1100 Peachtree Street NE Suite 2800, Atlanta, GA USA 30309
Stan Blackburn joined the firm in 1976 and was admitted to partnership in 1982. Stan practices in the areas of corporate, corporate finance, and international law. He concentrates his practice on the representation of clients in U.S. and international mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, strategic alliances, issuances of debt and equity securities, and other business transactions. Stan also frequently advises clients on issues relating to non-transactional matters, including corporate governance, legal compliance, and shareholder rights. His experience includes:
Represented publicly-held and private companies such as AT&T (and predecessors BellSouth and Cingular Wireless), Equifax, Fidelity National Information Services (Certegy), Georgia-Pacific, Interface, Landmark Communications (The Weather Channel), Lockheed-Martin, Estate of Martin Luther King, Jr., and Zodiac S.A. in connection with a wide variety of domestic and international acquisition, disposition, consortium, strategic alliance and joint venture matters, with values ranging as high as €18 billion.
Advised clients such as ING, BellSouth, Equifax, Fidelity National, and Interface on various corporate finance and investment matters, involving private and public offerings of debt and equity securities.
Advised three NYSE companies and one NASDAQ company in connection with recent corporate governance matters, including efforts to comply with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and other corporate governance reform initiatives.
Mr. Blackburn is recognized in the 2023 and the 18 years immediately preceding editions of The Best Lawyers in America® for Corporate Law and Mergers & Acquisitions Law. He is also listed in the 2022 and the 13 years immediately preceding editions of Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business for Corporate/Mergers & Acquisitions and ranked as a "Senior Statesperson" in its 2020, 2021 and 2022 editions. Mr. Blackburn is recognized as a Georgia "Super Lawyer" by Super Lawyers magazine in the areas of Securities & Corporate Finance and Business/Corporate in 2009, in Mergers & Acquisitions in 2020 and the 11 years immediately preceding, and as a Top 100 Georgia "Super Lawyer" in 2013. Mr. Blackburn was recommended by Legal 500 US in 2021 for Mergers & Acquisitions. He was selected as a 2021 Georgia Legal Award honoree for “Lifetime Achievement” by The Daily Report. Mr. Blackburn was named as a top "Dealmaker" of 2008 by the Atlanta Business Chronicle. In 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016, he was recognized by International Who's Who of Business Lawyers for Mergers & Acquisitions.
In 2011, The Boys and Girls Clubs of America honored Mr. Blackburn with the National Service to Youth Award for his volunteer service as a board member and officer of Boys and Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta, Inc.
Experience
Represented AT&T in connection with an exchange transaction with Verizon Wireless in which Verizon transferred cellular licenses, network facilities, subscribers, and other assets in Vermont, New York and Washington to AT&T in exchange for similar assets in Kentucky, cash and other consideration.
The firm served as lead counsel for BellSouth in the purchase of the interests of Vodafone and RWE in the parties' E-Plus German wireless joint venture and the related creation of a strategic joint venture with Royal KPN, N.V., a Dutch telecommunications company, in transaction initially valued at €18.7 billion. The firm subsequently assisted BellSouth in connection with the conversion of its joint venture interests into a minority interest in publicly-held KPN and the sale of that interest.
Represented Equifax, Inc., one of the United States' largest credit reporting agencies, in its $1.4 billion acquisition of publicly held TALX corporation for a combination of stock and cash. The transaction was structured as a tax-free reorganization with a unique share buy back structure to prevent share dilution.
Represented Equifax Inc., one of the United States' largest credit reporting agencies, in all aspects of benefit plans and executive compensation plans related to the $2 billion tax-free spin-off of its payment services business into a new public company, Certegy Inc.
Represented a global telecommunications company in its multibillion dollar acquisition of wireless spectrum from a Northern telecommunications company.
Representing one of the largest U.S. forest products manufacturers in the sale of two if its Southeast pulp operations for $610 million.
Represented Zodiac Aerospace in its acquisition of C&D Aerospace, an aircraft interiors manufacturer with operations in the United States, Canada, France, Brazil, and Mexico.
Advised BellSouth Corporation in connection with the creation and shareholder authorization of its Latin America Group tracking stock.
Represented a global telecommunications company in the sale of its interactive network that is the backbone for certain blackberry devices to one of the world's leading private investment firms.
Represented Landmark Communications Inc. in the sale of its weather-related businesses, including The Weather Channel and weather.com, to a consortium comprised of NBC Universal, Bain Capital and The Blackstone Group (amount not disclosed). The Weather Channel was the third largest U.S. cable network, and weather.com was the U.S.’s leading weather website.
Represented Certegy Inc., a major publicly held credit card and check verification company, in its $4.5 billion merger with Fidelity National Information Services Inc. and related special dividend to shareholders. The firm also advised the company on issues regarding executive compensation and employee benefits matters relating to the merger.
Represented the State of South Carolina in connection with the execution of a historic bi-state agreement with the State of Georgia providing for the two states jointly to develop a new ocean marine terminal on the Savannah River in Jasper County, South Carolina. The agreement provides for the creation, pursuant to a Congressionally-approved interstate compact, of a new entity to develop, own and operate the terminal. The initial phase of this Project is expected to cost up to U.S. $5 billion.
Represented Estate of Martin Luther King, Jr. Inc. in the sale of Dr. King's papers to a buyer sponsored by the City of Atlanta.
Insights View All
University of Virginia School of Law J.D. (1976) Order of the Coif, Notes Editor of Virginia Law Review
Auburn University B.S. (1973) Economics, high honors
Georgia (1976)
American Bar Association, Member
American College of Investment Counsel, Fellow
Atlanta Bar Association, Member
Woodruff Arts Center, Trustee
Boys and Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta, Inc., Former Director and Corporate Secretary
State Bar of Georgia, Former Chair of Business Law Section, Former Chair of Legal Opinions Committee and Corporate Code Revision Committee Member
Canadian-American Society of the Southeastern United States, Past Director
Cobb County International Business Council, Past Member
Fulton County Heart Fund Campaign, Legal Division, Former Chair
High Museum of Art, Young Men’s Round Table, Past President
Japan-America Society of Georgia, Former Director
Leadership Atlanta, Member (1983)
Municipal Courts of the City of Atlanta, Former Task Force Chairman
United Way of Atlanta, Past Group Chair
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