Practice Areas & Industries: Bracewell & Giuliani LLP

Practice/Industry Group Overview

Bracewell has been a pioneer in representing master limited partnerships since they were created in the 1980s, and we represent several of the largest MLPs in a variety of matters, including corporate, securities, M&A, finance, litigation and other matters on an ongoing basis.  We are one of the few law firms with the expertise and capability to address the unique issues faced by MLPs.  In addition to having a number of transactional lawyers with capital markets and M&A experience in MLP transactions, we have lawyers in our specialty practice areas, such as tax, environmental and energy regulation who regularly represent MLPs.  The breadth of experience of these lawyers allows our firm to offer a full range of services to our MLP clients.  Our attorneys have experience working on transactions involving MLPs involved in the pipeline, midstream, shipping, oil and gas, propane, refining, heating oil, coal and timber industries.

Attorneys at Bracewell have represented MLPs in initial public offerings and in several billion dollars of follow on public and Rule 144A offerings of debt and equity securities.  We have also represented MLPs in the structuring and offering of unique securities such as institutional shares and hybrid debt securities.  In addition, we have substantial experience representing underwriters and initial purchasers, sponsors and private investors in transactions involving MLPs.

In addition to our capital markets experience, we regularly participate in M&A transactions involving MLPs.  Our experience includes representing MLPs in tens of billions of dollars of acquisition and disposition transactions.  In addition, we regularly represent special committees, investment banks and others in M&A transactions.

Bracewell tax attorneys are particularly experienced with the unique tax issues faced by MLPs, including qualifying income analysis, tax shield calculations, remedial allocation issues, the implications of state and local tax provisions, disguised sale issues and the like.  Our tax lawyers frequently counsel MLPs and their sponsors regarding the structuring of MLP transactions to obtain the maximum tax benefit available.