Lindquist & Vennum’s financial institutions group provides a full range of services to the financial institutions industry, in the context of a major, full-service law firm. National in scope, serving clients representative of the largest and smallest members of the industry, the practice group has remained on the forefront of issues affecting commercial banks and savings associations in a time of change and challenge.
The practice consists of three general areas: commercial lending, mergers and acquisitions, and general regulatory practice.
Commercial practice
The Financial Institutions practice group attorneys regularly represent financial institutions in the making and collecting of commercial, agricultural, and real estate loans. The firm has broad experience in truth-in-lending (TILA) and related compliance laws, secured and unsecured credit-card programs, and similar complex transactions. Again, representative clients range from small, community-based institutions to the largest national financial institutions. In each case, resources appropriate to the complexity and significance of the matter are judiciously applied.Mergers and acquisitions
In the last 10 years, Lindquist & Vennum’s financial institutions group has represented more institutions in mergers and acquisitions than any other law firm in the Ninth Federal Reserve District, and is among the leading national firms in this practice. Although client banks have been located from New York to California, the firm’s primary practice area is the Midwest and Rocky Mountain states. Representative clients range from more than 300 smaller financial institutions to publicly traded regional holding companies.
In addition to the experience gained from the large number of transactions, our financial institutions group has created innovative solutions to acquisition problems, including:
- Overcoming market concentration objections by successful challenges to geographic market definitions and/or establishing mitigating factors
- The pioneering use of unusual transaction structures (including acquisitions of holding companies by banks) to meet tax or other objectives
- The introduction in several states of phantom squeeze-out mergers and reverse stock splits to consolidate ownership and permit “S” corporation election
- Extensive experience in interstate transactions, including bank acquisitions in Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Colorado, California, New Mexico, and Arizona by out-of-state acquirers
- Extensive experience in inter-industry transactions, including the acquisition of thrifts by banks, the acquisition of banks by thrifts, and the acquisition and organization of thrifts by non-bank companies
General regulatory practice
As broad as its merger and acquisition practice is, the financial institutions group is involved in an even broader range of regulatory projects on behalf of its clients. Its attorneys practice before all of the major federal and state regulatory agencies, including the Office of Thrift Supervision, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Engagements range from the defense of institutions or insiders in administrative proceedings to strategic planning for new powers and activities. Engagements have included:
- The implementation of Internet banking and e-commerce initiatives by financial institutions
- The issuance of a wide variety of securities, including extensive experience with organizing the issuance of trust-preferred securities (TOPS) and qualifying them as Tier I capital
- The organization of de novo state and national banks, including a specialized program to organize new national banks for Native American tribes across the country
- The conversion of mutual associations to stock form
- The organization of securities, insurance, real estate, credit card, and other subsidiaries for financial institutions seeking to expand sources of fee income or meet other business purposes
- The creation of ESOPs, ISOs, phantom stock plans, and varied incentive-compensation plans
- The successful defense of banks and bankers against agency proceedings including cease-and-desist orders, civil money penalties, and removal proceedings
A full-service firm
The financial institutions group has the experience and background required to respond to the needs of our clients. As those needs become increasingly sophisticated, practice group attorneys are able to call upon specialized assistance from other practice groups within the firm, including tax, employee benefits, securities, bankruptcy, trusts and estates, real estate, and trial practice. This specialized support and experience broadens the scope and the depth of service the financial institutions group provides.
Contact: Steve Johnson
Email: sjohnson@lindquist.com
Phone: 612-371-3548
Exhibitor Library |
Website: www.lindquist.com/banking |
