Mergers and Acquisitons: A Step-by-Step Legal and Practical Guide »

Edwin L. Miller Jr. is a partner with the law firm of Sullivan & Worcester LLP. He has practiced corporate and securities law for over thirty-five years and has extensive mergers and acquisitions experience in both the public and private markets. Miller also represents emerging and established technology companies in their financing, technology transfer, and acquisition activities. He has been named to The Best Lawyers in America publication and is the author of Lifecycle of a Technology Company: Step-by-Step Legal Background and Practical Guide from Startup to Sale (Wiley).

Praise for Mergers and Acquisitions

"Buyers and sellers both hope to be winners in an acquisition. But at the negotiating table, there is only one winner for each point and winning may mean a significant change in the deal economics. The insights in this book are crucial for both buyers and sellers and lay out the rationale for both sides of all of the money issues and other important deal points."
-Todd Koopersmith, Vice President, Business Development, Iron Mountain

"This book will help M&A professionals get up to speed on a wide range of deal points. It explains the legal background and transaction structuring issues in M&A transactions that every investment professional must know."
-Gregory Burkus, founder and partner, Shasta Partners

"This book is an essential resource for business people, and the lawyers and other professionals who advise them, to develop a real-world understanding of how the M&A process works. More importantly, it explains why specific deal structures, contractual terms and diligence procedures are used."
-Jonathan Wolfman, Partner, WilmerHale, Boston

"As U.S. M&A concepts, documents and practices become increasingly adopted internationally, this book will be an invaluable resource. It provides an excellent overview of the entire area, and is easily understandable by corporate executives and lawyers outside the United States."
-Leo Specht, founder, Specht Rechtsanwalts-Gesellschaft mbH, Vienna, Austria

Preface     xi
Acknowledgments     xv
About the Web Site     xvii
Structuring Fundamentals     1
Basic Corporate Finance Concepts     1
Reasons for Acquisitions     8
Three Basic Acquisition Structures     13
Structuring Considerations: Overview     16
The Acquisition Process     23
Overview     23
Valuation of the Business     31
Investment Bank Engagement Letters     35
Confidentiality Agreements     40
Letters of Intent     43
Stay Bonuses and Other Employee Retention Arrangements     46
Business And Legal Due Diligence     49
Intellectual Property Due Diligence     64
From Signing to Closing     77
Appendixes     77
Corporate (Non-Tax) Structuring Consdierations     79
Business Objectives and Other Nontax Structuring Considerations     79
Acquisition Structure Diagrams     89
Forms of Acquisition Consideration     90
Debt     95
Cash, Stock, and Earnouts     110
Successor Liability and the De Facto Merger Doctrine     116
Securities Law Compliance     118
Antitrust Compliance: Hart-Scott-Rodino Act     131
Equity Compensation     138
Incentive Stock Options     144
Employment Agreements and Noncompetition Covenants     149
Employment and Benefits Law     157
Acquisition Accounting     160
Recapitalization Accounting     165
Cross-Border Acquisitions     166
Appendixes     169
Tax Considerations     171
Taxable Versus Tax-Free Transactions: Overview of Relevant Situations     171
Detailed Analysis of the Positions of the Target and Its Owners and of the Buyer     173
Taxable Transactions and Their Tax Effects     175
Tax-Free Transactions     180
Special Situations     186
Golden Parachute Tax     191
The Definitive Acquisition Agreement     197
Economic Terms     197
Representations and Warranties     214
Covenants     226
Additional Agreements     230
Conditions to Closing     231
Survival of Representations and Indemnification     233
Termination     238
Miscellaneous     239
Representing Targets: A Summary      239
Appendixes     242
Acquisitions of Public Companies     243
Public-to-Public Mergers: What Is Different?     243
Case Law-Developed Fiduciary Duites and Standards of Review     247
Securities Laws and Public Company Acquisitions     272
Anti-Takeover Devices     283
Appendix     293
Leveraged Buyouts (Structural and Tax Issues) and Acquisitions of a Troubled Business (Creditors' Rights and Bankruptcy)     295
Leveraged Buyouts: Structural and Tax Issues     295
Acquisition of a Troubled Business Generally     302
Fraudulent Transfers     305
Acquisitions out of Bankruptcy     313
Index     323