Paul Kariyawasam

PAUL KARIYAWASAM counsels clients on intellectual property, technology, cybersecurity, and data privacy aspects of corporate transactions. His practice focuses on carve-out transactions, mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, and private equity, and venture capital investments. Additionally, Paul advises companies at all growth stages on licensing, software, and other intellectual property development matters, including IP transfer protocols and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) licensing agreements. Paul further assists clients on data privacy compliance matters (including with respect to the California Consumer Privacy Act and the California Privacy Rights Act).

Prior to focusing on technology and IP transactions, Paul worked as a corporate generalist to counsel private equity investors, acquisition targets and portfolio companies on complex transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, debt and equity restructurings, recapitalizations, minority investments, investment exists, and executive compensation and equity incentive arrangements. Paul advised companies from a wide variety of industries, including retail, consumer products, professional services, logistics, transportation, and technology.

Prior to his legal career, Paul worked as an asset manager and investment counsellor for high-net-worth private clients, advising on circumstance and goal-appropriate investment strategies, allocations, and decisions.

Paul’s experience includes counselling:

• A healthcare provider in connection with its multi-billion-dollar divestiture of geography-specific operations and Medicare Advantage and Medicaid plans, as well as licensing of proprietary healthcare ecosystem software and associated intellectual property.
• An educational software provider on its inbound growth equity investment, as well as data security and privacy matters.
• A private equity client in connection with its investment in a fire prevention and safety products and services company.

*The above matters were handled prior to joining Sidley.

• Counselled client on successful grant of asylum in the United States.