Billy Phalen

Billy’s experience spans a broad spectrum of critical regulatory areas, including:

• Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS): Providing clients strategic CFIUS advice, including by assessing CFIUS risk in the early stages of a transaction, guiding clients through the preparation and submission of CFIUS filings, advising on ongoing compliance with mitigation agreements or conditions and helping clients respond to non-notified inquiries from CFIUS.
• Outbound Investment Security Program: Counseling private equity sponsors and limited partners on emerging regulations and policies governing U.S. investments in sensitive foreign technologies and industries.
• International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR): Guiding clients through the complexities of U.S. export controls on defense articles and services, including licensing, compliance and enforcement matters.
• Sanctions: Providing strategic advice on compliance with U.S. and international sanctions programs administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and other global authorities, including transactional due diligence and enforcement defense.
• Export/Import Controls: Counseling on the full range of export administration regulations (EAR) and import restrictions, helping clients manage compliance risks related to dual-use technologies, controlled items and sanctioned parties.
• Anti-Bribery & Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Laws and Regulations: Developing and advising on compliance programs related to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), the UK Bribery Act and global anti-money laundering frameworks.
• Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA): Advising on national industrial security regulations, including Foreign Ownership, Control, or Influence (FOCI) mitigation strategies for sponsors and their portfolio companies.

Clients rely on Billy's pragmatic approach, honed through extensive experience in high-stakes transactions and complex regulatory investigations. He is adept at anticipating regulatory challenges, structuring deals to minimize risk and effectively advocating before U.S. government agencies, including the Departments of Treasury, Defense, Commerce and State.

Representative Experience*

• Brookfield, through its Super-Core Infrastructure strategy, in its $6 billion investment in Duke Energy Florida
• KKR in its $6.1 billion take private of British precision instrument maker Spectris plc 
• Pye-Barker Fire & Safety in securing minority investments from the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and GIC
• Qlik, a global leader in data integration, data quality, analytics, and AI, in its sale of a significant minority interest to the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority
• TK Elevator, a global leader in vertical transportation and urban mobility, in an investment from, and strategic partnership with, Alat, a Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) company
• Oaktree Capital and certain of its portfolio companies in connection with multiple CFIUS and DCSA reviews
• Astorg’s take-private of medical equipment manufacturer Hamilton Thorne and simultaneous acquisition of, and combination with, Cook ART
• Aecon, a publicly traded Canadian infrastructure company, in its acquisition of United Engineers & Constructors
• TPG in the formation of its TPG Rise Climate funds
• Berkeley Research Group in its sale of a majority interest to TowerBrook Capital Partners
• Quantum Capital’s sale of ConnectGen, a multitechnology renewable energy platform, to the Spanish multinational energy Repsol
• Thoma Bravo’s $1.54 billion sale of Venafi, a U.S. cybersecurity company, to an Israeli publicly traded company CyberArk
• Brookfield Infrastructure in its $15 billion investment in Intel Corporation’s semiconductor manufacturing expansion at its Ocotillo campus in Chandler, Arizona
• Foxconn Industrial Internet in connection with multiple acquisitions of U.S. real estate and manufacturing facilities
• TPG in the formation of TPG Rise Climate, a $7.3 billion global climate-focused fund
• Hermetic Solutions Group, a portfolio company of Windjammer Capital, in its acquisition of Cristek Interconnects, Inc.
• Resonetics, which is owned by GTCR portfolio company Regatta Medical, in its acquisition of the medical business of Hutchinson Technology Inc.
• CapVest Partners LLP in its acquisition of Datasite
• Brookfield Asset Management Inc. in its investment in Cheniere Energy Partners
• KKR in its acquisition of a 50% interest in NextEra Energy Resources, LLC
• Hitachi Ltd. in its $17 billion merger of four car parts businesses with Honda Motor Co.
• Frontier Communications Corporation and its subsidiaries in their prearranged Chapter 11 restructuring
• TripAdvisor, Inc. in its strategic partnership with Trip.com Group Limited (Nasdaq: TCOM)
• Nordic Capital in its acquisition and sale of Consilium Marine & Safety
• Huntsman Corporation in its sale of its chemical intermediates businesses to Indorama Ventures
• The Hilb Group, a portfolio company of ABRY Partners, in its sale to The Carlyle Group
• Frontier Communications Corporation in its sale of certain operations and associated assets to WaveDivision Capital, LLC and Searchlight Capital Partners, LLC
• Colfax Corporation in its sale of Howden Air and Gas Solutions to KPS Capital Partners
• Softbank in its $300 million investment in Automation Anywhere
• Windjammer Capital Investors in its acquisition of Hermetic Solutions Group

Prior to joining Weil, Billy was a partner at another international law firm.

Billy received his J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law. During law school, Billy was a Research Fellow with the Center for Ocean Law & Policy, and served as a legal intern with the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea. Billy received his M.S. in Geology from the University of Georgia, and his B.A. and B.S. in Political Science and Environmental Geoscience, respectively, from Boston College.

*Includes matters handled prior to joining Weil.