Experienced International Corporate Partner Lex Eley Joins Crowell & Moring

Washington, D.C. – October 10, 2016: Crowell & Moring LLP is pleased to announce the addition of Claud v.S. "Lex" Eley to its Washington, D.C. office as a partner in the firm's Corporate Group. He brings more than 25 years of experience handling and advising on mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, and business transactions on both sides of the Atlantic. He serves public and private strategic investors as well as private equity and venture capital firms and their portfolio companies across an array of industries.

"A substantial part of Lex's work involves transatlantic investments between Europe and the United States," said James R. Stuart, co-chair of Crowell & Moring's Corporate Group. "With his deep experience, Lex will bolster our international transactional practice and enhance the firm's capabilities to serve our clients' global needs, including strategic investors and private equity and venture capital firms." 

"Lex's experience working with the Northern Virginia business community, particularly with early stage companies and government contractors, dovetails perfectly with Crowell's substantial presence in the region," said Bryan Brewer, co-chair of Crowell & Moring's Corporate Group.

Eley joins the firm from Reed Smith, where he led its Corporate & Securities Group in Washington, D.C. and Northern Virginia. He has rich insight into the European market, particularly in Brussels, where he has stood up and led offices for other international law firms. In addition to completing numerous M&A transactions and joint ventures, Eley assists clients with financing alternatives, including secured and unsecured credit facilities and debt or equity offerings. He has developed and implemented various exit strategies enabling clients to monetize their investments, including mergers, divestitures and public offerings, and he has implemented various corporate restructurings, reorganizations, and recapitalizations.

Eley represents clients in industries such as manufacturing, financial services, healthcare, cybersecurity, information technology, consumer products, mining and minerals, automotive, and energy. His clients have included: Sonoco Products Company, in connection with a variety of international transactions including the recent acquisition of Weidenhammer Packaging Group, headquartered in Germany; the Virginia Center for Innovative Technology, in connection with the formation and continuing operation of MACH37™, a cybersecurity accelerator program; a U.S. automaker, in its divestiture of the global operations of two luxury automotive brands to a conglomerate from a developing country for approximately US$2.3 billion; and a global Russian mining and minerals enterprise, in its US$6.5 billion acquisition of a Canadian-listed mining and minerals company - the then largest cross-border acquisition ever made by a Russian company.

"Crowell & Moring provides the perfect platform for me to serve both clients engaging in sophisticated international transactions and emerging growth companies in the Washington region," Eley said. "I am drawn to the firm's strong corporate, antitrust, cybersecurity and healthcare practices, its reputation for providing excellent client service, its overall firm culture, as well as by the opportunity to work closely with the growing teams in Brussels and London. I also will leverage Crowell & Moring's substantial presence in Washington and the firm's preeminence in the government contracting space to pursue new client opportunities."

Eley received his J.D. from Emory University School of Law and his B.A. from the College of William and Mary. He is admitted to practice in Virginia, the District of Columbia, and New York. Eley's previous work experience includes serving as a partner with Hogan & Hartson (currently Hogan Lovells), where he held the position as the Brussels office managing partner for seven years. Eley began his legal career in the Richmond office of McGuire Woods, LLP, and is the founding partner of its Brussels office. While based in Brussels, he spent 10 years counseling US and international clients in M&A and joint venture transactions across Europe, Eastern Europe and the republics of the former Soviet Union.

Eley is the second partner added to Crowell & Moring's Corporate Group in the past several weeks. Partner Simon Evers, previously with Davis Polk, joined the firm's Corporate Group in its London office in September.

Crowell & Moring's Corporate Group offers a full-service practice covering complex corporate and securities, M&A transactional, governance, and compliance matters. The firm works with large international and domestic public companies, mid-sized and emerging businesses, privately held firms, private equity sponsors and hedge funds, investment firms, and high net-worth individuals across a wide range of industries.

Crowell & Moring LLP is an international law firm with approximately 500 lawyers representing clients in litigation and arbitration, regulatory, and transactional matters. The firm is internationally recognized for its representation of Fortune 500 companies in high-stakes litigation, as well as its ongoing commitment to pro bono service and diversity. The firm has offices in Washington, DC, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Orange County, Anchorage, London, and Brussels.