MICHAEL VIGNONE 
Partner

Michael (“Mike”) Vignone advises private equity sponsors, strategic acquirers, investors, founders, established companies, emerging growth businesses, and management teams on sophisticated mergers and acquisitions, private equity investments, venture capital transactions, and other transformative corporate matters. He leads high-value, complex domestic and cross-border transactions involving innovative deal structures, representing clients in matters ranging from less than $1 million to more than $5 billion.

Mike represents clients across a broad range of industries, including business and professional services, consumer products, financial services, healthcare, and technology, among others. His practice includes acquisitions, divestitures, leveraged buyouts, growth equity and venture capital investments, minority and strategic investments, recapitalizations, and other strategic transactions. He also advises institutional investors, portfolio companies, entrepreneurs, and executive and management teams through every phase of a transaction.

A hands-on deal strategist, Mike regularly counsels clients on transactions involving complex structuring and financing arrangements, management rollovers, earnouts, carve-outs, and multijurisdictional acquisitions and divestitures. He works closely with clients to identify critical business and legal issues early, develop practical solutions, allocate risk effectively, and coordinate diligence, documentation, financing, execution, and post-closing planning. Known for his responsiveness, practical judgment, and commercial perspective, Mike guides transactions efficiently from strategy through closing.

In addition to his transactional practice, Mike advises companies at every stage of growth on entity formation, early-stage planning, venture financings, corporate governance, and general corporate matters. He often serves as an ongoing outside corporate adviser, helping clients address day-to-day business issues while positioning them for future growth, investment, or exit opportunities.

Before joining CROKE FAIRCHILD DUARTE & BERES LLC, Mike practiced at Goodwin Procter LLP, where he advised public and private companies, private equity sponsors, startups, and portfolio companies on mergers and acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, growth equity investments, and other strategic transactions. He began his legal career in the Chicago office of Sidley Austin LLP, focusing on mergers and acquisitions, private equity and venture capital matters, and general corporate counseling.

Representative Matters:

• Represented a global business process outsourcing (BPO) and staffing platform and executive management team with operations across Latin America and Asia, in a cross-border sale to a private equity-backed buyer.
• Represented physician-owned specialty practices in the podiatry and dentistry sectors in sales to private equity-backed platforms.
• Represented multiple private equity-backed fertility care platforms in add-on acquisitions.
• Represented an independent sponsor in a cross-border carve-out acquisition of a SaaS-based CRM platform and subsequent add-on transaction of a CRM-based business from a private equity-backed seller.
• Represented a NYSE-listed Fortune 500 company in a carve-out sale of telecommunications assets.
• Served as equity financing counsel to an independent sponsor in connection with the formation of its architectural and engineering platform acquisition and subsequent add-on transactions.
• Represented a private equity-backed consumer products company in its acquisition of a dietary ingredients business.
• Represented the sell-side founders of a specialty product manufacturer in its sale to a strategic acquirer.
• Represented a private equity sponsor’s retina specialty practice management services organization (MSO) through its platform acquisitions, subsequent add-on acquisitions, and its ultimate sale to a global strategic buyer.*
• Advised private equity-backed pediatrics, cardiology, and behavioral health practice MSOs on platform formation and acquisition and subsequent add-on transactions.*
• Represented a private equity-backed home health and hospice platform on numerous add-on acquisitions and a secondary transaction, enabling continued growth and a successful recapitalization of the business.*
• Represented private equity sponsors and portfolio companies in several ambulatory surgical center (ASC) acquisitions and joint ventures with physician practices, structuring governance and economic arrangements between sponsors and practicing physicians.*
• Represented a private equity-backed healthcare and life sciences staffing platform on its buy-side add-on acquisitions and sell-side exit to a private investment firm, and continued advising the platform under its new ownership on subsequent acquisitions of a teleradiology staffing business and a nurse staffing business.*
• Represented a private equity sponsor in a platform stock acquisition of a casting services and talent management software company, together with multiple subsequent cross-border add-on acquisitions.*
• Represented a private equity sponsor in the sale of its portfolio company, a software company serving the higher education sector, through a competitive auction process.*
• Represented a private equity sponsor in a minority co-investment in a cloud-based legal practice management software company.*
• Represented a private equity sponsor in a minority investment in an alternative investment advisor and fund manager.*

*Denotes experience prior to joining Croke Fairchild Duarte & Beres.