Brian Parness

Brian has broad experience counseling alternative investment management firms on transactions and other matters of strategic importance and is a frequent author and speaker on topics affecting the private equity and alternative asset management industry.

Brian was recently named a 2024 “Rising Star” for Private Equity by Law360 and is included in Lawdragon's “500 Leading Dealmakers in America” and the 2024 “Next Generation” lists. He is also recommended for M&A/Corporate and Commercial: Private Equity Buyouts by Legal 500 US and was named to the 2021 “40 Under 40: Future Leaders of Private Equity” list by Private Equity International, where he was only one of just four honorees from leading law firms recognized. Brian was also named a 2022 “Emerging Leader” by The M&A Advisor and a 2022 “Rising Star” for M&A by Expert Guides. Brian was named a 2020 Secondaries “Next Generation Leader” by Secondaries Investor, where clients note he is “…a star and would not consider a transaction without him as counsel.”

Prior to joining Weil, Brian spent over six years at Goldman Sachs where he was responsible for executing strategic M&A on behalf of Goldman Sachs Asset Management and advised multiple business units (growth equity, secondaries and GP-stakes) on investing activities and private fund matters.

Experience*

Asset Management and Financial Services

• Regular representation of sponsors and the “buy-side” on GP-led secondary transactions and GP-stake sales
• Brookfield Asset Management in various matters, including:
• the separation of Brookfield Corporation and Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. and the listing of a 25% interest in Brookfield Asset Management Ltd, resulting in a standalone asset management business with a $50 billion market capitalization as of the separation date
• the $4.8 billion acquisition of a 61.2% stake in Oaktree Capital Group, LLC
• the acquisition of DWS’ Private Equity Secondaries business
• Goldman Sachs in various matters, including:
• the sale of Marcus Invest’s digital investing account business to Betterment LLC
• the $1.04 billion equity investment and subordinated debt financing in World Insurance Associates LLC in a transaction that implies a World Insurance enterprise value of approximately $3.4 billion
• the sale of its Personal Financial Management unit to wealth management firm Creative Planning
• as the founding and largest shareholder of Global Atlantic Financial Group Limited, in KKR’s acquisition of a controlling interest in Global Atlantic in a transaction valued at approximately $4.7 billion
• the acquisition of NextCapital Group, Inc.
• the acquisitions of Rocaton Investment Advisors, Aptitude Investment Management, Honest Dollar, Imprint Capital, Pacific Global Advisors’ OCIO business, Verus Investors’ OCIO business and Deutche Bank’s stable value business and the dispositions of GSAM Australia’s equity business to TA Associates and GSAM India’s mutual fund business to Reliance Capital (as in-house counsel)
• TPG in various matters, including:
• its approximately $2.7 billion acquisition of Angelo, Gordon & Co., L.P.
• its $1.1 billion initial public offering and related reorganization and governance matters
• its agreement with Sixth Street Partners, to become independent, unaffiliated businesses, with TPG retaining a passive minority economic stake in Sixth Street
• its TPG NEXT platform
• Altamont Capital Partners in its close of its first continuation fund extending its investment and partnership with Tacala Companies
• Blue Owl Strategic Equity in a syndicate of investors in a continuation fund led by Kelso & Company Capital
• British Columbia Investment Management Corporation (BCI) in the sale of European-focused alternative asset management firm Hayfin Capital Management to Arctos Partners
• Sculptor Capital Management Inc. in its sale to Rithm Capital Corp.
• CBAM in the sale of a portfolio of its assets to The Carlyle Group, in a transaction valued at approximately $800 million
• Genstar Capital, together with TA Associates, in the acquisition of Orion Advisor Solutions and the simultaneous acquisition of Brinker Capital
• InfraRed Capital Partners in its $396 million sale of a majority stake to Sun Life Financial Inc.
• Thomas H. Lee Partners in the sale of THL Credit Advisors LLC to First Eagle Investment Management, LLC
• Allied Capital Corp. in its $650 million all-stock merger with Ares Capital Corporation
• IPC Holdings in its $1.7 billion sale to Validus Holdings
• Sempra Energy in the sale of its RBS-Sempra natural gas and power trading joint venture to J.P. Morgan

Consumer

• AB InBev in connection with its sale of Busch Entertainment to Blackstone for $2.3 billion
• Bridgeport Partners, as co-investor with Orangewood Partners, in Orangewood’s acquisition of Pacific Bells, LLC
• Campbell Soup Company in its $2.2 billion sale of Campbell International to KKR and its sale of Kelsen Group A/S
• Gildan Activewear in connection with its acquisitions of GoldToe Moretz from Blackstone for $350 million and its acquisition of Anvil for $88 million
• Stripes Group, as sponsor, in the formation of Stripes Continuation Fund I, LP and in such fund's single asset acquisition of Stella & Chewy’s, LLC

Healthcare

• Alcon and Alcon’s independent directors in connection with its sale of Nestle’s Alcon stake to Novartis and Novartis’ acquisition of the remaining publicly held minority interest in Alcon for $52.9 billion
• Avista Healthcare Partners in the acquisition of WellSpring Consumer Healthcare and WellSpring’s subsequent add-on acquisitions of a portfolio of over-the-counter skin care brands including A+D, Solarcaine, Cortate and Complex 15 from Bayer AG and vH essentials from Wisconsin Pharmacal Company
• Cimarron Healthcare Capital in the formation of a single asset continuation vehicle for Advanced Medical Pricing Solutions Inc.
• UnitedHealth in connection with its acquisition of XLHealth from Matlin Paterson

TMT

• AT&T in the sale of its Advertising Solutions and AT&T Interactive businesses to Cerberus
• CIC International, Boyu and CITIC Capital, as lead investors, in connection with the equity financing of Alibaba’s repurchase of Yahoo!’s stake in Alibaba
• GS Acquisition Holdings Corp II, a SPAC sponsored by an affiliate of Goldman Sachs, in its $2.6 billion business combination with Mirion Technologies, Inc. (at the time, a portfolio company of Charterhouse Capital Partners)
• Verifone Systems in its $1 billion acquisition of Point and the acquisitions of ChargeSmart, Global Bay Mobile Technologies and the assets of Show Media 

Brian received his J.D., magna cum laude and as a member of the Order of the Coif, from New York University School of Law and his B.A., magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa, from the University of Delaware.

*Includes matters handled prior to joining Weil.