Alan R. Lyons, Partner

Represent major real estate owner and operator in the formation and organization of a title company.

Represented long-standing client Legends Hospitality in its entry into a share purchase agreement with the private equity firm Sixth Street. Under the share purchase agreement, Sixth Street acquired a controlling interest in Legends Hospitality. This investment will support Legends continued growth as a premium experiences company that specializes in delivering holistic solutions for sports, entertainment and attractions clients. 

In connection with the acquisition, Legends Hospitality (i) issued senior secured long-term notes and (ii) entered into a revolving credit facility and PIK facility. The net proceeds were used to redeem certain outstanding equity securities of Legends Hospitality and for working capital and general corporate purposes.

In order to preserve Legends Hospitality’s liquidity and support its continued investment in accretive, long-term capital projects, affiliates of Sixth Street and other third parties will provide Legends Hospitality with access to funding provided by an investment vehicle. The funding will be used for capital expenditures, pre-opening costs and other disbursements contemplated by contracts entered into by Legends Hospitality.

Represented the shareholders of Michel Design Works Ltd, a leading omni-channel lifestyle brand, in connection with its stock sale to Stonewall Kitchen, a premier specialty food and home goods platform in North America.  Stonewall Kitchen is a portfolio company of Audax Private Equity, which has invested over $7 billion in more than 140 platforms and over 1,000 add-on companies.  

Represented Legends Hospitality Management, LLC in its equity interest acquisition in MainGate, Inc., a leading event retail and merchandise company. The acquisition will create a robust multi-channel retail and e-commerce platform to facilitate the connection between brands and fans.

Represented shareholders in multi-million-dollar sale of assets of an independent medical examination provider (IME). The IME serves insurance carriers, employers, and third-party administrators, to leading provider of IMEs, peer reviews, Medicare compliance, record retrieval, document management and related services, with clients in the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia.  The agreement provided for post-closing employment and restrictive covenants of selling shareholders and key personnel and bonus payments relating to key employee retention.

Successfully defended a global insurance company in an appeal of a summary judgment decision before the Appellate Division, First Department, in which another insurer sought contribution in connection with its $5 million policy limit paid under a contaminated products insurance policy, arising out of the recall of Sabra hummus products. The decision was unanimously affirmed in its entirety by the First Department.

The Eastern District of Tennessee granted summary judgment to our client, a property insurer. The Court held that the commercial property insurance policy at issue was void for lack of an insurable interest following the sale of the covered apartment building by the insured without notifying our client, the policy was not assignable without our client's written consent, and the purchaser was not an assignee or an intended third-party beneficiary of the policy. The purchaser appealed; however, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the District Court’s decision granting summary judgment to our client.

Represented a major national bank and its subsidiary in an insurance coverage dispute involving cash transported in armored cars. A unanimous New York State Appellate Division, First Department panel ruled in favor of our clients, finding that the "in transit" clause of the insurance policy also covered theft by the armored car company's executives while the money was in their vault as part of the contracted-for delivery process.

Represented an insurance producer embroiled in an arbitration with a former client over unpaid commissions. The arbitration resulted in a recovery of over $1 million.

Represented a major Bermudian reinsurer in forming a limited medical benefit indemnity plan for members of an association which included reimbursement for in-patient hospital procedures, surgical benefits, doctor visits, emergency treatment, and accidental death and dismemberment benefits. We helped the reinsurer choose the most appropriate structure to reinsure the plan, drafted the necessary policy and treaty documentation, and analyzed pertinent regulatory issues.

Represented a major European insurer in designing and drafting an insurance policy covering political risks of an insured's non-European operations (for example, forced abandonment of a foreign country due to a governmental evacuation order). We drafted the policy to address the unique risks facing the insured, such as the potential loss of business income due to the cessation of the insured's operations of a railway in Africa. We also designed it to combine other risks such as pollution liability and coverage for the insured's construction projects.

Represented a European insurer in structuring an aggregate declared risk capacity contract under which the insurer provided insurance capacity to one of the world's leading engineering and construction companies for certain lines of insurance, including a cost overrun insurance program for the Channel Tunnel Rail Link.