21 February 20242 minute read

DLA Piper announces strategic consolidation of Investment Funds practice

DLA Piper is pleased to announce the formation of a dedicated Investment Funds practice group through a strategic consolidation of its Investment Management practice, led by John Cusack and Jesse Criz (both in Chicago), and its Institutional Investor practice, led by David Parrish and Nicole Brennig (both in Austin).

The combined Investment Funds group consists of 30+ partners and 80+ other lawyers across the country in combination with DLA Piper’s global investment funds practice. Criz and Brennig will co-lead the US group, which includes lawyers across the Americas, while Cusack and Parrish will serve as co-global heads of the group.

“Combining these two practices enhances our ability to deliver integrated and sophisticated transactional, regulatory and compliance services to our sponsor and investor clients around the world. The capabilities and scale of our combined group distinguish DLA Piper in the investment funds market, allowing us to deliver best practices, technology-enhanced solutions and unparalleled insights into market data, terms and developments across jurisdictions,” said Criz.

“This consolidation allows the group to deliver a broader and more integrated range of services to clients, and our global network will enable us to effectively serve the world’s leading institutional capital providers in every aspect of their business,” said Brennig. 

The firm’s combined Investment Funds group provides dynamic, integrated services to sponsors, institutional investors and other market participants, supported by the firm’s international fund practice and tax and regulatory networks. The team advises clients on the full spectrum of private investment funds, all major investment strategies and all stages of a private investment fund's life cycle.

The combined team is ranked by Chambers for both fund formation and investor representation, with 14 Chambers-ranked partners and a “Band 1” designation for the institutional investor practice, as well as rankings by Secondaries Investor as a “Top 10 Secondaries Firm by Volume” in 2023.