Over a period of more than 30 years, both in the United States and in Europe, Andrew L. Sommer represented private equity firms, financial service and other companies and their boards of directors on domestic and international acquisitions, dispositions, capital markets transactions and joint ventures. Mr. Sommer is a retired partner and currently of counsel to the firm. He joined Debevoise in 1983 and became a partner in 1991 and the firm’s General Counsel in 2011. Mr. Sommer was based for more than eight years in the firm’s European offices.
From 2000 to 2005, he served as the Managing Partner in the London office. He received his J.D. cum laude from New York University in 1983, where he was a member of the Order of the Coif and of the Journal of International Law and Politics, and received his A.B. from Brown University in 1978. From 1978 to 1980, Mr. Sommer was the Press Officer/Editor of the U.S. Helsinki Watch Committee.
Mr. Sommer has been a frequent author and speaker on legal developments affecting the private equity and insurance industries. He is a contributing author of The Private Equity Primer: The Best of the Debevoise & Plimpton Private Equity Report and the Debevoise & Plimpton Private Equity Report. Publications include “Seeing Through SWFs,” The Deal (January 2009), “Insurance Sidecars,” Private Equity Manager (October 2006), “Welcome to the Club,” The Deal (June 2006), “Vendor Due Diligence Reports — Is It ‘Put Up or Shut Up’ for Buyers in Europe?,” The M&A Lawyer(January 2006) and “Private Equity Investments in Insurance Companies,” Insurance and Investment Management M&A (2008).
Experience:
- Culligan in the sale of its vended water business owned and operated by Culligan Store Solutions, LLC, to Primo Water Corporation.
- Hewitt Associates in the financing aspects of its $4.9 billion merger with Aon Corporation.
- A principal party in its investment in Essent Group Ltd., a Bermuda mortgage insurer and reinsurer.
- Stone Point Capital and Harbor Point in the formation and initial $1.5 billion capitalization of Harbor Point Limited, a global reinsurance company based in Bermuda, and Harbor Point’s acquisition of the ongoing business of Chubb Re, a subsidiary of The Chubb Corporation.
- The D. E. Shaw Group in its $575 million going private acquisition of the James River Group.
- The Blackstone Group, The Carlyle Group, Permira and Providence Equity Partners in their bid for Grupo Auna.
- Providence Equity Partners in a variety of private equity investments, including the €1.73 billion acquisition of Kabel Deutschland by an investor consortium and the €665 million acquisition of Casema Holding.
- Benfield in its $1.75 billion merger with Aon.
- Benfield Group in the formation and $1 billion initial capitalization of Montpelier Re Holdings, and in Benfield’s $179 million acquisition of E.W. Blanch Holdings.
- B.R. Guest in the sale of the company to Starwood Capital Group.
- First Reserve as lead investor in the establishment of Petrel Re, a sidecar reinsurer focused on marine and energy reinsurance that provides reinsurance for Validus Re.
- First Reserve as lead investor in the establishment of Sirocco Re, a sidecar reinsurer focused on Gulf of Mexico offshore energy that provides reinsurance for Lancashire Re.
- Soros Fund Management LLC in the investment by its Soros Strategic Partners, LP fund in Blackstone Financial Group, Inc. and its subsidiary, Narragansett Bay Insurance Company.
- Affiliates of Soros Funds Management LLC in the structuring and capitalization of a reinsurance company that will provide reinsurance to close for Lloyds Syndicates.
Education:
- New York University School of Law, 1983, J.D.
- Brown University, 1978, A.B.
Bar Admissions:
- New York
Cost
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