Business Counseling and Transactional Group

Gould & Ratner's Business Counseling and Transactional Group provides clients with sophisticated legal and business advice in areas ranging from business formation through business succession or sale of a company. We counsel institutions and executive teams, prominent family business owners, entrepreneurs, and other wealthy individuals on a variety of transactions and business law issues.  Our work has involved:

• Mergers and Acquisitions
• Joint Ventures and Strategic Alliances
• Private Equity Financings
• Operating Agreements
• Executive Employment and Compensation Arrangements

Trusted Legal and Business Advisors

Clients turn to Gould & Ratner for legal counsel that is good for business.  Our lawyers understand the importance of addressing transactional and operational issues from a perspective that not only protects legal interests, but supports the business goals and growth sought by our clients.

Transactional Team Approach

Gould & Ratner prides itself on its ability to create the right team for any transaction.  The firm's vast experience in Federal and state taxes, environmental regulatory matters, employee benefits, real estate and finance is always readily available to be tapped into in connection with the purchase or sale of a business or other complicated transaction.

Global Reach

Gould & Ratner's affiliation with LawExchange International allows the firm to make available the same personal service and attention to detail worldwide that G&R provides in Chicago and the rest of the U.S.

Sub-services

• Mergers and Acquisitions
• Joint Ventures and Strategic Alliances
• Private Equity Financings
• Operating Agreements
• Executive Employment and Compensation Arrangements

News

• Lava Lamp Sold to Private Equity Firm
• Gould & Ratner Hosts Seminar on Doing Business with China: Guidelines for U.S. Companies and Entrepreneurs
• Fred Tannenbaum Spoke on Governance and Family Business Issues

Articles

• SEC Eases Restricted Stock Rules, Spring 2008
• How Small and Medium-Sized Businesses Can Deal With Banks, February 2008
• "SEC's Accredited Investor Rule Stirs Controversy", May 2007
• The Second Half of Smart--How to Temper Your Intelligence and Become a More Effective Deal Lawyer, October 2006
• Reg. D - More Popular Than Ever?
• The Importance of Corporate Formalities in Protecting Officers and Shareholders from Personal Liability
• The ABC's of Franchise Law
• Dealing with Dealers - Some Do's and Dont's
• Income Tax Aspects: Choice of Business for Operations in the United States, 2004
• All in the Family: Corporate Governance Issues Facing Family-Owned Businesses, March 2002
• Venture Capital Financing, Fall 2001
• Restricted Stock and Stock Options: Tax and Other Consequences to the Family Business, Summer 2001
• It's Time to Talk Turkey: Seller Strategies to Prevent a Buyer from Wriggling Away, January 2001
• All Dressed Up With Somewhere to Go: How to Succeed in Selling Your Business Without Really Trying (Too Hard), December 2000
• Do You Really Want a Partner? Suggestions to Avoid Litigation and Improve Inter-Owner Harmony Upon Selling Minority Interests in a Business, March 1, 2000
• Determining the Deductibility of Executive Compensation: Exacto Spring Corp. v. Commissioner, 2000
• Slicing it Up: Should a Majority Owner Sell a Piece of the Pie, November 1999
• What Every Business Lawyer and Business Owner Should Know About Buy-Sell Agreements, November 1999
• Negotiating the Software License: Eight Tips for the Licensee, June 1999
• Major Battlegrounds in Venture Capital Transactions, March 1999
• Going with the Cash Flow: Get to Know this Crucial Factor in Communications Deals, November 1998
• International Contracts: Practical Considerations to Maximize Efficiency, October 1998
• The Twelve Most Important Questions to Ask in a Franchisor-Franchisee Relationship, September 1990
• Contributor to Currents, Newsletter for members of the National Society of Compliance Professionals
• Extending Credit to Contractors
• Financing Equipment
• Franchising Your Business
• Should I Shred This?
• The Sarbanes-Oxley Act and Private Companies

Publications

• The Top Six Things One Should Know About The New Bankruptcy Reform Legislation, March 15, 2007
• Hedging Your Bets With Swaps
• LawExchange Globe Newsletter - Winter 2005
• LawExchange M&A-VC Newsletter - Winter 2005
• A Lawyer's Guide to Forming, Financing, Operating and Growing a Business