Austin Fahnestock
Associate
Overview
Austin Fahnestock advises public and private companies on equity, executive compensation and employee benefits matters. He helps clients address compensation and benefits considerations in significant corporate transactions, including acquisitions and public company mergers.
Before joining Holland & Knight, Austin practiced at a large international law firm, where he assisted private and public companies with executive compensation matters arising in transactions ranging from buy-side add-on acquisitions to multibillion-dollar public company mergers.
During law school, Austin served as a student attorney in the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Clinic. In this role, he counseled startup clients on choice-of-entity considerations, intellectual property (IP) protection and contractual matters. He also completed an internship with the Honorable Denis P. Cohen of the First Judicial District of Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas.
Representative Experience
- Advised a private equity-backed national wealth advisory services platform in its acquisition of multiple wealth advisory service companies and the subsequent sale of the platform, including Section 280 matters
- Counseled a publicly traded artificial intelligence (AI) and data products company in the sale of substantially all of its assets, valued at more than $400 million, to a publicly traded technology company, including Section 280G and executive compensation-related public filings
- Represented a publicly traded technology company in its sale to a multinational media company with a transaction value exceeding $20 billion, including executive compensation-related public filings
- Represented an AI company in the sale of its social network agent business to a social media company, including Section 280G matters
- Counseled an AI company in its more than $1.3 billion sale to a multinational publicly traded buyer, including Section 280G matters and bespoke transaction-based compensation arrangements
- Advised a multinational biotechnology company regarding executive compensation matters in connection with its carve-out acquisition of a biotechnology business, including the transition of target executives
- Counseled a biotechnology company on executive compensation matters in connection with a strategic collaboration with a multinational pharmaceutical and medical technology company, including Section 280G matters
- Advised a biopharmaceutical company on the adoption of new compensation policies and plans in connection with its initial public offering (IPO) exceeding $600 million in proceeds
- Advised a clinical-stage therapeutics company regarding the implementation of equity compensation arrangements and executive compensation policies in connection with its IPO, which raised more than $400 million
- Assisted a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company with the implementation of new equity and executive compensation plans and policies in connection with a reverse merger into a publicly traded target
- Represented a financial technology company in a partial sale and recapitalization that resulted in a change of control among private equity sponsors with a transaction value exceeding $4 billion
- Represented a sponsor in its acquisition of an autism therapy platform with a value exceeding $400 million
- Represented a national oral surgery platform in connection with its acquisitions of multiple dental and oral surgery practices
Credentials
- Boston College Law School, J.D., cum laude
- Lancaster Bible College, B.S., Business Administration, summa cum laude
- Pennsylvania
- Massachusetts
- Pennsylvania Bar Association
- Boston College Law Review, Senior Editor, 2022-2023