(May 29, 2012, Weil News)
Weil, Gotshal & Manges represented Thomas H. Lee Partners, LP on its agreement to purchase Fogo de Chão Churrascaria (Holdings), LLC, a chain of fine dining, full-service restaurants headquartered in Dallas, Texas, from GP Investments, Ltd. Terms of the transaction, which is expected to close in the third quarter 2012, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions, were not immediately disclosed.
Fogo de Chão has eighteen Southern Brazilian steakhouses, or churrascarias, located throughout the US and seven in Brazil. GP Investments, a major Latin American private-equity firm, purchased the restaurant company in 2006.
Thomas H. Lee Partners is a leading private equity firm that focuses its investments on growth-oriented global businesses. Since its founding in 1974, it has raised approximately $22 billion of equity capital and invested in more than 100 businesses with an aggregate purchase price of more than $150 billion.
The Weil team on this deal was led by Corporate partners Harvey Eisenberg and Shayla Harlev and included Corporate associates Ben Bodamer, Jocelyn Kanoff, Mariel Dator, and Jakub Wronski; Banking partner Kelly Dybala and associate Banks Bruce; Environmental Transactions partner Annemargaret Connolly and associate Thomas Goslin; Technology & IP Transaction counsel Arlene Hahn and associate Eric Leventhal; Real Estate associate Lynn Bodkin; Benefits partners Andrew Gaines and Michael Nissan, and associates Gregory Burns and Kate Napalkova; Tax partners Marc Silberberg, Jared Rusman and David Bower, and associates Max Goodman and Mark Dundon; Employment partner Gary Friedman and associate Celine Chan; Regulatory partners Patrick O’Toole and Steve Tyrrell, and associates Eileen Citron, Lisa Cloutier and Neil Vaishnav; and Antitrust specialist Joseph Rafferty.
This news was reported in the following outlets (may require registration/subscription):
- Latin Lawyer: Latin America’s private equity dealmakers (November 26, 2012)