Joseph Mei

Get in touch
847-745-6941
jmei@gutnicki.com
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Education
University of Michigan Law School, J.D.; with honors
University of Michigan, B.S.E.E.; with honors

Admissions
New York

Languages
Chinese (Mandarin)
English

Joseph Mei is a partner of the firm’s corporate practice group. His practice focuses on mergers and acquisitions, private equity, take-private, leveraged buy-out, venture capital and U.S. securities law matters.

He has advised over 45 M&A transactions with aggregate transaction value of over $15 billion, including over 30 cross-border M&A transactions with aggregate transaction value of over $11 billion. Joseph was a recommended corporate lawyer by Legal 500 Asia Pacific in 2015.

Joseph also advises public and private boards of directors on corporate governance, conflicts, interested transactions and restructuring transactions.

Joseph has a business and engineering background, having successfully founded two companies. He is also an inventor with a US patent.

Prior to joining Gutnicki LLP, Joseph was a member of the corporate practice groups at DLA Piper in Chicago, Morrison & Foerster in Hong Kong and Shanghai, and Sullivan & Cromwell in Hong Kong and New York.

Experience (Selected Representations)

  • Advised China Ping An Insurance Overseas in its investment in R3 blockchain consortium, the first Chinese member of the consortium which also includes HSBC and over 40 other financial services companies.*

  • Advised Novolex in the acquisition of Burrows Paper Corporation and the simultaneous sale by Burrows Paper Corporation of its paper division to Twin Rivers Paper Company, a portfolio company of Blue Wolf Capital Partners.*

  • Advised Global Logistic Properties, a leading provider of modern logistics facilities in China, Japan and Brazil, with respect to an investment by a special purpose fund managed by Hopu in GLP’s China platform.*

  • Advised Global Logistic Properties with respect to the restructuring of its China real estate assets.*

  • Advised Tsinghua Unigroup and the Shenzhen-listed Xiamen Insight Investment in connection with the take-private of NYSE-listed Xueda Education Group. The deal marks the first-ever direct acquisition by an A-share listed company of a U.S.-listed company.*

  • Advised, as co-counsel, Carlyle Group, FountainVest Partners and CITIC Capital Partners, as members of a consortium, in connection with the take-private of Focus Media Holding Ltd., a NASDAQ-listed Chinese company. The deal was recognized as 2014 Private Equity Deal of the Year by IFLR Asia Awards and 2013 Private Equity Deal of the Year by China Law & Practice.*

  • Advised Fosun International, the largest privately-owned conglomerate in China, with respect to the formation of a consortium and the investment by the consortium in Sinopec Marketing Co, Ltd, the holding company for Sinopec’s nationwide chain of gas stations.*

  • Advised Fosun International with respect to a pre-IPO investment in Nanxiang Holding, a leading developer and operator of trade centers and logistics facilities in China.*

  • Advised Fosun International with respect to a strategic partnership with Ingenico Group, a Euronext-listed French company and a global leader in payment services.*

  • Advised Tsinghua Unigroup International, the investment arm of Tsinghua University, with respect to an investment in 500.com, a leading online sports lottery service provider in China.*

  • Advised Ascendent Capital Partners with respect to the financing, by way of convertible bonds, bridge loans and exchangeable bonds, of the take private of a Hong Kong incorporated and KOSDAQ-listed Chinese food packaging company, China Food Packaging Incorporation Limited.*

  • Advised Carlyle Group, as FCPA counsel, with respect to an investment in a Chinese multinational consumer electronics company.*

  • Advised Carlyle Asia Growth Partners in the sale of a part of its holding in a global leading digital film solution provider to Prometheus Capital.*

  • Advised MFRI, Inc. (NASDAQ: MFRI), a global provider of piping, filtration and cooling equipment, in the divestiture of its United States, European and Middle East filtration business to CLARCOR Inc. (NYSE: CLC) and Hengst Holdings GmbH.*

  • Advised Victory Park Capital and Silver Airways, a US regional airline, in connection with the sale of Silver Airways by Victory Park Capital.*

  • Advised FountainVest Partners with respect to a proposed acquisition of certain regional hospital group in China by way of convertible bonds and share purchase.*

Recognitions

Joseph was a recommended lawyer by Legal 500 Asia Pacific 2015 in private equity/venture capital.

* Transaction completed prior to joining Gutnicki LLP.