Britton Davis

WaterBridge NDB LLC (together with its subsidiaries, WaterBridge NDB), a portfolio company of Five Point Energy LLC (Five Point), announced the formation of NDB Midstream LLC, a strategic partnership with WPX Energy Permian, LLC (Devon), a subsidiary of Devon Energy Corp. (NYSE: DVN). The partnership between two technical leaders, WaterBridge NDB within the produced water handling sector and Devon with 50-plus years of innovation in oil and gas, yields the largest private water infrastructure system in the prolific Stateline region of the Delaware Basin in Loving County, Texas and Lea and Eddy counties in New Mexico. Latham & Watkins LLP represents WaterBridge NDB in the transaction with a corporate deal team led by Houston partner Lauren Anderson, with assistance from associates John Daywalt, Corynn Wilson, Josh Blankenship, and Jameson Miller. Advice was also provided on tax matters by Houston partner Tim Fenn, with associate Dominick Constantino; on employee benefits matters by Washington, D.C. partner Adam Kestenbaum; on structuring matters by New York partner David Hammerman; on antitrust matters by Washington, D.C. partner Jason Cruise and Washington, D.C. counsel Peter Todaro and Britton Davis, with associate Doug Tifft.~~

Aug 9

1 min

Leeds Equity Partners (Leeds Equity) announced today that it has acquired Big Blue Marble Academy (BBMA or the Company), a leading provider of early childhood education across the Southeast United States. The acquisition of Big Blue Marble Academy builds upon Leeds Equity’s deep experience in and commitment to early childhood education and its decades of immersion in the education sector and the Knowledge Industries. Latham & Watkins LLP advised Leeds Equity in the acquisition with a corporate deal team led by New York partner Jane Greyf and New York counsel Alyssa Galinsky, with associates Natasha Burnett, Jen Oh, and Jordan Wampler. Advice was also provided on finance matters by New York partner Joshua Tinkelman and New York counsel Sonja Pollack, with associate Elizabeth Bell; on tax matters by New York partner Eric Kamerman, with associate Lukas Kutilek; on real estate matters by Chicago counsel Jeffrey Anderson, with associates Sara Aziz* and David Rao; on benefits and labor matters by New York partner Bradd Williamson and Chicago partner Nineveh Alkhas, with associates Alisa Hand, Sam Minter, and Jane Jeong; on intellectual property matters by New York partners Steven Betensky and Jessica Cohen, with associates Alan Kim and Ryan Wilkins; on data privacy matters by Bay Area partner Heather Deixler, with associate Mitch Bennett**; on anti-corruption matters by Washington, D.C. partner Joseph Bargnesi, with associate Michelle Wadolowski; on insurance matters by Los Angeles partner Drew Levin and San Diego/Los Angeles counsel Hannah Cary, with associate Emilie McConnachie; and on regulatory matters by Washington, D.C. counsel Britton Davis. *Admitted to Practice in New Jersey and New York only. **Admitted to Practice in New South Wales (Australia) only.~~

Jan 4

1 min

Latham & Watkins has advised CVC Capital Partners and the acquisition vehicle formed by it and Haveli Investments on the acquisition of Jagex, a leading developer and publisher of video games, from Carlyle. Jagex is primarily known for its key RuneScape titles, the leading Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (“MMORPG”). Based in Cambridge, UK, Jagex is one of the largest and most successful British video game studios. The Latham team was led by London corporate partners Kem Ihenacho and Suneel Basson-Bhatoa, with support from London corporate partner Mike Turner, entertainment, sports & media counsel Rachael Astin, and associates Edward Coates, Jonathan Lin, and Catherine Fellows. Advice was provided on finance matters by London partners Jay Sadanandan, Hayden Teo, and counsel William Lam, with associates James Fawcett, Chris Devine, and Mohammad Kazmi; on data protection matters by London partner Gail Crawford, Washington, D.C. partners Clayton Northouse and Marissa Boynton, with associate Lorenzo Meusburger; on data and technology matters by London partner Christian McDermott, with associates Calum Docherty, Elva Cullen, Victoria Wan, Nara Yoo, and Priyanka Krishnamurthy; on employment and benefits matters by London partner Sarah Gadd, with associate Charlie Bowden; on real estate matters by London partner Quentin Gwyer and counsel Michael Beanland; on tax matters by London partner Helen Lethaby and New York partner Max Raskin, with associate Aaron Bradley; on litigation matters by London partner Oliver Browne; on regulatory matters by Washington, D.C. partner Damara Chambers, New York partner Katherine Rocco, Washington, D.C. counsels Britton Davis and Catherine Hein with Brussels counsel Jana Dammann de Chapto, and associates Sara Castiglia and Markus Welzenbach; on sanctions matters by London partner Robert Price and Washington, D.C. partner Les Carnegie, with associates Michelle Taylor and Matthew Crawford; and on compliance matters by London partner Nathan Seltzer, with associate Matthew Unsworth.~~

Feb 12

1 min

NiSource (NYSE: NI) has announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement with an affiliate of Blackstone Infrastructure Partners, Blackstone’s (NYSE:BX) dedicated Infrastructure group, to acquire a 19.9% equity interest in NIPSCO for US$2.150 billion. The transaction implies an equity value of US$10.8 billion and enterprise value of US$14.3 billion for 100% of NIPSCO. Upon closing of the transaction, which is expected by the end of 2023, NIPSCO will retain an 80.1% stake in NIPSCO and continue to operate NIPSCO. Blackstone Infrastructure Partners will receive minority rights commensurate with its 19.9% equity interest. As part of the transaction, Blackstone Infrastructure Partners is committed to funding its pro rata share of ongoing capital requirements, which is supported by a US$250 million equity commitment letter. Blackstone Infrastructure Partners is an active investor across the utility, energy transition, transportation, digital infrastructure, water and waste infrastructure sectors. Blackstone Infrastructure Partners seeks to apply a long-term buy-and-hold approach to large-scale infrastructure assets and is focused on responsible stewardship and stakeholder engagement to create value for its investors and the communities it serves. NIPSCO is Indiana’s largest vertically-integrated electric and gas distribution company, providing critical utility service to almost 1.3 million customers in an economically robust service territory. NIPSCO is at the forefront of the energy transition and is developing one of the lowest-cost portfolios of renewable energy projects, the majority of which are utility-owned, and intends to retire all coal-fired generation by the end of 2028. The capital infusion will be used to support NiSource’s fastest growing utility and its ability to serve customers, de-lever its balance sheet and fund ongoing capital needs associated with the renewable generation transition underway. Latham & Watkins LLP represents Blackstone in the transaction with a corporate deal team led by Houston/New York partner Ravi Purohit and New York partner David Allinson, with associates Michael Spirtos, Cody Conwell, and Manu Vadlamudi. Advice was also provided on tax matters by Bay Area partner Katharine Moir, with associate Christine Mainguy; on finance matters by New York partner Stephanie Teicher and Los Angeles partner Nathan Whitaker, with associate Jacob Sikora; on benefits and compensation matters by Chicago partner Benjamin Rosemergy, with associates Samantha Voutyras and Kevin Matheny; on labor and employment matters by New York counsel Sandra Benjamin; on federal energy regulatory matters by Washington, D.C. partner Tyler Brown, with associate Richard Griffin; on intellectual property matters by Washington, D.C. counsel Kieran Dickinson, with associate Kellye Quirk; on environmental matters by New York counsel David Langer, with associate Brittany Curcuru; on real estate matters by San Diego partner Robert Frances and San Diego counsel Aaron Friberg, with associate Will Swanson; on antitrust matters by Washington, D.C. partner Farrell Malone and Washington, D.C. counsel Britton Davis, with associate Ethan Hoffman; on litigation matters by Orange County partner Kristin Murphy, with associates Kehaulani Jai, Helen Kirkby, and Scott Levinson; and on representation and warranty insurance matters by Los Angeles partner Drew Levin, with associate Harrison White.~~

Jun 20

2 min

Sports technology company Panda Interactive has settled its patent dispute with its rival Sportradar and asked a Texas federal judge to stay all activity in the case for 30 days while the parties finalize the agreement. SportsCastr Inc., which does business as Panda Interactive, and Sportradar filed a joint motion Friday. Panda has been locked into the dispute over its patent technology with Sportradar since its October 2023 lawsuit that accused the technology company of "willfully and maliciously" copying its patented technology that includes providing viewers the ability to see real-time odds and place a bet while watching a sporting event. Details about the proposed settlement were not included in the motion, and representatives for the companies did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday. According to Panda, "leading sports media companies, leagues and sportsbooks" use its patented technology that delivers broadcasts enhanced with synchronized live data and content. Sportradar's video streaming products "are the same or essentially same" as the patented products Panda developed, according to the lawsuit. The company's "illegal and unauthorized use" of the patented technology earned Sportradar "increased profits, revenue, market capital, and market share," Panda said. Sportradar entered into partnerships with professional sports leagues including the National Basketball Association and the National Football League in which they used the disputed technology, according to the lawsuit. "We have made substantial investments in the development of our technology and cannot tolerate having our patented technology used unfairly by others and against us," Panda's chairman said when the lawsuit was filed. "No one wants to see their own arsenal used against them in battle." In December, U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap separated the antitrust claims that were added to the current lawsuit in February 2025 and assigned them to a new lawsuit, while the patent claims remained in the current suit. The parties filed a joint motion to stay all deadlines in the related antitrust suit Friday as well. Panda's similar lawsuit against its rival Genius Sports remains pending. The patents-in-suit are U.S. Patent Nos. 10,425,697, 10,805,687 and 11,039,218. Panda is represented by Christopher C. Campbell, Britton F. Davis, Matthew D. Wood, Yushan Luo, John D. Roehrick, Colleen Tracy James, Andrew Cochran and Rahul Sarkar of Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP and Greg Love, Mark Siegmund and William Ellerman of Cherry Johnson Siegmund James. Sportradar is represented by David A. Roodman, Nick E. Williamson, Sarah L. Hartley and George G. Brell of Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP and Michael C. Smith of Scheef & Stone. The case is SportsCastr Inc. v. Sportradar Group AG et al., case number 2:23-cv-00472, and the related antitrust case is SportsCastr Inc. v. Sportradar Group AG et al., case number 2:25-cv-01250, both in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, Marshall Division.

Feb 17

2 min