Michael J. Dougherty

Michael is a Director and a member of the Business, Commercial Lending and Mergers and Acquisitions Groups. In addition to providing general business counseling and advice, he focuses his practice on business and commercial transactions, such as business formation and capitalization, financing (representing institutional lenders, mezzanine lenders and corporate borrowers), joint ventures, mergers, acquisitions and divestitures. Michael has represented corporate clients in a wide range of industries, including biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, electrical products, manufacturing, chemicals, supermarkets, telecommunications, financial services and metal products.

Experience

Prior to joining Cohen & Grigsby in 2000, Michael was a summer associate at the firm in 1999. He also was a summer associate and corporate legal assistant at Jones, Day, Reavis & Pogue from 1993-1998.

In his capacity at Cohen & Grigsby, he has represented businesses of all sizes, including small family-owned businesses, middle-market privately held companies and publicly traded entities, as well as large subsidiaries of national and multinational public and private companies.

His core practice focuses on counseling clients regarding corporate, partnership and limited-liability company formation, reorganization, governance and operation; contract preparation and negotiation; due diligence; joint ventures and strategic alliances; co-development and co-promotion arrangements; mergers, acquisitions and divestitures; commercial lending; and other general corporate matters.

Select Recent Representative Matters

• Michael served as U.S.counsel for a large, international company during the negotiation and documentation of a staged disposition of one of the client’s global chemical businesses.
• He also assisted in representing a large chemical and polymer producer and supplier in connection with the negotiation and documentation of a joint venture for the manufacture, marketing and sale of polyurethane systems.
• He was counsel for a large healthcare company in the acquisition through merger of a start-up medical device company on the West Coast.
• He has represented a Forbes Top 25 privately held corporation in a joint venture for the acquisition and operation of convenience stores with fuel stations; represented a mezzanine lender in numerous subordinated debt and equity investment transactions, including the purchase of $19 million of subordinated debt and equity securities of a leading plastics compounding company.
• Michael was instrumental in the negotiation and documentation of joint ventures for the development of greenhouse gas abatement projects, including the potential to monetize greenhouse gas reductions through the generation and sale of emission reduction credits.

Honors and Achievements

Michael was selected in July 2008 for inclusion in the Rising Stars Edition of Pennsylvania Super Lawyers. The selection process includes peer nominations and independent research on candidates.