David Kaufman

Practice Areas

David concentrates on structured transactions involving commodities and derivatives. He also has extensive experience with mergers, acquisitions, and corporate reorganizations.

David works closely with the firm’s financial institution and end-user clients in the commodity, equity, fixed income, and credit derivative markets, often assisting clients in developing and structuring products and transactions and evaluating such products and transactions under applicable securities and commodities law. In his regulatory work, David focuses on the Commodity Exchange Act and the CFTC’s regulations, including the statutory and regulatory regime resulting from Title VII of the Dodd-Frank Act.

David represents major commodities dealers, trading firms, and investments funds, as well as commercial end-users, in commodity-based transactions involving energy, precious and base metals, currencies, and agricultural products. His work in these areas has involved structuring and documenting trading, hedging, financing, supply and offtake, storage, processing, and tolling transactions, together with associated margin and other collateral arrangements. He also represents funds and individuals in negotiating and documenting equity derivative transactions designed to hedge and/or monetize large or illiquid share positions.

David assists clients in assessing the credit and trading risks that structured commodities and derivatives transactions present. He has substantial experience structuring complex collateral and intercreditor arrangements and liquidation and setoff provisions. He further assists clients by analyzing such arrangements and provisions under the UCC, other applicable lien laws, the federal bankruptcy code, and other insolvency regimes.

Personal

J.D., Harvard Law School; B.A., University of Rochester