Investor goals are twofold—maximize returns while minimizing risk. While the objectives are simple, the path to success is often complicated and fraught with legal intricacies, including regulations from agencies at the state and federal level. A seasoned legal team can eliminate the complexities so investment funds can accomplish their growth objectives.
Akerman provides seamless legal representation throughout the entire life cycle of an investment—from structuring, forming, and offering of funds, to acquisitions and related financings, to dispositions, and, when necessary, dispute resolution and assistance with regulatory enforcement. Our clients include hedge funds, mutual funds, private equity funds, venture capital funds, funds of funds, family offices, institutional investors, broker-dealers, and financial institutions.
We fully understand the risks and challenges involved and offer highly customized and strategic counsel to investment managers and advisors, general partners, pooled investment and asset managers, limited partners, proprietary trading platforms, investment fund service providers, and investment committee and advisory boards and their members.
Our team has experience working with broker-dealers, hedge funds, investment advisers, mutual funds, ETFs, closed-end funds, UITs, private equity funds, and real estate funds. We provide fund managers with ongoing advice regarding investments, transactions, compliance, and securities law matters, including applicable federal and state investment adviser registration requirements. Our lawyers are adept at structuring onshore and offshore funds for a variety of fund types and are well-versed on U.S. federal income tax considerations.
In addition to providing regulatory compliance counseling, we vigorously represent clients in regulatory investigations and SEC and state enforcement proceedings, internal investigations, shareholder litigation, and FCPA claims defense. Our team has worked extensively with clients regarding regulations and enforcement, from specific legislation such as Dodd-Frank and the Securities Exchange Act to regulatory agencies such as the SEC and the Department of Justice.
