Greenberg Traurig continues the strategic expansion of its Private Funds Group with the addition of Curtis Stefanak, an experienced fund formation and investment management attorney, as client demand for private investment funds remains strong.
Stefanak, who joins Greenberg Traurig’s New York office from Holland & Knight, focuses his practice on the formation of private equity, real estate, venture capital and hedge funds. He has decades of experience working with U.S. and foreign private investment funds, private and public investment managers and advisers, and counselling them on fund structuring and U.S. securities regulations matters, including requirements under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 and the Investment Company Act of 1940.
“Adding an attorney of Curtis’ caliber further strengthens our broader team of asset management lawyers advising fund clients on a broad range of investment management matters, including fund structuring and formation, as well as regulatory and compliance issues,” said Global Corporate Practice Co-Chairs Peter H. Lieberman and Bruce I. March.
In the past 18 months, Greenberg Traurig has been focused on growing its private funds group, hiring several attorneys including Cynthia A. Marian, a shareholder in the Miami office and previously from Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson, LLP, and Emily Stephens, a shareholder in the Los Angeles office and previously from Oaktree Capital Management. Greenberg Traurig now has attorneys focused on investment management in a wide range of key markets, including Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Northern Virginia, and Orlando. To support client interest in a broad array of private investment fund opportunities, the Private Funds Group collaborates with many practice groups across the firm, including Corporate, Tax, and Real Estate.
“We continue to see tremendous demand from family offices and other sources of private capital in Central and South America looking to form private funds to deploy capital across Latin America, the U.S. and Europe,” said Miami Shareholder Antonio Peña and New York Shareholder Marc M. Rossell, both Co-Chairs of Greenberg Traurig’s Latin America Practice. “Our team has worked with Curtis in the past and know him to be a terrific funds lawyer. We look forward to working with him and our Latin America team on projects across the Americas.”
“Curtis’ experience in forming and advising real estate funds, including public and private REITs, will strengthen our already renowned New York Real Estate Practice,” said Ejim Peter Achi and Scott J. Bornstein, Co-Managing Shareholders of Greenberg Traurig’s New York office, in a joint statement. Achi is also Co-Chair of the New York Corporate Practice, and Bornstein is also Co-Chair of the firm’s global Intellectual Property & Technology Practice.
Stefanak earned his J.D. at Columbia Law School, a M.Phil. in International Relations at Cambridge University, and completed his undergraduate studies at Columbia College. He is admitted to the New York State Bar Association.
“Greenberg Traurig’s highly collaborative culture and global platform attracted me to the firm. I am excited to draw on the firm’s unique collective experience for clients,” Stefanak said. “For instance, working on cross-border equity fund formation requires specialized international tax knowledge. At Greenberg Traurig, we have that knowledge in-house, which streamlines how I work and allows me to better serve client needs.”
Stefanak is also a frequent lecturer on the application of the federal securities laws to non-U.S. funds and advisers and the treatment of real estate fund assets under the Investment Company Act of 1940.