© 2014 The Texas Lawbook.
By Brooks Igo
Staff Writer for The Texas Lawbook
(June 20) – Winstead announced this week that it is bringing in former Kinetic Concepts, Inc. (KCI) Executive Vice President and General Counsel Stephen Seidel to lead the firm’s San Antonio office. Most recently, Seidel served as global president of KCI’s Therapeutic Support System Business.
Seidel, a University of Houston Law Center graduate, said Winstead’s large transaction and mid-market transaction practice and presence in Texas attracted him to the firm.
“It is easier to join a smaller office and have that kind of access,” he said. “I’m excited about this move as I have been about anything.”
The new managing shareholder said he hopes to grow the six-lawyer office and add depth to the existing expertise in healthcare, commercial litigation, oil and gas, public finance and banking. Seidel, who developed expertise in biosciences while at KCI, said healthcare is a hot area in San Antonio.
A former managing director of Cox Smith Matthews, Seidel has law firm management experience in addition to his tenure leading KCI’s legal department. He said the advantage of working in-house is the opportunity to dive deeper into an industry.
“I wouldn’t have near the experience in medical devices and biosciences [apart from serving as GC of KCI],” he said.
The disadvantage of being in-house, he added, is serving one client instead of four or five.
While at KCI, Seidel helped lead its $1.9 billion acquisition of LifeCell Corporation. He also played a key role in its $6.3 billion sale to an investment group in 2011.
Seidel said there is a ton of interest in Texas – and San Antonio – for both M&A and venture capital. He expects there to be plenty of oil and gas opportunities in the region for the next 10 years.
Outside of his law practice, Seidel serves as the chair of the San Antonio Chamber’s Water Committee, where he leads policy direction to make sure the proper infrastructure is in place for the future as the city continues to grow. He is also a former chair of the city’s Chamber of Commerce.
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