Joint Ventures, Shareholders’ Agreements, Consortia and Strategic Alliances

A joint venture is a legal organisation that takes the form of a short-term partnership in which people jointly undertake a transaction for mutual profit. Generally, each person contributes assets and shares risks. As in a partnership, a joint venture may involve any type of business transaction, and the “people” involved may be individuals, groups of individuals, companies or corporations.

No two joint ventures are alike; each requires an in-depth understanding of the business objectives of all parties, as well as the value added that the parties bring to the table.

The Lorenz corporate team helps joint participants to combine forces whilst remaining independent and to achieve efficiencies, synergies and other goals through partnering relationships, including joint ventures, shareholders’ agreements, consortia and strategic alliances.

Joint venture and other corporate partnering relationships are among the most complex relationships a business can establish. These relationships require careful attention to matters, such as revenue sharing, intellectual property ownership, control, dispute resolution, deadlock, break-up and exit.

We have experience in all aspects of joint venture work from the structuring and financing to the ongoing operations through to the unwinding of the joint venture itself providing for an appropriate distribution of obligations and risks and incorporating tried and tested dispute resolution mechanisms. We also have experience representing specific joint venture parties both domestic and foreign, majority and minority shareholders, investors contributing intellectual property, as well as “sweat equity”.

Joint venture relationships frequently involve complex tax and competition law issues requiring assistance from lawyers knowledgeable in these areas. Our lawyers assist in analyzing the choice of entity, liability, governance and competition law issues that frequently arise in the development of these relationships and closely cooperate with recognized tax law boutiques for any tax law issues.

We have specific experience in structuring and implementing technology-specific strategic alliance and joint ventures, including portals, transaction sites, co-branding and co-marketing arrangements.