Mark Mihanovic, Partner, McDermott Will & Emery
Mark J. Mihanovic, head of the Firm’s Bay Area Transactions Group, primarily focuses his practice on corporate finance matters and mergers and acquisitions (M&A). He represents companies in a broad range of industries, with particular emphasis on the technology, life sciences and healthcare sectors. Mark serves as lead counsel on behalf of issuers and underwriters in public offerings and private placements of equity and debt securities. He handles stock and asset acquisitions, divestitures, mergers, proxy fights and joint ventures and has had primary oversight responsibility for the regional and worldwide acquisition programs of multiple clients. Mark represents early-stage companies in connection with formation and organizational issues and venture capital and has also represented investors in complex venture capital transactions involving equity and debt. Mark has substantial experience advising corporate boards of directors and management regarding fiduciary duties, including in connection with potential change in control transactions and consideration of “poison pill” stockholders rights plans, and corporate governance issues. He assists publicly traded companies with their U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings and other securities compliance matters. He also advises investment banks on securities compliance issues and in acting as a financial adviser and delivering fairness opinions in the context of acquisitions and restructurings. Mark has lectured at various external and McDermott-sponsored programs on topics such as public offerings, emerging company and venture capital issues and corporate governance matters. He has also spoken on mergers and acquisitions and other corporate-law-related topics in various client seminars and has served as a guest lecturer for transaction-related courses at the University of Michigan Law School and Stanford Law School.

Richard Smith, Counsel, McDermott Will & Emery
Richard B. Smith focuses his practice on representation of life sciences companies and related transactions. He has served as counsel to public, private and emerging life sciences companies, advising those companies on strategic business transactions such as licensing, joint ventures, and collaborations involving research, development, marketing, supply, clinical development and co-promotion of pharmaceutical, diagnostic and medical device products. Richard also advises companies on other corporate issues common to life sciences companies, including corporate formation of new ventures, venture capital, private equity, venture philanthropy and other forms of financing, mergers and acquisitions, as well as university and institutional licensing and intellectual property strategies.