John Brunjes
Partner | Private Investment Funds Group of Bracewell & Giuliani
Experience
John Brunjes is a partner in the Private Investment Funds Group of
Bracewell & Giuliani, resident in the Connecticut office, and
head of the Fund Formation practice.
John handles a wide variety of transactional corporate and securities
law matters for institutional and individual investors, investment
funds and their managers, as well as for public and private operating
companies. His practice focuses on hedge fund, private equity, venture
capital fund formation and operational issues, and illiquid investment
transactions, with particular emphasis on advising private domestic
and offshore capital pools and their stakeholders. He also advises
investment advisers, fund managers, and operating companies on state,
federal, and international compliance and enforcement considerations.
His investor clients include individuals on the Forbes 400, family
offices, ERISA-regulated investors, funds of funds, and other qualified
purchasers and qualified institutional buyers. He is a member of the
Board of Directors of the Connecticut Hedge Fund Association.
In the managed funds sector, John has formed and represents institutionally-sponsored
and entrepreneur-organized hedge funds ranging in size from smaller
funds with state-registered advisers, to larger domestic and international
funds and funds of funds with billions of dollars in assets under
management, employing diverse equity, debt, and risk arbitrage strategies
in structures ranging from simple domestic investment vehicles to
multi-tiered offshore masterfeeder complexes. On the operational side,
he works hand-in-hand with managed funds clients on navigating the
full gamut of securities laws impacted by their marketplace activities.
John frequently advises fund managers on investment advisory, prime
brokerage, and professional service relationships, as well as relations
with their investors and affiliates. He has represented both Boards
of Directors and Fund investors in connection with high-profile SEC
and CFTC enforcement and seizure actions.
In the venture capital and private equity arena, John has formed venture
capital and private equity funds and has closed close to 100 private
equity transactions since 2000, resulting in the transfer of hundreds
of millions of dollars between enterprises and stakeholders, often
coupled with substantial cash liquidity events for founders and management.
He represents public investors, venture capital and buyout funds,
SBICs, investment banks, broker-dealers, private enterprises and their
founders/principals in the full range of investment transactions from
seed through later stage equity and debt investments; PIPE financings;
mergers, acquisitions and divestitures; IPOs and public offerings
of equity and debt; buyouts, roll-ups, and recapitalizations; and
joint ventures and strategic alliances. He has negotiated and structured
formation documents for private equity funds organized as SBICs, and
represents SBIC licensees in connection with their licensing, fund
raising, regulatory compliance and investment transactions.
John is a member of the Banking Commissioner's Securities Advisory
Council, and from 1990-1995 he served as an Assistant Attorney General
in the Finance and Antitrust Divisions under Connecticut Attorney
General Richard Blumenthal. He is a frequent panelist at hedge fund
industry conferences worldwide.
Publications and Speeches
Co-author, "Obama Proposals Could Have Major Impact On Private
Fund Managers," FINalternatives, June 24, 2009.
Testified before the Senate Banking Committeeon new bills that would
dramatically reverse Connecticut's longstanding hands-off approach
to regulating its once booming but now shaky hedge fund industry.
February 27, 2009.
"More banks may become private."USA Today, January 5, 2009.
"John Brunjes, head of the fund formation practice in the Hartford,
Conn., office of Houston's Bracewell & Giuliani, recently gave
a presentation on the difficulties of regulating pension fund participation
in hedge funds at the U.S. Department of Labor, which oversees the
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)." The National
Law Journal. December 1, 2008.
Education
J.D., Cornell Law School, 1989
A.B., cum laude, Colgate University, 1984
Affiliations
American Bar Association
Connecticut Banking Commissioner's Securities Advisory Council
Connecticut Bar Association, Financial Institutions Section Vice Chairman
Connecticut Hedge Fund Association, Counsel Member, Board of Directors
Connecticut Venture Group, Board of Directors
Hartford County Bar Association
Managed Funds Association
National Association of Corporate Directors
National Association of State Treasurers
National Association of SBICs
New England Regional Association of SBICs
New York Capital Roundtable
New York Venture Group
Berkshire County (MA) Chamber of Commerce
Noteworthy
Super Lawyers, Corporate Counsel Edition, 2009
Related Practices
Private Investment Funds
Bank & Financial Institutions
Corporate and Securities
Bar Admissions
Connecticut
New York
Massachusetts
Court Admissions
U.S. District Court Connecticut
Funds
Conference Presentation
The
View from Washington: Survey of Major 2009 Fund Legislation and Enforcement
Trends | PowerPoint Presentation
