Tara M. Lancaster is a tax associate in the Tax, Benefits, and Executive Compensation Department of the firm’s Dallas office. Her practice covers a broad range of international and domestic transactions, including mergers, acquisitions, minority investments, divestitures, and recapitalizations, for private equity funds and their portfolio companies, as well as the firm’s publicly held clients. Ms. Lancaster also has been involved in advising clients with respect to debt and equity offerings and non-profit formation and operations.
Ms. Lancaster was recently part of the team of Weil attorneys representing affiliates of HM Capital Partners in a complex secondary private equity transaction involving the sale of the entire portfolio of food and consumer products investments of HM Capital’s Sector Performance Fund to Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) and a simultaneous $468 million investment from a subsidiary of CPPIB in the purchasing entities. She was also part of the team advising Berkshire Partners in a number of recent transactions, including its:
- Acquisition of SRS Distribution, the fourth largest residential roofing distributor in the US, from ARA Investors;
- Acquisition of Canada-based Farm Boy, an innovative food retailer with private label products and 13 stores in the Greater Ottawa, Cornwall and Kingston regions; and
- Acquisition of a majority interest in Torrec Pooling, a joint venture with an affiliate of Torrecom Partners LLC formed for the purpose of operating a Latin American cellular tower business, and Torrec Pooling’s follow-on acquisition of a portfolio of over 400 Chilean cellular towers from Spain-based Telefonica Moviles S.A. (a subsidiary of publicly listed Telefonica S.A.).
In addition, Ms. Lancaster was involved in the firm’s representation of private equity firm Centerbridge Partners on an agreement to take P.F. Chang’s China Bistro Inc. private in a leveraged buyout deal valued at $1.1 billion. She also participated in advising Citadel Broadcasting Corporation, the third-largest radio group in the US, in its $2.5 billion merger with Cumulus Media, Inc. The transaction was named by The Deal as one of the top M&A transactions for 2011 based on degree of difficulty or complexity. Ms. Lancaster has also been involved in advising other leading private equity firms, including Thomas H. Lee Partners, Providence Equity Partners, and Advent International.
Ms. Lancaster is currently a member of the firm’s Professional Development Committee. She is also an active member of the firm’s Women@Weil program and participates in the firm’s pro bono efforts, including serving as a member of the Dallas office’s Pro Bono Committee. Ms. Lancaster is a member of the Dallas Bar Association, Dallas Women Lawyers Association, and Attorneys Serving the Community.