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Menachem Kaplan

Partner

Artificial intelligence | Data, privacy and cybersecurity | Fintech | Intellectual property | IP transactions | Media, entertainment and sports | Technology |

'There is nobody better at breaking down difficult concepts for clients and reflecting their intentions.' 'Mena is an exceptional lawyer who understands the legal landscape as well as the business context and is able to meld the two seamlessly.' 'Mena should be anyone's top choice for sophisticated IP transaction matters.'

Chambers USA 2024

Profile details

About Menachem Kaplan

Mena focuses on intellectual property-related matters, with an emphasis on licensing, joint ventures, emerging technologies, settlements and IP/data matters relating to corporate transactions.

Mena regularly works with clients to help identify, protect and commercialize their technologies and brands, including mitigating risk and maximizing asset value in data-driven and IP-heavy transactions and complex IP-driven disputes. He works with both large multinational clients and emerging tech and web-focused companies on day-to-day IP-related matters.

Mena is recognized as a leading lawyer for technology transactions by Chambers & Partners. He is a frequent lecturer on IP, technology and data-driven issues and was the articles editor of the Cardozo Public Law, Policy, and Ethics Journal.

Prior to becoming a lawyer, Mena was a software engineer launching data migration projects for financial services clients.

Recent work

Mena is engaged in a diverse practice handling stand-alone tech deals in addition to the tech side of corporate deals across a variety of industries, as outlined below.

Select tech transactions:

  • London Stock Exchange Group on various IP and data license agreements.
  • Volkswagen on its investment in and related collaboration and development arrangements with QuantumScape; and on the sale of its autonomous driving unit to Argo AI and entry into a joint venture with Ford covering the development, license and use of autonomous vehicle systems.
  • Google on its $4.5 billion transaction with Jio Platforms, including investment and governance arrangements, and commercial agreements to develop an affordable smartphone with an optimized operating system.
  • Royal Caribbean on deploying Bluetooth boarding passes and onboard trackers.
  • American Tower Corporation in connection with its deployment of “fiber to the home” in South Africa.
  • SightX in connection with a technology and services license agreement with Apollo.
  • Airbus on the carve-out of Bombardier’s C-Series aircraft program and establishment of the A220 aircraft program.

Select M&A transactions:

  • Zuora (NYSE: ZUO) on its pending $1.7 billion sale to Silver Lake and GIC.
  • eBay on its proposed simultaneous acquisition of Goldin Auctions LLC, sale of the eBay Vault to Collectors Universe, Inc. and ongoing commercial relationship with Collectors.
  • BuzzFeed on its sale of Complex Networks to Commerce Media.
  • ABB on its pending acquisition of SEAM Group.
  • Ara Partners on its acquisition of a majority stake in USD Clean Fuels and USD Clean Fuels’.
  • Committee of independent directors of the board of Qualtrics on the $12.5 billion all-cash sale of the company to a private equity consortium (the largest private equity transaction of the year).
  • Razor Group on its pending acquisition of Perch.
  • StepStone GmbH / Appcast, Inc., subsidiaries of Axel Springer SE, on their acquisition of Bayard Advertising Agency, Inc.
  • Coupa on its $8 billion sale to Thoma Bravo.
  • Blackstone portfolio company, Schenck Process Group, on the sale of its food and performance materials business to Hillenbrand, Inc.
  • Sonoco on its acquisition of the remaining equity interest in its joint venture with the WestRock Company, RTS Packaging, and one paper mill for $330 million. 
  • eBay on its acquisition of Certilogo and TCGplayer.
  • Aristocrat Leisure on its $1.2 billion acquisition of Nasdaq-listed Neogames.
  • Agilent on its sale of Resolution Bioscience to Exact Sciences Corporation.
  • Pearson plc on the sale of its international Online Program Management business, Pearson Online Learning Services, to an affiliate of Regent LP.
  • Agilent on its acquisition of e‑MSion.
  • Molekule Group on its all-stock merger with Aura Smart Air.
  • Holcim on its $1.293 billion acquisition of Duro-Last.
  • Jungheinrich AG on its $375 million acquisition of Storage Solutions, Inc.
  • London Stock Exchange Group on its acquisition of AcadiaSoft. 
  • Ericsson on the sale of its IoT Accelerator and Connected Vehicle Cloud businesses and related assets to Aeris Communications, Inc.
  • Alpha Dhabi on its acquisition of a 25% stake in Gordon Technologies for approximately $164 million.
  • AeroClean Technologies, Inc in connection with its all-stock merger with Molekule, Inc.
  • Exyte on its acquisition of Airgard, Inc.
  • ServiceNow on its acquisition of Era Software, Inc.
  • TriNet on its acquisition of Clarus R+D Solutions.
  • Carlotz on its sale to Shift Technologies.
  • Siemens on the sale of its global low-voltage NEMA motors business to ABB.
  • Google on its $5.4 billion acquisition of publicly-traded Mandiant Inc., as well as related transactions with Blackstone and other private equity sponsor holders of convertible preferred stock of Mandiant.
  • Ericsson on its $6.2 billion acquisition of Vonage.
  • América Móvil on transactions to form a multi-billion dollar telecom JV with Liberty Latin America in Chile and to sell Claro Panama to Liberty Latin America.
  • Axel Springer on its acquisition of Allbritton, including publications POLITICO, Protocol and POLITICO Europe (a joint venture with Allbritton).
  • Western Union on the $910 million sale of Western Union Business Solutions to Goldfinch Partners and Baupost Group.
  • Honeywell on the combination of Honeywell Quantum Solutions and Cambridge Quantum Computing and acquisition of a majority stake in the combined company.
  • London Stock Exchange Group on its $27 billion acquisition of Refinitiv from a consortium including Blackstone, CPPIB, GIC and Thomson Reuters.
  • AstraZeneca on its $39 billion acquisition of Alexion Pharmaceuticals.
  • Hewlett Packard Enterprise on its $925 million acquisition of Silver Peak and acquisition of Determined AI.
  • ams OSRAM on the sale of its digital systems business in North America to Acuity.
  • Royal Caribbean on the carve-out sale of its high-end cruise business Azamara to Sycamore Partners; and on its $1.3 billion acquisition of Hapag-Lloyd’s cruise shipping business.
  • Starbucks on its $7.15 billion long-term licensing sales alliance with Nestlé related to its CPG business.
  • Zymergen on its acquisition of Lodo Therapeutics.

Select going public transactions:

  • Zymergen on its $575 million IPO and listing on Nasdaq.
  • Li-Cycle on its $1.67 billion business combination with SPAC Peridot Acquisition Corp., including a concurrent $315 million PIPE.
  • CarLotz on its $827 million merger with SPAC Acamar Partners Acquisition Corp.