David M Hernand

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David M Hernand

Partner, Corporate Department

Century City

T 1(310) 620-5750

F 1(310) 620-5850

Los Angeles

T 1(213) 683-6200

davidhernand@paulhastings.com

David M. Hernand is a partner in the Mergers and Acquisitions practice of Paul Hastings and is based in the firm’s Century City office. Mr. Hernand is also the chair of the firm’s Century City office.

Mr. Hernand is a leading lawyer in M&A and investments across many industries, with a particular emphasis in media, entertainment, and technology. His practice includes advising companies, boards of directors, special committees, investment banks, private equity and venture capital firms, and high-net-worth-individuals and families in public and private merger and acquisition transactions (including cross-border and distressed M&A transactions), corporate control contests, strategic partnering arrangements, public and private capital raising transactions, and general company representation matters.

Mr. Hernand has been recognized as one of the top 100 Lawyers in California by the Daily Journal, a leading lawyer in M&A and venture capital by industry publications such as Chambers USA, Super Lawyers Magazine, and Legal 500, as a “Power Lawyer” by The Hollywood Reporter, and one of the best lawyers in the entertainment industry by Variety.

Much of Mr. Hernand’s practice involves working with companies at the intersection of entertainment/media and technology. His past and current entertainment/media sector clients include Adaptive Studios, China Media Capital, Clarion Capital, Club Penguin, Collective Digital Studios, Dick Clark Productions, DIRECTV, DreamWorks Animation, Eldridge Industries, FilmTrack, Fox Corporation, GameMine, Idealab, Machinima, MySpace, Parcast, Playdom, QCode Media, Saban Capital, Shamrock Capital, Shaquile O'Neal, SK Telecom, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Snapchat, Style Haul, The Raine Group, United Talent Agency, Universal Music Group, Viacom, William Morris, and The Young Turks.

Recent Representations

Mr. Hernand’s M&A-related experience includes (with clients in bold):

Romeo Power’s $1.3 billion acquisition by RMG Acquisition Corp. (SPAC)
Colony Capital’s acquisition of 90% of data center assets of Vantage Data Centers for $3.4 billion
Walmart’s sale of streaming media service Vudu to NBCU
The sale of Parcast to Spotify
Fox Corporation’s acquisition of Bento Box animation studio
Viacom's acquisition of PlutoTV for US$340 million
The sale of a substantial stake of Dole Food Company to Total Produce at an enterprise value of approximately US$2 billion
Cineworld's US$3.6 billion acquisition of Regal Cinema (representing Morgan Stanley as financial advisor)
The sale of Draft to Paddy Power Bet Fair
The sale of Dick Clark Productions to Dalian Wanda Group for approximately U$1 billion
Nuance Communications’ US$215 million acquisition of TouchCommerce
Investments by Hearst and Verizon in AwesomenessTV and related content production agreements
China Media Capital's joint venture with Warner Brothers to establish a new movie studio
Collective Digital Studio’s US$240 million merger with Prosieben’s Studio71
Fosun International’s US$1.4 billion acquisition with TPG of Cirque du Soleil
Shaquile O'Neal's sale of rights to Authentic Brands Group
Nordstrom’s US$350 million acquisition of TrunkClub and US$270 million acquisition of HauteLook
Billabong’s disposition of Swell.com
Niagara Bottling’s acquisition of Advanced Refreshment
DreamWorks Animation’s US$150 million acquisition of AwesomenessTV and separate acquisition of Big Frame
The management buyout of Classes USA, PriceGrabber, and LowerMyBills from Experian Interactive
Madison Tyler Holdings’ combination with Virtu Financial and investment by Silver Lake Partners
ABB’s US$3.1 billion acquisition of Baldor Electric
Disney’s US$763 million acquisition of Playdom
Shamrock Capital’s acquisition of Screenvision
Saban Capital’s acquisition of Paul Frank Industries
EBay’s sale of 65% of Skype to a private equity consortium (representing Goldman Sachs as financial advisor)
Microsoft’s unsolicited US$44.6 billion offer to acquire Yahoo (representing Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers as financial advisors)
The merger of William Morris and Endeavor
Odyssey Investment Partners’ acquisitions of EAG, SM&A, and Wencor
URS Corporation’s US$2.6 billion acquisition of Washington Group
The US$3.4 billion merger of Molson and Coors (representing Morgan Stanley as financial advisor)
Sale of Club Penguin to Disney for US$700 million

Mr. Hernand’s capital raising-related experience includes:

Advance’s $200 million preferred stock investment in Scopely
Darlington Partner’s investment in IKE Smart City
DigiTour Media's $10 million preferred stock financing led by Viacom
GF Capital’s investment in Whalerock Industries
Prodege, LLC’s (aka Swagbucks) $60 million capital raise led by Technology Crossover Ventures
TeleSign’s $40 million preferred stock financing led by March Capital
DealerTrack’s sale of $80 million of capital stock of TrueCar
The Honest Company’s sale of $52 million of preferred stock to General Catalyst, IVP, Lightspeed, and Iconiq (representing The Honest Company)
FilmTrack’s US$20 million capital raise led by Insight Ventures
Machinima’s sale of more than US$50 million of preferred stock and convertible notes to Google Ventures, Redpoint, and other investors

Accolades and Recognitions

Recognized in Variety's “Legal Impact Report” , 2016-2020
Recognized as one of Top 100 Lawyers in California by the Daily Journal
Recognized as a leader in Corporate/M&A in California by Chambers USA
Recognized as a top-rated attorney in the nation and a "Super Lawyer" in M&A, Super Lawyers Magazine, 2005 - 2010, 2012 - 2013, 2016 – 2020
Recognized as a “Notable Practitioner” in the IFLR 1000 (global guide to leading law firms)
Recognized among leaders in M&A and Buyouts – M&A: Large Deals and Mergers and Acquisitions and Buyouts – M&A: Venture Capital and Emerging Companies, The Legal 500: United States 2013 Edition
Recognized as a top 100 "Power Lawyer" by The Hollywood Reporter, 2014, 2016-2017, 2019
Recognized as a leader in America's Leading Lawyers for Business, Corporate/ M&A, Chambers USA, 2020
Recognized as Hollywood's Top 20 Dealmakers by The Hollywood Reporter, 2016

Professional and Community Involvement

Mr. Hernand was previously a managing director of Idealab, a Pasadena, California-based technology company incubator, and the founding CEO of New.net, an Idealab portfolio company.
Past Co-Chair of the Corporations Committee of the Business Law Section of the California State Bar.
Member of the Mergers and Acquisitions Committee of the Business Law Section of the American Bar Association.
Mr. Hernand currently serves on the board of The Painted Turtle (a charity operating a summer camp for chronically ill kids)

Education

Georgetown University Law Center, J.D., 1992
University of California, Los Angeles, B.A., 1989

Rankings & Awards

Recognized in Variety's 2020 Legal Impact Report
The firm’s Century City Entertainment and Media practice was recognized in Variety’s Legal Impact Report. Variety’s prestigious Legal Impact Report is an annual list that features top in-house attorneys, litigators, and transactional lawyers who have made a major impact behind the most substantial and significant deals in the media and entertainment industries.

Eight Paul Hastings partners were recognized individually from the Firm’s Entertainment and Media transactional and litigation practices: Craig Emanuel, David Hernand, Erik Hyman, Mickey Mayerson, Stephen Saltzman, Susan Williams, Steven Marenberg, and Bo Pearl.
July 14, 2020

Recognized by Chambers USA 2020
Chambers USA 2020: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business listed the firm in 37 research areas and named 104 firm lawyers to its rankings of leading lawyers and law firms in the United States.
May 01, 2020

Ranked by Chambers USA 2019
Chambers USA 2019: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business listed the firm in 44 practice areas and named 107 firm lawyers to its rankings of leading lawyers and law firms in the United States.
April 26, 2019

Recognized in Variety's Legal Impact Report
The Firm’s Century City-based Entertainment and Media practice was recognized in Variety's 2019 Legal Impact Report. The magazine’s annual list spotlights the top in-house attorneys, litigators, and transactional lawyers in the entertainment business. Paul Hastings partners noted for 2019 include Craig Emanuel, David Hernand, Erik Hyman, Mickey Mayerson, Stephen Saltzman, and Susan Williams.
April 09, 2019

Recognized in The Hollywood Reporter's Power Lawyers 2019
The firm’s Century City Entertainment and Media practice was recognized in The Hollywood Reporter's Power Lawyers series. The magazine’s annual list spotlights the top in-house attorneys, litigators, and transactional lawyers in the entertainment business. Paul Hastings partners noted for 2019 include Craig Emanuel, David Hernand, and Susan Williams.
March 28, 2019

Recognized in Variety's Dealmakers Impact Report
The firm’s Century City-based Entertainment and Media practice was recognized in Variety's 2018 Dealmakers Impact Report. The magazine’s annual list noted the team's comprehensive practice working in M&A, finance and capital-raising, and talent representing entertainment as well as tech clients. Paul Hastings partners noted for 2018 include Craig Emanuel, David Hernand, Erik Hyman, Mickey Mayerson, Stephen Saltzman, and Susan Williams.
December 07, 2018

Recognized in Variety's Legal Impact Report
The Firm’s Century City-based Entertainment and Media practice was recognized in Variety's 2018 Legal Impact Report. The magazine’s annual list spotlights the top in-house attorneys, litigators, and transactional lawyers in the entertainment business. Paul Hastings partners noted for 2018 include Craig Emanuel, David Hernand, Erik Hyman, Mickey Mayerson, Stephen Saltzman, and Susan Williams.
April 18, 2018

Recognized by Chambers USA 2017
Chambers USA 2017: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business named 46 of the firm’s practice areas and 112 individuals to its ranking of leading lawyers and law firms in the United States.
June 05, 2017

The Hollywood Reporter Power Lawyers for 2017
David Hernand was recognized in The Hollywood Reporter's Power Lawyers 2017: Hollywood's Top 100 Attorneys list for his work on some of the year's most significant entertainment transactions, including his representation of the lead investor in Jeffrey Katzenberg's new fund, WndrCo, which is expected to close at $750 million, as well as his 2016 representation of Dick Clark Productions, which Dalian Wanda sought to acquire for $1 billion.
April 26, 2017

Recognized in Variety's Legal Impact Report
David Hernand was named in Variety's "2017 Legal Impact Report" for his work representing Germany’s TeleMunchen Group purchase of a stake in Storied Media, Dick Clark Productions attempted $1 billion sale agreement to Wanda, and DreamWorks Animation in its sale of a 24.5% stake in AwesomenessTV.
April 04, 2017

Recognized among the Daily Journal's Top 100 Lawyers in California
Mergers and Acquisitions partner David Hernand was named by Daily Journal as one of the Top 100 Lawyers in California. David was recognized for successfully facilitating numerous high-profile deals for clients such as China Media Capital, DreamWorks Animation SKG, and Shaquille O’Neal.
September 20, 2016

Recognized by Chambers USA 2016
Chambers USA 2016: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business named 47 of the firm’s practice areas and 112 individuals to its ranking of leading lawyers and law firms in the United States.
June 08, 2016

The Hollywood Reporter Power Lawyers 2016
David Hernand was recognized in The Hollywood Reporter's Power Lawyers 2016: Hollywood's Top 100 Attorneys list for his work on some of the year's most significant entertainment transactions, such as Fosun Group’s acquisition of Cirque du Soleil, China Media Capital’s joint venture with Warner Bros., and DreamWorks Animation's sale of a 24.5% equity stake of AwesomenessTV to Verizon Communications.
April 20, 2016

Recognized in Variety's 2016 Legal Impact Report
David Hernand was recognized in Variety's 2016 Legal Impact Report for his work on some of the year's most significant entertainment transactions, such as Fosun Group’s acquisition of Cirque du Soleil, China Media Capital’s joint venture with Warner Bros., and DreamWorks Animation's sale of a 24.5% equity stake of AwesomenessTV to Verizon Communications.
April 17, 2016

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David M Hernand

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