Bracewell announced on Wednesday that Houston lawyer Matthew Grunert has joined the firm as a partner.
Grunert, who received his law degree from SMU, lateraled over from Hunton Andrews Kurth. He focuses his practice on executive compensation, equity compensation plans and award agreements, M&A and capital market transactions, and credit and financing arrangements.
The Texas Lawbook visited with Grunert on why he joined Bracewell.
The Lawbook: What brought the firm and you together?
Grunert: The firm’s compensation and benefits practice group was looking to strengthen its bench. I was fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time and had, at Hunton Andrews Kurth, acquired and honed a skill set closely aligned with Bracewell’s existing practice.
The Lawbook: Has the firm and the new partner worked together in the past?
Grunert: Yes. Over the years, I have had the pleasure of working on M&A deals and other corporate transactions, such as credit facilities, with both Bruce Jocz and Scott Sanders.
The Lawbook: What are two or three prominent or important matters that the partner has handled in the past?
Grunert: In the past, I have worked on deals with an aggregate value of approximately $50 billion, representing public companies, private companies and private equity in all aspects of M&A employee benefit and executive compensation matters.
The Lawbook: What distinguishes the partner from others in his practice area?
Grunert: I seek to bring a more wholistic approach to compensation (i.e., addressing all relevant legal matters regarding implementation and maintenance of executive compensation, such as securities law regarding public disclosure) as opposed to the more traditional focus solely on the tax aspects.
The Lawbook: What is something about the partner that clients should know?
Grunert: I strive to move beyond the mold of what clients historically think of as the ERISA attorney (i.e., services limited strictly to tax and ERISA matters) to incorporate a new dimension of a wholistic compensation practice. For example, I also assist clients with corporate and securities aspects of compensation and its public disclosure, as well as shareholder activism matters regarding executive compensation.