Laura A. Kaufmann Belkhayat

Ms. Kaufmann Belkhayat’s experience includes advising on issuances of investment grade and high-yield indebtedness for both issuers and underwriters. She was named one of the Top Financing Lawyers in North America in 2020 by MergerLinks and has been recognized as a leading capital markets attorney by IFLR.

Ms. Kaufmann Belkhayat advises on capital markets and M&A-related matters, particularly private equity financings and strategic investments and financial arrangements, including preferred stock and debt instruments. Her experience in these areas has included advising:

• Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. in its $575 million offering of common stock; $1 billion at-the-market equity program; $1 billion of 10.875% senior secured notes due 2023 and $2.32 billion of 11.500% senior secured notes due 2025; $1 billion of 9.125% senior notes due 2023; and several tranches of convertible notes;
• BlackRock, Inc. in the $13.2 billion secondary offering of its common stock by PNC Financial Services Group, Inc., and the repurchase of $1.1 billion of its common stock from PNC Financial; and multiple debt offerings, including its $700 million offering of 6.25% notes due 2017; and its $1 billion offering of 2.400% notes due 2030;
• Centene Corporation in the acquisition financing with respect to its $17.3 billion merger with WellCare Health Plans, Inc., which included a $7 billion Rule 144A/Regulation S high-yield offering of senior notes in three tranches: $1 billion of 4.750% senior notes due 2025, $2.5 billion of 4.250% senior notes due 2027 and $3.5 billion of 4.625% senior notes due 2029; its $2 billion Rule 144A/Regulation S offering of 3.375% senior notes due 2030; its $2.2 billion offering 3.00% senior notes due 2030; and its proposed acquisition of Magellan Health, Inc.;
• Neuberger Berman Group in the $12.5 billion combination of its Dyal Capital Partners division and Owl Rock Capital Group to form Blue Owl Capital;
• Keurig Dr Pepper Inc. in the $8 billion acquisition financing related to its acquisition by Keurig Green Mountain and subsequent debt offerings, including numerous secondary offerings of its common stock;
• JAB Holdings B.V. in its $500 million Rule 144A/Regulation S offering of 2.200% senior notes due 2030; and
• Permira Funds in the equity received as part of the consideration for its $3.5 billion disposition of Arysta LifeScience and its $2.8 billion sale of its portfolio company Iglo Food Holdings.

Ms. Kaufmann Belkhayat counsels numerous REIT clients and underwriters of REIT securities in a wide variety of transactions. Among others, she has advised:

• SL Green Realty Corp. in a number of financings, including offerings of senior notes, exchangeable notes and common and preferred stock, as well as debt tender offers and issuances of units for property acquisitions;
• Healthpeak Properties, Inc. (formerly HCP, Inc.) in its spin-off of a portion of its real estate assets into a split publicly traded REIT called Quality Care Properties, Inc., and in numerous debt and equity offerings;
• the joint bookrunning managers in the $650 million IPO of Extended Stay America’s paired shares, as well as the subsequent debt and equity offerings by Extended Stay America and ESH Hospitality; and
• Darden Restaurants in the separation of a portion of its real estate assets into a separate, publicly traded REIT called Four Corners Property Trust.