Kevin J. Wessel

Kirkland & Ellis advised AEA Investors Small Business Private Equity on its successful completion of a continuation fund with $384 million in capital commitments, and the continuation fund’s subsequent acquisition of a majority interest in Singer Industrial, a leading value-added distributor of industrial rubber and fluid power products, from AEA Investors Small Business Fund II LP and its other owners. The fund is anchored by AEA Small Business Private Equity Funds, Apollo S3 and LGT Capital Partners-managed funds and supported by other investors. Read the transaction press release The Kirkland team was led by investment funds partners Matthew Nadworny, Kevin Wessel and Chris Kallos and corporate partners Jon Benloulou and Matt Whited and associate Stephanie Owen, and included investment funds partners Michael Belsley and Tim Long and associates Neeloy Azad, Victor Ghazal and Colin Monaghan.

Apr 18

1 min

Kirkland & Ellis counseled Mill Point Capital LLC, a New York City-based private equity firm, on its final close of Mill Point Capital Partners III, L.P. (Fund III). With approximately $1.7 billion of total capital commitments closed in less than five months from launch, Fund III, consistent with its predecessor funds, was oversubscribed and closed at the hard cap. Mill Point targets value-oriented, control investments in lower middle-market companies across the business services, industrials and IT services sectors throughout North America. Read Mill Point’s press release The Kirkland team included investment funds lawyers Kevin Wessel, John Muno, Michael Black, Wes Gangi, Alice Palkovitz, Chris Stoj, Daisy An, Reed Schuster and Danielle Sartain; and tax lawyers Dan Meehan and Chris Odell.

Oct 11

1 min

Kirkland & Ellis represented AEA Investors LP, a leading alternative investment manager specializing in middle market private equity, growth capital and debt investments, on successfully closing its fifth Small Business Private Equity Fund, AEA Investors SBF V, with more than $1.3 billion in total equity commitments. The oversubscribed fund received strong support from both new and existing investors comprising a broad range of leading global institutions. Read AEA’s press release The Kirkland team was led by investment funds partners Matt Nadworny, Kevin Wessel, Samara Sanderson and Chris Kallos and associate Alexander Lazar; and tax partners Don Rocap, Miles Johnson and Steve Cantor.

Oct 5

1 min

Kirkland & Ellis is advising Arsenal Capital Partners and BayPine LP in their acquisition of Poly-Wood, LLC (POLYWOOD). The firms are purchasing POLYWOOD from affiliated investment funds of Oxford Financial Group, Ltd. POLYWOOD is a vertically integrated manufacturer of recycled, high-density polyethylene (HDPE) outdoor living products. The transaction was announced on March 25, 2024. Read the transaction press release The Kirkland team representing Arsenal was led by corporate partners Ted Frankel and Colin Zelicof and associates Giorgia Nagalli and Deborah Kotkin; debt finance partner Michelle Kilkenney and associates Matthew Kita and Adam Gilmore; tax partners Mark Schwed and Liam Murphy; executive compensation partners Rob Fowler and Stephen Brecher; real estate partner John Caruso; and investment funds partner Kevin Wessel. The Kirkland team advising BayPine was led by corporate partner Ravi Agarwal and associate Oliver Yee.

Mar 25

1 min

Kirkland & Ellis counseled AEA-Bridges Impact Corp. (ABIC) (NYSE: IMPX), a special purpose acquisition company with a dedicated sustainability focus, sponsored by executives of AEA Investors and Bridges Fund Management, on its business combination under which LiveWire EV, LLC, Harley-Davidson’s electric motorcycle division, combined with ABIC, to create a new public company. The business combination was officially approved at an extraordinary general meeting by ABIC stockholders on September 16, 2022. Upon completion of the business combination, the combined public company will operate as LiveWire Group, Inc. (“LiveWire”) and its common stock and warrants will begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) under the symbols “LVWR” and “LVWR WS,” respectively today, on September 27, 2022. Through this combination, LiveWire will become the first and only EV motorcycle company in the U.S. to list on the NYSE. Read Harley-Davidson and ABIC’s press release The Kirkland team was led by corporate partners Joshua Kogan and Melissa Kalka; capital markets partners Christian Nagler and Wayne Williams and associate Anthony Zangrillo; tax partners Sara Zablotney and Damien Rose; technology & IP transactions partners Matthew Lovell and Matt Darch; investment funds partners Chris Kallos, Matt Nadworny and Kevin Wessel; executive compensation partner Stephen Jacobson; employment & labor partner R.D. Kohut; and employee benefits partner Matthew Antinossi.

Sep 27

1 min