Paul F. Lawrence is a partner in the law firm of McDermott Will & Emery LLP and is based in the Los Angeles office. He concentrates his practice on mergers, acquisitions, affiliations, dispositions and complex business transactions involving companies in the healthcare services industry.
Paul has developed a particular expertise in representing hospitals, health systems, pharmacy companies, dialysis companies, and private equity firms in the acquisition and divestiture of healthcare services related businesses and business lines. These transactions include asset transfers, stock transactions, merger transactions and other affiliation transactions. He has been lead counsel on high profile, multi-facility acute care hospital acquisitions and divestiture transactions, both nationally and regionally, as well as a variety of smaller healthcare services company transactions designed to address the strategic positioning needs of clients.
Paul’s unique focus on mergers and acquisitions in the healthcare industry has given him the knowledge and expertise that is critical to the successful negotiation, documentation and closing of health industry transactions, including the ability to advise clients on the current trends and customs in health industry transactions. He can help clients successfully navigate through healthcare regulatory issues.
Paul also advises clients in connection with general corporate matters, general business transactions, joint ventures, and the development and negotiation of complex contractual arrangements.
Paul was selected as an outstanding healthcare transaction lawyer by Nightingale’s Healthcare News in 2004 and 2008.
Paul is admitted to practice in California as well as before the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and the U.S. Tax Court.
Representative Experience
- Represented a county in connection with the contribution of its sole community hospital to a joint venture consisting of a national hospital management company and the local hospital foundation
- Represented a national nonprofit hospital system in its divestiture of a 231-bed acute care hospital
- Represented a national for-profit hospital system in its divestiture of 26 acute care hospitals across the United States
- Represented a national for-profit hospital system in its acquisition of two large acute care hospitals
- Represented a national for-profit hospital system in the closure of three acute care hospitals across the United States
- Represented a private equity firm in connection with its investment in a wound care company
- Represented a private equity firm in connection with its acquisition of multiple medical equipment supply companies
- Represented a medical group in its acquisition of five outpatient clinics, a management services organization and a third party administrator
- Represented a national dialysis provider in its divestiture of 73 freestanding renal dialysis centers located across the United States
- Represented pharmacy companies in the sale of both retail and institutional pharmacies in multiple pharmacy transactions
- Represented a hospital in its divestiture of its minority interest in an outpatient surgery center
- Represented a hospital system in connection with its disposition of 45 individual physician practices
- Represented a nonprofit behavioral healthcare provider in connection with its merger with another nonprofit behavioral healthcare provider
- Represented a radiology group in connection with the sale of its joint venture interest in a mammography center to a local hospital
Education
- Harvard Law School, J.D., 1991
- University of California-Los Angeles, B.A. (summa cum laude), 1988
