Erik J. Lindemann

Prior to joining Willkie in 2021, Erik worked at other major international firms based out of New York and California where he advised key clients on international legal, regulatory and business issues. Prior to entering the field of law, he had careers in the energy, technology and military/defense sectors, gaining a broad range of geographical experience, including across Europe, the former Soviet Union, Central Asia and the Far East. During the post-9/11 Gulf War, Erik was an officer in the United States Navy on multiple deployments to the Arabian Gulf from 2001 to 2004.

Erik formerly served as Secretary for the Committee on Military Affairs and Justice for the New York City Bar Association, providing pro bono advice and support on projects including veterans' rights, military justice and public policy. He also served as pro bono advisor on the formation and incorporation of multiple international non-profit organizations and negotiated cross-border development projects on behalf of international NGOs.

Erik’s previous pro bono matters also include representation of a single mother from a disadvantaged Bronx community, arguing an appeal from a family court finding of abuse and neglect before the New York State Appellate Division, First Department.

• Official Civilian Legal Observer at the Military Commission in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba for the pre-trial hearings in United States v. Kadi and United States v. Khalid Sheik Mohammed, et al., charged with conspiracy for the 9/11 attacks
• Guest lecturer at various New York area colleges and universities on Public International Law, Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, and the Laws of War
• International Humanitarian Law (IHL) Course Instructor for the American Red Cross

Erik has advised on the following selected significant matters*:

STRATEGIC MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS

• Core M&A attorney advising CMA CGM Group in its acquisition of most of Ingram Micro’s Commerce & Lifecycle Services business, valued at $3 billion
• Advised Intel Corporation on numerous private acquisitions of foreign and domestic software and artificial intelligence companies with deal values ranging between $45 million and $2 billion, including:
  • Lead M&A attorney on Intel’s acquisition of Accessible Labs Ltd., an Israel-based company owning Cnvrg.io, a machine learning platform to build and deploy artificial intelligence models at scale
  • Lead M&A attorney on Intel’s acquisition of Rivet Networks LLC, a Texas-based maker of the Killer-branded gaming Wi-Fi network interface cards
  • Core M&A attorney on Intel’s acquisition of Habana Labs Ltd., an Israel-based developer of artificial intelligence and programmable deep learning accelerators
  • Lead M&A attorney on Intel’s investment in, and asset sale to, North Inc. (formerly Thalmic Labs, Inc.), an Ontario corporation producing wearable technology
• Core M&A attorney advising Altice N.V., a French multinational telecommunications company on its $18 billion public acquisition of Cablevision Systems Corporation, one of the largest TV, phone and internet cable operators in the U.S. under the Optimum brand
• Lead senior counsel to the special committee of the board of directors of Tilray, Inc., a publicly-traded cannabis company, in a $3 billion restructuring and merger with its parent company, Privateer Holdings, Inc.
• Lead attorney supervising teams of international counsel in connection with the $130 billion merger of The Dow Chemical Company and du Pont de Nemours Company (DuPont) in regulatory divestitures, corporate restructuring, and service and support agreements in connection with subsequent spin-offs
• Key counsel to HeartWare International Inc., a medical device manufacturer, in negotiating and selling the company in a $1.1 billion public tender offer and merger to Medtronic plc
• Lead global attorney managing all aspects of a seven-fund asset purchase across six jurisdictions on three continents on behalf of J.P. Morgan Asset Management
• Lead attorney advising the Abu Dhabi sovereign Mubadala Investment Company on the termination and wind-up of a joint venture with a General Electric (GE) subsidiary
• Lead U.S. attorney to DeLonghi Industrial S.A., an Italian appliance manufacturer, in a bid to acquire Wilbur Curtis Co., Inc. a California-based manufacturer of coffee and commercial beverage systems
• Represented founder and family interests in a bid for private takeover and eventual forced sale of family-owned Supreme Oil Company, a producer of foodservice oils and ingredients to Stratas Foods LLC
• Advised Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (ICE) in a merger and joint venture acquisition with a consortium of financial institutions of MERSCORP Holdings, Inc., a financial services company in the mortgage industry
• Advised Raytheon Company in the acquisition of certain software and firewall products from Intel Corporation
• Represented Sportech Games Holdco LLC in a proposed joint venture with NYX Social Gaming LLC in the digital gaming and online gambling industry

PRIVATE EQUITY AND VENTURE CAPITAL TRANSACTIONS

• Key advisor to OMERS Infrastructure Management, Inc., one of Canada’s largest pension funds, in its acquisition of Leeward Renewable Energy LLC, a multi-state wind turbine energy producer, from ArcLight Capital Partners
• Key advisor to Francisco Partners private equity funds on corporate reorganization of, and Series A investment in, Perforce Software Holdings, Inc., providing scalable enterprise version and file management systems
• Key advisor to Vector Capital private equity funds on a merger and limited partnership in connection with an investment in MoxieWorks, LLC, an online real estate platform for residential brokerages in the Pacific Northwest
• Lead counsel advising the sovereign Qatar Free Zones Authority on a Series E investment in Tradeshift Holdings, Inc., a Delaware holding company, in connection with formation of a joint venture in the Qatar Free Trade Zone
• Lead U.S. attorney advising HB Reavis Group B.V. on its participation in Series A and Series A-1 investment rounds in The Cambridge Incubator, LLC, and its formation of an associated U.S. investment vehicle
• Lead U.S. attorney advising Russian investors Romsfort Limited, Diginavis LLC and ERA Capital on potential participation in debt and equity investments in satellite and space communications company, OneWeb Global Ltd.
• Advisor to the China Investment Corporation in the corporate aspects of Brookfield Property Partners’ acquisition of GGP Inc., a commercial real estate company and the second-largest shopping mall operator in the U.S.
• Advised Centerview Partners LLC in connection with the acquisition of outdoor marketing and billboard assets by Lamar Media Corp. and Fairway Media Group, LLC from Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc.

GENERAL CORPORATE

• Key U.S. advisor to the Hewlett-Packard Company in its $50 billion split into HP Inc. (HPQ) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company (HPE) as well as the demerger, spin-off and corporate restructuring of its worldwide subsidiaries, including management of its critical supply and customer commercial contracts
• Lead advisor to HeartWare International Inc., in drafting and filing periodic and special reports with the SEC and evaluating public disclosure requirements
• Lead advisor to the general counsel and board of a public medical device company in responding to activist hedge fund investors and drafting corporate governance documents, committee charters and a poison pill
• Core advisor to Fallbrook Technologies, Inc. in drafting and negotiating shareholder agreements and associated documents in connection with its bankruptcy proceedings
• Advised Morgan Stanley & Co on fairness opinions in connection with Samsonite International S.A.’s acquisition of Tumi Holdings Inc. and Fox Paine Capital Fund II’s acquisition of shares in Global Indemnity plc
• Advised Temasek Holdings Private Limited, a Singapore company, on certain SEC and other public filing requirements in connection with investments in Amyris, Inc., a U.S. public industrial biotechnology company
• Supervised teams of attorneys in analyzing U.S. elements of multiple international M&A transactions, including carve-ins/carve-outs and intellectual property, environmental, regulatory and corporate matters
• Directed and supervised analysis of intellectual property rights on multiple deals involving over 5000 IP contracts in the information technology, automotive, medical and veterinary sectors

INTERNATIONAL ARBITRATION, INTERNAL INVESTIGATIONS AND LITIGATION

• Represented a U.S. oil major in an international arbitration before ICSID (World Bank), relating to the multi-billion-dollar quantum determination of damages for expropriation of investment in South America
• Defended a major U.S. luxury jeweler in a multi-billion-dollar international commercial arbitration at the Netherlands Arbitration Institute relating to a joint venture with a major Swiss watchmaker
• Conducted internal investigations to develop the anti-money-laundering (AML) and know-your-customer (KYC) compliance programs at a major international bank due to deficiencies in the detection and reporting of financial crimes to regulators including the OCC (U.S.), OSFI (Canada) and FCA (UK)
• Instructed and coordinated country counsel in over 20 jurisdictions in the daily monitoring of a major investment bank’s exposure to the insolvency proceedings of MF Global and its worldwide subsidiaries

INTERNATIONAL SANCTIONS AND TRADE CONTROL ADVISORY MATTERS

• Advised on regulatory affairs involving U.S., UN and EU sanctions and trade control enforcement by the U.S. Office of Foreign Asset Control and the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Industry and Security
• Advised key international clients on the daily developments of U.S. and EU sanctions on Russian and Ukrainian persons arising out of the conflicts in the Crimea and Eastern Ukraine

PRO BONO

• Independent legal observer attending the U.S. Military Commissions in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, representing the New York City Bar Association evaluating pre-trial hearings in the ongoing 9/11 bombing and Al-Qaeda terrorism trials of: (a) United States v. Khalid Sheik Mohammed, et. al and (b) United States v. Hadi
• Lead outside counsel to Pure Earth/Blacksmith Institute in establishing the corporate structure and formation in Switzerland of an independent international non-profit with members including national governments and multinational organizations
• Advised non-profit FilmAid International on legal aspects of international projects including drafting of agreements enabling local projects for Syrian refugees in Jordan and joint venture operations in Asia
• Drafted legal position for the International Committee of the Red Cross and Red Crescent (ICRC) relating to internet domain name protection and preservation of IP rights for international organizations
• Professionally certified course instructor for the American Red Cross teaching classes to United Nations and other public personnel on International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and the Law of Armed Conflict
• Sole counsel representing a single mother from a disadvantaged Bronx community in a written appeal from a family court finding of abuse and neglect of her infant daughter and an oral argument before a panel of five justices at the First Department, New York State Appellate Division
• Advised, drafted and executed end of life documents for disabled and low-income veterans through the New York City Bar Justice Center’s Veterans Assistance Project
• Advised homeless and low-income disabled veterans on disability claims as a VA Accredited Attorney before the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs through programs such as the biannual East Bay Stand Down Legal Clinic

* Erik advised on these matters prior to joining Willkie.