M&A - It's Elementary!: A Plain English Guide to Mergers and Acquisitions From Kickoff to Closing

To date, most books about Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) have been written for serious professionals, those whose needs are both very advanced and very specific. With M&A – It’s Elementary! there is finally a book for those who only deal with mergers and acquisitions on an occasional basis, and who are looking for step-by-step directions for every basic circumstance. Included are such comprehensive topics as: • The three structures most commonly used in M&A transactions. • The members of the M&A team and what their roles are. • What is involved in due diligence. • The key provisions of an acquisition agreement. • How tender offers are made. • How to acquire assets from companies that are in or close to bankruptcy. Full of key fundamental facts, M&A – It’s Elementary! demystifies the Mergers & Acquisitions process and provides all the information necessary to build a knowledge base and professional skills. Intended for lawyers and non-lawyers alike, M&A – It’s Elementary! covers the subject from kick-off to closing, enabling everyone to navigate the process with insight and confidence.

Michael Braun is head of the New York office's Corporate Group and acts as office co-chair of the Japan Practice Group. Mr. Braun is a transactional attorney whose practice focuses on U.S.-based transactional and advisory work, mostly on behalf of Asian and European companies, including many Japanese companies. Mr. Braun represents some of Japan's largest companies in their U.S. transactions, including mergers & acquisitions, joint ventures,collaboration and other strategic alliences and corporate investments. He also works with other foreign-based and U.S. companies interested in securing strategic investments and alliances around the world. Mr. Braun's clients include global aerospace, retail, real estate, printing, food and beverages, and pharmaceutical/biotechnology businesses. In the last five years, Mr. Braun assisted numerous Japanese companies in the pharmaceutical, life science and technology sectors in connection with their acquisitions in the U.S. of both private and public companies. He also has counseled them regarding numerous venture capital and private investments in emerging companies, focusing on drug delivery, medical devices, and medical diagnostic products as well as new pharmaceutical products. Mr. Braun was born and raised in Tokyo, Japan and speaks fluent Japanese. Craigh Leonard is Senior Of Counsel in the New York office of Morrison & Foerster, where he is a member of the Corporate Group. Mr. Leonard has expertise in a wide range of transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, public offerings and private placements, senior and subordinated debt financings, senior management compensation arrangements, private equity and venture capital investments, and corporate restructurings. He has an extensive deal experience on behalf of top consumer brands and over 25 years of experience handling all manner of corporate finance engagements, including frequent international ventures. Michael O. Braun and Craigh Leonard are M&A attorneys at Morrison and Foerster LLP, a leading international law firm that is frequently listed in the top rankings of M&A firms worldwide. They each have over thirty years experience advising both buyers and sellers in M&A transactions, and recently they were the principal advisors to the first Japanese company ever to launch and complete a hostile tender offer for a U.S. company.