16 August 20207 minute read

DLA Piper adds Emerging Growth and Venture Capital partners Charles Torres, Imri Eisner and Adam Brenner in New York

DLA Piper is pleased to announce the growth of its leading Emerging Growth and Venture Capital practice, as prominent practitioners Charles Torres, Imri Eisner and Adam Brenner have joined the firm’s Corporate practice as partners in New York.

New York is experiencing incredible growth in the technology sector, and the team brings extensive experience representing emerging growth companies and venture capital investors in a wide range of transactional and general corporate and governance matters, from a company’s beginnings to its sale or IPO, including company formation and governance; minority and control investments; debt financings; mergers and acquisitions; investor representation in portfolio acquisitions and dispositions.

Torres is a trusted advisor to emerging growth companies and their founders and directors. As outside general counsel, he works with a diverse range of companies, particularly those focused on financial services technology, enterprise software, IoT, social and digital media, e-commerce, healthcare technology and advertising technology. Torres also regularly counsels leading venture capital funds, corporate VCs and family offices with respect to their investments and dispositions. He brings a wealth of experience in the New York venture community, as counsel to dozens of exited founders and venture investors and as a long-time passionate contributor to the ecosystem. He currently is a lecturer at both Columbia Business School and Cornell Tech, and the co-founder of the Startup Law Studio at Columbia Business School. He is an active member of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York and the founder (and former chair) of its Emerging Companies Committee.

Eisner represents emerging growth companies and institutional investors—including venture capital funds, corporate VCs, and family offices—in equity and debt investments, buy-side and sell-side M&A transactions, and corporate governance matters. Over the course of his career, Eisner has represented venture-backed companies and top-tier funds in hundreds of financings, exit events, restructurings and recapitalizations, and has become a trusted counsel in complex, cross-border and high-value transactions, including contentious board matters and distressed circumstances. Eisner is fluent in Hebrew and regularly represents Israeli start-ups in New York.

Brenner focuses on representing innovative, institutionally backed companies, with extensive experience in equity and debt financings, mergers and acquisitions and general corporate governance. He also represents venture capital funds in their deployment of capital. While Brenner represents companies in a variety of industry verticals, he has particular experience advising emerging companies with international operations on regulatory matters relating to national security and in international trade. Brenner is also a co-founder of the non-profit Accelerate Yale, a global community of alumni and friends of Yale who are engaged in innovation, tech and entrepreneurship.

“There is a tremendous amount of opportunity in the New York City venture market. The addition of Charles, Imri and Adam, and their vast experience and network in the market, enhances our leading Emerging Growth and Venture Capital practice, enabling our team to continue providing clients with a sophisticated suite of emerging company and venture services that sets them up for both short-term and ongoing success,” said Jenifer Smith, co-chair of DLA Piper’s Emerging Growth and Venture Capital practice.

“We are thrilled to welcome Charles, Imri and Adam to our team,” said Jeff Lehrer, co-chair of the firm’s Emerging Growth and Venture Capital practice. “They are well-respected ‘innovation counsel,’ and their collective skillset and experience complements our platform and capabilities, will expand our geographic reach, and underscores our commitment to growing our global innovation team.”

“New York is one of the most active markets for venture-backed technology companies, and this impressive group of transactional lawyers, together with DLA Piper’s already robust corporate practice in New York, will squarely position DLA Piper as one of the city’s leaders in emerging growth and technology services,” added Richard Hans, managing partner of the firm’s New York office.

Torres, Eisner and Brenner all join from Perkins Coie LLP. Torres received his J.D. from The University of Chicago Law School and his B.A. from New York University. Eisner received his J.D. from Cornell Law School and his B.A. and B.S. from the University of Pennsylvania’s College of Arts and Sciences and Wharton School, respectively. Brenner received his J.D. from Boston College Law School, his M.Ed. from Boston College and his B.A. from Yale University.

Print