Investment Funds
Overview
Sidley has a premier, global practice in structuring and advising investment funds and advisers. The Investment Funds practice group serves virtually every type of investment fund and investment manager, as well as many other market participants. The group has approximately 140 corporate, securities and derivatives lawyers dedicated to investment funds, investment management and derivatives work worldwide, with lawyers practicing in New York, Chicago, Boston, Los Angeles, San Francisco, London, Munich, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Tokyo.
“The team is very efficient and has a very strong understanding of what is happening in the market.”
Client quote, Chambers USA 2024
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Overview
We have substantial experience organizing and advising with respect to: funds registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (mutual funds and registered closed-end funds); hedge funds (specializing in all investment strategies and instruments, including debt, equity, derivatives, foreign currencies, commodities, structured finance securities and combinations of the foregoing); commodity pools; exchange-traded funds (ETFs); private equity and venture capital funds; real estate funds and REITs; hedge fund and private equity funds of funds (both unregistered and registered under the Investment Company Act); business development companies; and employees’ securities companies.
“Sidley Austin boasts a masterful hedge funds practice serving the most prominent funds and managers worldwide, and providing critical advisory capabilities across the fields of securities, derivatives, fund formation and regulations. Offers an increasingly global spread of resources and familiarity with regulatory procedures in a number of jurisdictions. Boasts a broad practice consisting of tax and litigation partners with particular expertise in hedge funds.”
Chambers USA 2024
Our advice also covers the broad scope of legal and compliance issues that are faced by funds, their advisers and their boards under the laws and regulations of the various jurisdictions in which they operate. In particular, we advise our clients regarding complex federal and state laws and regulations governing securities, funds and advisers, including the Dodd-Frank Act, the Investment Company Act, the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, the Securities Act of 1933, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Commodity Exchange Act, the USA PATRIOT Act and comparable laws in non-U.S. jurisdictions. We are also often asked to analyze and resolve issues regarding the availability of an exemption or other basis for avoiding registration under the Investment Company Act or the Investment Advisers Act.
On behalf of our investment manager clients, as well as banks, broker-dealers, corporations and clearing firms, we advise on a broad array of derivatives and structured transactions, including structured notes, swaps, options, futures, forwards, and repurchase and reverse-repurchase transactions. In providing these services, we liaise with derivatives lawyers on other teams throughout the firm. We also provide a broad range of counseling on securities and derivatives regulatory matters, including counseling exchanges, clearinghouses, brokers and traders with respect to the regulation of OTC and exchange-traded derivatives. Our practice brings us into frequent contact with the departments of government, regulatory agencies and exchanges that supervise the securities and derivatives markets.
Sidley represents its investment fund clients on investments in debt of all types, including distressed structured products. In addition, we advise clients on legal issues related to the purchase and sale of loans and securities of distressed and bankrupt companies, including accounts receivable, trade claims and bank debt, both domestically and in Europe.
The principal strengths of our practice are our substantive breadth and geographical reach. We believe that we are one of very few firms that is capable of serving clients with in-depth coverage in each and every substantive investment management, fund and derivatives discipline in the United States, Europe and Asia.
Recent Recognition
In the 2025 editions of Chambers USA, Chambers Global, Chambers UK and Chambers Asia-Pacific, over 22 Sidley lawyers were listed as “notable practitioners” for their work in Investment Funds.
Recent accomplishments of our award-winning practice include:
- Ranked in top bands in several Chambers USA 2025 categories:
- Hedge Funds
- REITs
- Investment Funds: Investor Representation
- Derivatives
- Investment Funds: Regulatory & Compliance
- Registered Funds
- Private Equity: Fund Formation
- Ranked in top bands in several Chambers Global 2025 categories:
- Hedge Funds, USA-Nationwide
- Investment Funds: Hedge Funds, Global: Multi-Jurisdictional
- Investment Funds: Hedge Funds, Asia-Pacific Region
- Investment Funds: Private Equity, Asia-Pacific Region
- Investment Funds: Hedge Funds (International Firms), China: International
- Derivatives, USA-Nationwide
- Investment Funds: Private Equity (International Firms), China: International
- Investment Funds & Asset Management (International & Cross-Border), USA-Nationwide
- Registered Funds, USA-Nationwide
- Ranked in top tiers in Legal 500 US 2025 categories:
- Investment fund formation and management: Alternative/hedge funds
- Real estate: real estate investment trusts (REITs)
- Finance: Structured Finance: derivatives and structured products
- Best Lawyers “Best Law Firms” Survey 2025
- Tier 1 – Private Funds/Hedge Funds, Derivatives and Futures Law, and Mutual Funds Law
- With Intelligence 2025 HFM Asia Services Awards:
- Highly commended in the “Best onshore law firm” category
Investment Funds and Advisers
For decades Sidley has had a strong commitment to, and has been a recognized leader in, counseling traditional and alternative asset managers.
We represent hundreds of investment advisers, commodity pool operators, commodity trading advisors and mutual fund boards of directors, including some of the most prominent names in alternative and traditional asset management. We also regularly counsel start-up managers—and those seeding them—regarding the structuring of their businesses and funds. We have advised with respect to thousands of registered and unregistered funds in virtually every financial center in the world.
Sidley is consistently recognized by our clients, peers and the investment management industry as providing outstanding client service and market-leading advice. We are at the forefront in new product development, participating in the structuring, organization, registration, servicing and/or distribution of a wide array of innovative funds, derivative instruments and structured investment products, including:
Hedge Funds — the full scope of hedge fund structures, products and offerings, including principal-protected note offerings backed by hedge fund assets.
Managed Accounts — advise both asset allocators and advisers on terms and structure.
Registered Investment Companies — counsel to funds, advisers, independent directors and underwriters for a wide array of open and closed-end registered funds.
Permanent Capital Transactions — the first medium-term note program backed by hedge funds, raising permanent capital for investment and trading purposes.
Alternative Asset Manager IPO — underwriter’s counsel in the first U.S. initial public offering listed on the NYSE of interests in an alternative asset management company.
Manager Acquisitions and Seedings — counsel to both managers and buyers/seed investors on a wide array of acquisitions of managers and stakes therein, as well as seed investments.
Money Market Funds — counsel to both funds and investment banks on regulatory compliance and structuring products to be eligible for purchase by money market funds, including acting as counsel in structuring among the first money fund-eligible preferred share and extendible note products.
ETFs — registered as investment companies and commodity pools, including the first commodity index ETF and the first leveraged currency ETF.
Funds of Private Equity Funds — the first fund of private equity funds registered under the Investment Company Act and the largest secondary fund of funds private equity funds roll-up transaction.
Publicly Offered Venture Capital Partnerships — the first publicly offered partnership designed to invest in venture capital opportunities.
Innovative Fund Products in Asia — development of a variety of innovative fund products in Asia, including the first Hong Kong exchange-traded fund and the first property fund in mainland China with direct foreign investment.
Private Real Estate Fund for Properties in Turkey — fund counsel on an offering of a private real estate fund investing in properties in Turkey.
Principal Protected Funds — numerous U.S. and non-U.S. principal protected funds.
Business Development Companies — several of the first funds organized and registered as BDCs.
Commodity Pools — many of the first private and public commodity pools.
Master-Feeder Structures — U.S. and non-U.S. master-feeder structures for a variety of public and private funds.
Employees’ Securities Companies — numerous funds qualifying as employees’ securities companies under the Investment Company Act.
Insurance-Linked Funds — counsel to both managers and distributors of insurance-linked funds investing in a variety of insurance-related risks.
REIT M&A — Represented Equity Office Properties in its acquisition by Blackstone, one of the largest leveraged buyout transactions in history.
Global Practice
As our clients have grown more global, so have we. Our London, Singapore and Hong Kong offices have a robust and growing base of European and Asian clients that our U.S. offices service with respect to U.S. legal and regulatory matters. Likewise, our London, Singapore and Hong Kong offices regularly advise our U.S.-based clients with respect to applicable laws and regulations and product distribution in Europe and Asia.
All of our offices work with service providers in fund-friendly jurisdictions to organize investment funds and transactions. Such non-U.S. funds include numerous exchange-listed, credit-enhanced, master-feeder, multi-series and other non-standard structures. We work closely with a large network of counsel, accountants and administrators in Europe, Asia, the Caribbean jurisdictions and other tax havens.
Sidley has significant fund management, hedge fund and private equity experience in Asia, and was named “Investment Funds Law Firm of the Year” 2014 by Asian Legal Business. Sidley also received this honor in 2007.
We have assisted in developing a number of innovative investment products, many of which have been the first of their kind in Hong Kong and elsewhere in Asia.
Broad, Sophisticated Client Base
Our clients, located in and outside the United States, include sponsors and managers of hedge funds, private equity/venture capital funds, real estate funds, mutual funds and closed-end funds as well as fund boards, investment advisers, commodity pool operators, commodity trading advisors, banks, securities and futures brokerage firms, multinational institutional investors, venture capitalists, professional trustee companies, state-owned enterprises and government entities and other participants in the U.S. and non-U.S. securities and derivatives markets.
Comprehensive Legal Advice
We provide clients with “one-stop shopping,” providing them with a resource for any legal need that may arise. In serving our clients, our group utilizes the extensive experience of Sidley’s other practice areas, including corporate, securities and broker-dealer regulatory, tax, employee benefits, banking (including advising on the implications of the Volcker Rule), bankruptcy, estate planning, intellectual property, real estate, public finance, labor and litigation.
Hedge Funds
We have organized funds for, and provide ongoing representation to, hundreds of hedge fund managers. Our hedge fund clients utilize a wide variety of investment strategies executed in the equities, fixed income and derivatives markets.
We provide a full range of legal services to our hedge fund clients, including advice on legal structure and other formation issues (including master-feeder, side-by-side and umbrella fund structures), securities and derivatives regulatory matters, business term alternatives, marketing arrangements, trading documentation, exchange listing, blue sky requirements, internet usage and tax and ERISA matters. In addition, we regularly counsel hedge fund managers regarding their regulatory and compliance obligations.
Commodity Pools
Sidley has one of the world’s premier commodity pool practices. We assisted our clients in developing some of the first public commodity pools in the 1970s. Since then, we have organized and provided ongoing representation to hundreds of publicly offered and privately placed commodity pools and their commodity pool operators and commodity trading advisors.
We provide a full range of legal services to our commodity pool clients, including those types noted above in respect of hedge funds.
Registered Funds
Reports by The American Lawyer rank Sidley among the leading U.S. law firms that represent mutual funds (based on assets under management). We have more than 40 years of experience advising clients with respect to the myriad regulations applicable to registered funds. Our representation of registered investment companies dates back to the tremendous surge in popularity of mutual funds in the 1970s, and today a significant portion of our practice is dedicated to ongoing representation of registered open-end and closed-end funds as well as the boards that supervise them. As the registered fund industry has grown and transformed, we have kept pace with all aspects of new product development and regulation.
Investment Company Act Status Issues
Sidley regularly advises clients regarding the applicability of the Investment Company Act of 1940 to various types of holding companies, financial institutions and other operating companies, such as industrial corporations, banks, insurance companies and finance subsidiaries. We address such issues on behalf of U.S. domestic and international issuers, as well as governments or quasi-governmental entities, including development banks and several types of municipal enterprises.
Exchange-Traded Funds
Sidley lawyers have been involved in offerings by ETFs that are registered as investment companies and commodity pools, including the first commodity pool to be listed on a securities exchange in the United States. Our work includes preparation of registration statements, “no action” relief work before the CFTC and SEC in connection with both regulatory requirements and securities exchange listing and trading requirements, 19b-4 stock exchange listing applications, short sales relief and disclosure and reporting requirements.
Insurance-Linked Funds
We have represented various U.S. and non-U.S. insurance organizations, fund managers and investment banks in connection with the structuring, establishment and funding of insurance-linked instruments funds covering a variety of strategies, including those related to the use of third-party capital. Given our extensive experience with insurance-linked funds (and other esoteric and hybrid asset classes), we can efficiently advise clients regarding various features such as “side pockets,” slow-pay provisions and liquidating payments. Similarly, given our experience with reinsurance organizations that have related fund management platforms, we can efficiently advise on conflicts/moral hazard/business opportunity allocation issues, as well as on issues such as the effect that receiving material non-public information in a reinsurance business can have on the ability to purchase and sell catastrophe bonds on the fund platform. Our Insurance and Financial Services group lawyers also have deep experience representing offshore clients in a variety of insurance-linked securities transactions.
Sidley has represented the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) regarding the Volcker Rule as it applies to securitization and insurance-linked securities transactions and regarding how commodity pool regulations apply to insurance-linked securities transactions.
Private Equity
Private Equity and Venture Capital Funds
Sidley regularly advises clients on the structuring, organization and offering of private equity and venture capital funds, and fund of funds transactions, including traditional leveraged buyout and start-up funds, as well as funds structured around specific investment products such as real estate and energy companies.
We provide a full range of legal services to our private equity and venture capital fund clients, including advice on regulatory matters, choice of jurisdictions, choice of entity forms, business term alternatives, marketing arrangements and tax and ERISA matters.
Together with the firm’s corporate group, we represent our private equity and venture capital fund clients in connection with the structuring and documentation of their investments in portfolio companies.
We also provide advice on complex tax, intellectual property, litigation, corporate, financing, bankruptcy and environmental matters relating to these transactions.
Real Estate Private Equity and Joint Ventures
In recent years, the real estate market has seen a vastly expanded demand for less traditional, more diverse financing products. In response, Sidley has developed a substantial practice in preferred equity and joint venture transactions representing an array of clients, including investment banks, opportunity and private equity funds, pension funds, bank affiliates and mortgage REITs. These clients are typically expanding their activities from traditional mortgage-based lending to mezzanine and other equity-based transactions, and are looking to invest both domestically and offshore. In addition, we represent owners seeking to attract acquisition and development financing or to monetize their portfolios to maximum leverage. Working closely with our colleagues in the tax and ERISA practices, we structure, negotiate and craft documents appropriate for each particular venture. Depending on its type, location and financing, the venture vehicle may be a general or limited partnership, a limited liability company or a master venture comprised of multiple investment vehicles.
Private Real Estate Funds
Sidley provides a full range of legal services to our private real estate fund clients, including fund structure and formation issues, business term alternatives, tax and ERISA analyses, marketing arrangements, securities regulatory matters and GP structure and formation issues.
We have experience in forming traditional, committed capital private real estate funds, real estate-related hedge funds, open-end private real estate funds and SEC-registered real estate funds. In connection with our private real estate fund work, we work extensively with sponsors in their GP structuring, including joint ventures. We have represented many sponsors in private real estate fund formation, including Canyon, Clifford Capital, Deutsche Bank/RREEF, Starwood, Madison Capital, Marathon and Merrill Lynch. We also represent institutional clients, including foreign governments and instrumentalities, state pension plans, college endowments, corporate clients and family offices in connection with significant investments in these funds. We have represented many of these clients in their portfolio investment transactional work subsequent to fund formation. In this regard, recently we have been active on behalf of private real estate funds in structuring and executing real estate transactions outside of the United States, particularly in Europe. We have been active in forming REITs as vehicles on behalf of real estate funds for real estate investment in the United States. We also represent placement agents in their private real estate fund offerings.
Real Estate Investment Trusts
Our commitment to client service, capital markets dominance and M&A successes distinguishes our work in the REIT industry. Sidley is consistently ranked by The American Lawyer as one of the top counsels in REIT securities offerings. These rankings recognize a tradition of consistent leadership by Sidley in the REIT area.
Over the past 1, 3, 5, 7 and 10 year periods, we have acted as counsel for more REIT offerings than any other firm, serving as counsel in 368 REIT offerings with a value of nearly $124 billion. During the period 2013 - 2014, we were counsel on 128 of the 443 public capital markets offerings by REITs.
Sidley lawyers have been very involved in M&A and other business combinations and reorganizations by or among REITs. We have actively participated in organizing, advising and financing REITs for more than 30 years and have been involved in the IPOs of dozens of REITs, both equity and mortgage/specialty finance. We have substantial experience in a wide variety of other REIT securities offerings, including at-the-market (“ATM”) equity programs, Rule 144A initial offerings of common stock, operating partnership units, convertible preferred stock, convertible/exchangeable debt, high-yield debt, remarketed/extendible debt and warrants.
We advise our REIT clients on a broad spectrum of matters apart from offerings of securities, M&A and tax, including: counseling boards of directors and advising on corporate governance; commercial construction and development; 1934 Act filings; environmental; Investment Company Act status; lending; real estate acquisitions and financing; bankruptcy, workouts and restructuring; real estate fund and joint venture formation; leasing; and securitization.
Funds of Funds
We have organized and provide ongoing representation to hundreds of funds of funds and their managers. Our funds of funds clients range from those who are involved with broad-based, multi-strategy and multi-manager funds to funds with more focused funds tailored to specific strategies with a smaller number of managers.
We provide a full range of legal services to our funds of funds clients, including advice on legal structure and other formation issues, securities and derivatives regulatory matters, business term alternatives, marketing arrangements, trading documentation, exchange listing, internet usage and tax and ERISA matters. We also advise with respect to credit facilities and derivatives and exchange-traded overlay programs (such as portable alpha programs) and other structures.
Investment Advisers
Regulation and Compliance
Sidley advises U.S. and non-U.S. investment advisers in matters involving the Investment Company Act of 1940, the Commodity Exchange Act, the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, the USA PATRIOT Act and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). Non-U.S. adviser clients often request guidance relating to questions involving the extraterritorial scope of the Advisers Act and the Commodity Exchange Act.
We also counsel investment advisers in all phases of their businesses and on all aspects of organization, registration and compliance, including the Securities Act of 1933, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act and the Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000.
We advise unregistered advisory firms with respect to the availability and scope of the exemptions from registration under the Advisers Act, such as exemptions for banks, broker-dealers, accountants and advisers with a limited client base.
Investment Adviser Acquisitions, Seed Capital Transactions, Spin-outs and Joint Ventures
Sidley regularly represents buyers, sellers, investors and management teams in a wide variety of merger and acquisition, minority interest, seed capital, spin-out, joint venture and other transactions. The breadth of our experience enables us to handle the full range of issues relating to these transactions, including overall deal structuring, structuring of management compensation programs, ongoing governance arrangements, tax planning, diligence and regulatory work. Given the nature of investment management business, these transactions often involve earn-outs or other contingent payment terms, significant management compensation and retention programs and important governance issues that require thoughtful structuring from an economic, governance, tax and human resources standpoint to meet the objectives of the parties.
Investment Adviser Equity and Debt Offerings
Sidley is uniquely positioned to serve as counsel for IPOs by alternative asset managers due to our investment management industry experience and leadership, capital markets presence and public company client service. We advise investment managers on all aspects of such transactions, including issues relating to public company transparency, holding company structure, shareholders and principals, tax and accounting. Sidley represented the underwriters in the IPO of Fortress Investment Group LLC (NYSE:FIG) and represented Citadel in establishing its $2 billion Rule 144A Medium-Term Note program.
Structured Products
Sidley regularly advises clients on a broad range of innovative structured products in the investment management industry, including credit enhanced funds (including guarantee, letter of credit and other credit enhancement structures), commodity and fund linked notes (both rated and unrated), participation arrangements, equity swaps on funds and indices and collateral debt obligation pools.
Derivatives
Sidley frequently represents hedge fund managers, financial institutions and investors in a broad variety of derivatives transactions, including “repackagings,” structured derivatives, total return swaps, futures, options, private equity CDOs (collateralized fund obligations or CFOs), credit derivatives and synthetic CDOs.
Issues addressed in repackaged securities, structured derivatives and credit derivative transactions have included disclosure requirements, broker-dealer questions and other securities law issues, withholding tax, insurance excise tax and insurance entity-level taxes, bankruptcy or insolvency issues, accounting treatment and pension and insurance regulatory requirements. These issues are generally encountered in a cross-border context in which, through our presence in London, New York, Hong Kong, Chicago and Tokyo, we are positioned to bring cutting-edge experience to bear on behalf of our clients.
Exchange-Traded Derivatives
Sidley represents derivatives exchanges, clearinghouses, their members and end-users of exchange-traded derivatives in complying with the complex regulatory landscape governing both the derivative products themselves and their underlyings.
We advise exchanges and clearinghouses with respect to the classification of certain derivative instruments such as securities, futures or under some other regulatory regime. We draft applications for designation by regulatory bodies as an exchange or clearinghouse as well as regulatory filings for established exchanges and clearinghouses.
We assist trading and brokerage firms seeking to become exchange members with the application process and the drafting and adoption of regulatory compliance manuals. We provide ongoing advice to market-makers and exchange brokers with respect to compliance with the rules of exchanges, clearinghouses, the SEC and the CFTC as well as the commodities and securities laws.
For end-users of derivatives, we advise with respect to position limits and reporting, negotiation of brokerage and “term margin” agreements and other aspects of their businesses.
Over the Counter Derivatives Transactions
Our Investment Funds, Advisers and Derivatives practice serves as the firm’s principal focal point for the structuring and documentation of transactions involving derivatives, including swaps, futures, options, collars, repurchase agreements and participation agreements. These services are utilized by our group’s investment fund clients as well as the firm’s corporate, banking, insurance, securitization and real estate clients.
For example, we regularly represent dealers and end users in credit default swaps on portfolio and single name exposures and asset-backed securities and total return swaps on equity securities, hedge funds, loans, asset-backed securities and other assets. We also represent companies in hedging currency, commodity, credit and interest rate risk through swaps and other derivatives transactions.
In the course of our representations, we negotiate ISDA master agreements, credit support annexes and other industry standard agreements for a broad array of market participants in a wide variety of settings, including private and public offerings of rated securities. Our firm is a member of ISDA, and our firm’s lawyers have been major participants in the development of the OTC derivatives industry, including serving on ISDA drafting committees and task forces. Lawyers within our group regularly appear on and moderate panels sponsored by trade and bar associations, in recognition of our standing within the legal community and of the importance to our practice of making a contribution to the awareness of current developments and concerns for the business community and the public.
Governments Establishing Derivatives Markets
Sidley has been active over the years in advising governments on numerous futures, derivatives, private equity and venture capital-related matters. After working with our clients to develop the first futures funds offered in Japan, we advised both the Japanese Ministry of International Trade and Industry and the Ministry of Finance in drafting commodity fund legislation. Similarly, we advised the government of the Republic of China in drafting a statute to regulate its futures brokerage business.
We advised the government of Mexico concerning the legislation necessary to facilitate the establishment of futures markets in Mexico. We were engaged by the government of Indonesia to draft not only a model statute governing its futures markets but also agency rules and the rules of a proposed futures exchange and its related clearing association.
Securities and Derivatives Regulation
Our lawyers regularly advise our clients on compliance with the complex laws and regulations governing the securities and derivatives industries.
In the United States, these include the Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, the USA PATRIOT Act, the Securities Act of 1933, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Investment Company Act of 1940, the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, the Commodity Exchange Act, the SEC and CFTC regulations thereunder, the rules of the various derivatives exchanges and clearinghouses and other industry self-regulatory organizations and the “Blue Sky” state securities laws. We also assist clients in obtaining no-action and interpretive letters and exemptive orders from the SEC and CFTC and represent interested clients in the legislative and rulemaking process.
Exchanges and Clearing Organizations
Sidley represents securities, futures and options exchanges and clearing organizations in connection with their regulatory and transactional matters.
Representative transactions include obtaining contract market designation and derivatives clearing organization status for a start-up futures exchange, assisting foreign futures exchanges in obtaining approval to place terminals in the United States and to offer non-U.S. futures contracts on stock indexes to U.S. investors, representation of a national securities exchange in connection with its securities listings programs and other matters involving both federal and state securities laws.
We represent securities and futures clearing organizations in connection with every aspect of their operations, including obtaining regulatory approval of new products and innovative programs such as cross-margining arrangements between securities and futures products and links with foreign exchanges.
Our practice involves frequent contact with the Division of Market Regulation of the SEC and the CFTC’s Divisions of Market Oversight and Clearing and Intermediary Oversight. We are involved in the creation of new electronic markets and in many aspects of the fundamental restructuring of the world’s financial markets currently underway.
Financial Services Firms
Sidley provides general corporate representation to a broad range of participants in the financial services and asset management industries, including investment advisers, broker-dealers, commodity pool operators, commodity trading advisors and futures commission merchants.
We advise clients on the formation and structuring of their businesses, internal governance, registration and other regulatory matters, marketing of their products, acquisitions and investments, internet issues, intellectual property protection, arrangements with various service providers and tax and estate planning.
In addition, we represent financial institutions in their roles as placement agents in connection with offerings of investment products.
Institutional Investors
We advise institutional investors, including state pension plans, funds of hedge funds, foreign investors (including foreign governmental entities), college endowments and corporate clients, in connection with their negotiated investments in private equity and venture capital funds, hedge funds and structured investment transactions.
Defending Hedge Funds in Securities and Enforcement Matters
Sidley has extensive experience defending hedge funds and their advisers in securities enforcement matters before the SEC and other regulators. At Sidley, our clients can rely on the talents of veteran securities enforcement litigators, including several former senior enforcement officials from the SEC. Sidley lawyers have defended hedge funds in numerous SEC, NYSE and New York Attorney General investigations.
Sidley’s enforcement defense lawyers work with lawyers in Sidley’s Investment Funds, Advisers and Derivatives practice to provide preventative counseling. Sidley frequently counsels hedge fund advisers concerning issues that present particular enforcement risk such as insider trading, information barriers, use of outside consultants, alleged manipulative practices, short sales and supervision.
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