Franci J. Blassberg

Of Counsel

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New York

Tel: +1 212 909 6531

Overview

Negotiating complex transactions for clients for over 25 years has led Franci J. Blassberg to be Recognized for a Lifetime of Achievement by Chambers USA ... Read Full Biography

Experience

- Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, Carlyle and Merrill Lynch Private Equity in the senior credit and high yield financings of the $15 billion acquisition of The Hertz Corporation.
- Clayton, Dubilier & Rice in the $4.3 billion sale of Diversey Holdings to Sealed Air.
- Clayton, Dubilier & Rice in its $1 billion acquisition of a 51% ownership stake in Tyco International’s Electrical and Metal Products business.
- Clayton, Dubilier & Rice in its 46% investment in JohnsonDiversey, a transaction valued at $2.6 billion.
- Clayton, Dubilier & Rice in its $250 million PIPE investment in NCI Building Systems.
- Clayton, Dubilier & Rice in its $7.1 billion acquisition with Kohlberg Kravis Roberts of U.S. Foodservice from Royal Ahold NV.
- An investor group led by Merrill Lynch Global Private Equity and the CEO of Cumulus Media in its $1.3 billion effort to take Cumulus Media private.
- Clayton, Dubilier & Rice in its $5.5 billion acquisition of The ServiceMaster Company.
- VWR International, a Clayton, Dubilier & Rice portfolio company, in its $4 billion sale to Madison Dearborn Partners.
- The Special Committee of the Board of Directors of UnitedGlobalCom in the company's $3.5 billion acquisition by Liberty Media International.
- Clayton, Dubilier & Rice in its $1.65 billion acquisition of VWR International from Merck KGAA, its $610 million acquisition of Culligan International from Veolia Environnement, and its sale of Jafra Cosmetics to Vorwerk & Co.

Education

Cornell Law School, 1977, J.D.
Cornell University, 1975, A.B.

Languages

English

Negotiating complex transactions for clients for over 25 years has led Franci J. Blassberg to be Recognized for a Lifetime of Achievement by Chambers USA (2017) as well as being named by The National Law Journal as one of the 50 Most Influential Women Lawyers in America (2007) and one of the 100 Most Influential Lawyers in America (2006). Ms. Blassberg has been recognized by Private Equity International as one of the 30 most influential lawyers in global private equity and as “Best in Private Equity” at the Euromoney Women in Business Law Awards (2012). She was named “Corporate M&A Lawyer of the Year” by Chambers and Partners at the Chambers USA Women in Law Awards (2013). Ms. Blassberg is ranked in band one by Chambers Global (2013) and by Chambers USA (2013), where she is noted as “one of the deans of the private equity legal community.” She is recognized as a leading lawyer by The Legal 500 US (2013). She has also been noted as a leading private equity transactions lawyer by IFLR1000 (2012) and PLC Which Lawyer? Yearbook (2010). In recognition of Ms. Blassberg’s leadership in the $15 billion Hertz acquisition, she has also been named as a Dealmaker of the Year by The American Lawyer (2006). Ms. Blassberg has deep experience counseling private and public companies in domestic and international acquisitions and divestitures, securities offerings and other transactions. As former Co-Chair of Debevoise’s Private Equity Group and a member of the Mergers & Acquisitions Group, Ms. Blassberg has helped to build one of the preeminent law firm private equity practices in the world. She originated and acts as editor-in-chief of the Debevoise & Plimpton Private Equity Report. She is also editor of The Private Equity Primer: The Best of the Debevoise & Plimpton Private Equity Report and co-editor of The Debevoise & Plimpton European Private Equity Handbook.Ms. Blassberg is a frequent speaker at seminars and a contributor to legal and other periodicals on acquisitions and private equity topics. She has co-chaired for many years the annual Advanced ALI-ABA Course of Study on Corporate Mergers and Acquisitions sponsored by the American Law Institute-American Bar Association Committee on Continuing Professional Education. Ms. Blassberg received her B.A. with distinction from Cornell University and her J.D. magna cum laude from Cornell Law School, where she was an editor of the Law Review.