Shira Aviner Selengut

Shira Selengut advises public and private companies, private equity firms, financial institutions and private investment funds on employee benefits, executive compensation and employment matters, helping them navigate the complex and evolving requirements of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) with clear, practical guidance. Based in New York, she counsels clients on these issues in ongoing compliance matters and in U.S. and cross-border corporate transactions, structured finance deals and financing arrangements.

ERISA compliance is at the core of Shira's practice. Financial institutions and private investment funds rely on her counsel regarding ERISA's plan asset, fiduciary responsibility and prohibited transaction rules. She also advises on ERISA-related concerns in financing transactions, including for lenders and borrowers in structured loan facilities and for underwriters, issuers, dealers, collateral managers and investors in asset-backed securities, covered bonds, collateralized loan obligations (CLOs), derivatives and other structured finance transactions.

On executive compensation and governance matters, Shira represents public and private companies and private equity firms. She advises on the design and implementation of annual and long-term incentive plans; employment, consulting and separation agreements; severance and retention arrangements; and equity and equity-based incentive compensation. She also counsels clients on the tax implications of their compensation structures and on the securities, labor and employment laws governing hiring, workforce reductions, restrictive covenants and related issues.

In reorganizations, restructurings, mergers and acquisitions (M&A), private equity deals, funding transactions and financing arrangements, she guides clients through the employment, benefits and compensation issues that can affect deal value and execution. When negotiating key transaction documents, Shira offers a well-rounded perspective on how these issues fit within the broader deal.

She frequently presents on employment, employee benefits and executive compensation issues and related legal developments. Before joining the Firm, Shira was an employee benefits and executive compensation attorney in the New York office of an international law firm, and before law school she worked as an auditor at an international accounting firm. That combination of transactional, regulatory and financial experience helps clients meet demanding compliance requirements while pursuing their business goals.