The arrival of Tom Hughes was featured in Crains Chicago Business, Law360, Law360 Pulse, Bloomberg Law, Bloomberg Tax, CityBiz, Reuters Daily Docket, Reuters Afternoon Docket, Bloomberg Wake Up Call, Chicago Daily Law Bulletin, Corporate Counsel Business Journal, Westlaw Today, and Attorney at Law.
Tom Hughes joined the firm’s Corporate Practice Group in Chicago as a partner. Mr. Hughes brings more than two decades of experience advising public and private companies, private equity firms, sovereign funds, family offices, and independent sponsors on complex U.S. and cross-border mergers and acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, and strategic investments.
Mr. Hughes leads major domestic and international transactions, representing clients across a broad range of industries. He has served as first-chair M&A counsel on a variety of deal types and transaction values, ranging from a distressed sale of a global business to private strategic and private equity transactions ranging in purchase prices from under $20 million to over $2 billion, and numerous multi-billion-dollar U.S. and cross-border public company acquisitions. He has successfully advised clients in both winning and defending contested acquisitions. Over the course of his legal career, he has participated as lead counsel in hundreds of transactions, with an aggregate value in excess of $225 billion. In addition to his transactional practice, he advises on corporate governance, securities law, and regulatory compliance. Mr. Hughes previously practiced for over a decade in the M&A group of a top-tier Am Law 5 firm in New York and remains a New York-licensed attorney.
"We are excited to have Tom join our corporate team," said Lisa Tavares, a co-chair of Venable’s Business Division. "Tom’s arrival demonstrates our continued success and commitment to growing Venable’s transactional service offerings in Chicago with top talent."
Mr. Hughes joins Chicago Corporate Practice Group partner Ted Keim, who focuses his practice on transactional and advisory work for a broad range of public and privately held companies across a wide spectrum of industries.
"I’m excited to join Venable and partner with Ted and the rest of the outstanding team to establish a premier M&A practice here in Chicago," said Mr. Hughes. "The firm’s cutting-edge IP work, deep government and regulatory expertise, and leading corporate, private equity, REIT, and tax practices align perfectly with my experience and allow me to provide even greater value to clients navigating complex transactions. In addition, the firm’s authentic, collaborative culture and focus on continuing growth in Chicago were important factors in my decision to join."
Mr. Hughes earned his J.D. cum laude from the University of Michigan Law School, where he was a Clarence Darrow Scholar and served as a contributing editor of the Michigan Law Review. He holds both a master’s and bachelor’s degree, magna cum laude, in industrial and operations engineering from the University of Michigan, and he is a member of the inaugural Engineering Global Leadership (EGL) honors program.
“Tom is a great addition to our Chicago team of attorneys and professionals, and he will help strengthen our ability to meet our clients’ needs,” said Ken Roberts, partner-in-charge of Venable’s Chicago office. “We are excited to continue our steady and deliberate growth in Chicago."
This year, Venable’s Chicago office celebrates its fifth anniversary and the firm’s 125th. Read more about the history and future of the Chicago office here.