great collaborative effort by the Matthews and K&L Gates teams.”

Matthews General Counsel Brian Walters commented: “We’re exceedingly grateful for the proficient counsel consistently provided by the entire K&L Gates team in helping us first thoughtfully consider the structuring of several complicated transactions and then K&L Gates’ ability to rally so many firmwide resources to cost-effectively lead the completion of the divestiture under such a challenging timeline. This is the second such large scale transaction that K&L Gates has completed for us in the past 12 months and we remain thoroughly impressed by both the wide breadth of their firm’s capabilities and the practical approach their deal team takes in offering creative and workable solutions.”

K&L Gates’ Corporate practice is one of the most substantial in the legal industry, with hundreds of lawyers in offices across the globe providing clients with practical legal solutions in the structuring, financing, and closing of domestic, international, and cross-border transactions.