Dawson Kirkland

Dawson joined Smith Anderson in 2021, where her practice focuses on corporate and transactional law, advising public and private clients of all sizes on mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, equity investments, corporate governance and other business law matters across a variety of industries.

Prior to joining Smith Anderson, Dawson practiced law at a large international law firm in New York City, where her practice focused on advising private equity funds and their portfolio companies on a wide variety of domestic and cross-border transactions, including acquisitions, divestitures, growth capital investments, debt and equity financings and corporate restructurings.

Recognition

• Editor and Academic Events Committee Member, New York University Journal of Law and Business

Clerkships

• Summer Law Clerk to the Honorable Chief Justice Mark Martin, Supreme Court of North Carolina

Education

• New York University School of Law, J.D., 2018
  • Dean’s Scholarship
• University of Virginia, B.A. with distinction, 2015

Bar & Court Admissions

• Director, Board of Directors, FoodRunners Collaborative (2023-present) 
• New York University School of Law
  • Mentor, Women’s Mentorship Program
  • Member, Alumni Association
• University of Virginia
  • Mentor, Virginia Alumni Mentoring
  • Member, Alumni Association

• Represented a Nasdaq-listed bank holding company in its assumption of all customer deposits and certain other liabilities, and acquisition of substantially all loans and certain other assets, of a bridge bank, as successor to the failed bank subsidiary of a Nasdaq-listed bank holding company, from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, as receiver for the bridge bank.
• Advised a provider of clinical trial contracting and payment services, and its investors, in its merger with a provider of complementary services.
• Advised the majority owner of a leading provider of retail staffing services in a definitive agreement to sell his interest to the company in a management buyout.
• Advised a leading pharmaceutical and biotech contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) in a definitive agreement to acquire a preferred provider of cGMP Biostorage and pharma support services for an undisclosed amount.

Prior to joining to Smith Anderson, Dawson:

Private Equity M&A

• Advised a global information technology company in its $9.5 billion sale to an international data and technology conglomerate.
• Advised a private equity fund on its acquisition of a leading Software-as-a-Service provider.
• Advised a private equity fund in its acquisition of a telehealth provider.
• Advised a leading provider of eye health services in its sale to a private equity fund.
• Advised a leading breakfast food brand in its sale to a private equity fund.
• Advised a private equity fund in its acquisition of an all-natural frozen foods company.
• Advised a software company in its acquisition of global provider of workforce management software.
• Advised a private equity fund in its growth capital investment in a healthcare technology company.
• Advised a private equity fund in its acquisition of a welding and turnarounds company.
• Advised a computer security company in its raise of over $300 million in growth financing.

Public Companies M&A and Capital Markets

• Advised a consortium of investors in connection with the $6.9 billion acquisition of a global leader in commercial data and analytics.
• Advised a leading American telecommunications and mass media company in multiple bond offerings.
• Advised a leading global packaging company in its $6.8 billion acquisition of a global flexible plastics manufacturer.
• Advised an American health insurance company in its $17.3 billion sale to a publicly traded managed care company.

Debt Finance

• Advised a leading airline on their $5 billion funding from U.S. Treasury under the CARES Act Payroll Support Program and on their $2.6 billion funding from U.S. Treasury under the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021.
• Advised several private equity funds on the financing for their platform acquisitions and subsequent add-on transactions.

Restructuring

• Advised a multinational satellite services provider in connection with their Chapter 11 cases in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court.