who we are

Experience

Ian has extensive experience representing clients in mergers and acquisitions, securities offerings, corporate governance, venture and private equity financings, entity formation, and compliance with the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. His experience also includes leading transaction teams in complex public and private company transactions, including coordinating firm specialty groups and outside local and international counsel. He has served as counsel to issuers and investors in debt and equity offerings, both public and private, in the U.S. and international capital markets, including over 50 private, venture-backed financings.

Ian has helped numerous private companies prepare business plans, private placement memorandums, subscription packages, founders’ agreements, buy-sell agreements, and other documents of importance to emerging companies. He has also prepared and negotiated countless commercial agreements, including distribution, development, vendor, independent contractor, and master services agreements and employment related documents including employment agreements, employee policies and employee handbooks.

Ian has experience reviewing and drafting private equity fund formation documents and has negotiated investments in and transfers of various private equity fund interests. In the area of mergers and acquisitions, he has represented both sellers and buyers and has considerable experience drafting and negotiating letters of intent, merger agreements, asset purchase agreements, noncompetition agreements, and related documents.

Although Ian’s practice has an emphasis on representing technology and renewable resource companies, he has represented numerous traditional, low-tech and brick-and-mortar companies as well.

Private Equity and Debt Offerings. Ian’s debt and equity offering experience includes private placements by Synapsense Corporation, Gold Standard Diagnostics, Sunverge Energy, MonuMedical, iSnap, RealEnergy, AYR Networks, TZero Technologies, BeVocal, Panther Express, and Kiwi Networks; equity investments by Kayne Anderson Private Investors, Vantage Point Venture Partners, DCM, Unilever Technology Ventures, Mitsui Venture Partners, and Lombard Street Partners; and venture debt transactions with Silicon Valley Bank, Western Technology Investment, and Lighthouse Capital Partners.

Public Offerings. Ian has represented numerous companies in connection with initial and follow-on public offerings, including initial public offerings by Stamps.com, Overstock.com, Altiris, Inc., and PalmSource, Inc. and follow-on offerings by Central Valley Community Bank, E.piphany, Inc. and Intraware.

Mergers and Acquisitions. Ian has represented both public and private companies in mergers and acquisitions. His representation in this area includes:

• Counsel to Quick Quack Car Wash, a fast-growing chain of conveyor-based car washes, in connection with their private equity transaction with private equity fund, Seidler Equity Partners.

• Counsel to Boostability, an international SEO company, in connection with their majority stock sale to private equity fund, H.I.G. Growth Partners.

• Counsel to O1 Communications, a California-based Competitive Local Exchange Carrier (CLEC) providing wholesale VoIP service to telecommunications service providers, carriers and other CLECs, in connection with the sale of its retail division (asset; cash and stock) to private equity-backed TelePacific Communications, price not disclosed.

• Counsel to Mission Road Pharmacy, a Southern California-based specialty pharmacy, in connection with its sale (stock; cash) to private equity-backed Salveo Specialty Pharmacy, price not disclosed.

• Counsel to Greater Sacramento Pharmacy, a Northern California-based specialty pharmacy, in connection with its sale (stock; cash) to private equity-backed Apothecary Holdings, Inc., price not disclosed.

• Counsel to Alinda Capital Partners, a $3 billion infrastructure fund, in connection with its acquisition (merger; cash & stock) of Republic ITS, a US based infrastructure company, in a merger transaction, price not disclosed.

• Counsel to Optimost LLC, a multivariable website optimization company, in connection with its approximately $52 million sale (merger; cash) to Interwoven, Inc. (NASDAQ: IWOV).

• Counsel to Skymatter Limited, an innovative developer of 3D imaging and modeling software for the film, television and game market segments, in connection with its sale (asset; cash) to Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADSK), price not disclosed.

• Counsel to CalPERS and Thomas Weisel Partners in connection with various sales and purchases of hundreds of limited partnership interests.

• Counsel to Synnex Corporation (NYSE: SNX), a leading business process services company, in connection with its acquisition (merger; cash) of Concentrix Corporation, price not disclosed.

• Counsel to GetActive Software, Inc., a provider of online constituent relationship management solutions, in connection with its acquisition (merger; stock) by Convio, Inc., price not disclosed.

• Counsel to PortalPlayer, Inc. (NASDAQ: PLAY), a fables semiconductor company, in connection with its approximately $357 million sale to nVidia Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA).

• Counsel to VMWare, Inc. (NYSE: VMW), a provider of visualization solutions for servers and desktops, in connection with its approximately $625 million sale (merger; cash) to the EMC Corporation.

• Counsel to yellowpages.com, Inc., a provider of online searchable directory listings, in connection with its sale (merger; cash) to SBC and Bell South, now AT&T (NYSE: T), price not disclosed.

• Counsel to HP (NYSE: HPQ), a complete technology product portfolio company, in connection with its approximately $1 billion acquisition (share exchange) of Indigo, N.V.

Education

• Santa Clara University School of Law; Santa Clara, California (J.D., cum laude, 2000)

• Brigham Young University; Provo, Utah (B.A., 1997)

Admitted to Practice

• California (2000)

Personal Interests

When not busy with work, Ian enjoys family time with his wife and four daughters and all sorts of outdoor adventures. If you’d like to meet outside of a conference room, Ian would be happy to join you for a road or mountain bike ride, run, surf session or pickleball game.