Bingham

Bingham

Robert G. Leonard

Partner

Rob Leonard has been structuring, organizing and representing hedge funds, funds of funds and other private investment funds (both domestic and offshore) and investment advisers for more than 25 years.

Rob has structured and organized numerous master-feeder, side-by-side and mini-master-feeder funds for hedge fund managers engaged in a myriad of strategies, including long/short equity, multi-strat, credit, distressed credit, mortgage-backed securities, risk arb, emerging markets, global macro, stat arb, relative value and event driven.

Rob has worked with managers on seed deals, founder’s classes, placement agreements and coming up with other creative ways of building asset base. He has worked with managers on bringing in and retaining talent through structuring employment, “phantom” equity and true equity arrangements.

Rob has also worked on a variety of regulatory and other compliance matters, including registrations with the SEC, CFTC and state regulators, filing Form PF and filings with the Treasury Department and Bureau of Economic Analysis. He regularly works on SEC and other regulatory examinations and investigations, as well as investor and third-party actions.

Rob is a quarterback for clients and leverages Bingham’s institutional platform in a seamless, cost-effective manner.

Rob is a recognized leader in the industry. The Legal 500 recently described Rob as “top class.”

Additionally, Rob serves on the Steering Committee of the Managed Fund Association’s Lawyers Advisory Committee.

Experience

  • Set up long-short equity manager using master feeder structure
  • Represented global macro manager in setting up master feeder and in $100 million seed deal
  • Structured billion-dollar seed/spin-out deal of large investment bank
  • Represented long-short equity manager in $25 million seed deal
  • Structured an insurance-based fund of funds product offered through insurance carriers supporting variable insurance policies and variable annuity contracts
  • Structured Cayman Islands-based offshore investment fund with U.S. and foreign equity securities investments
  • Structured an offshore principal-protected product that utilizes leverage and has interest rate and currency swap components
  • Represents global financial institution in connection with its role as placement agent for numerous hedge fund advisers and their funds

Events

  • Panelist, Goldman Sachs Seminar, New York (2013)
  • Presenter, Year-end Review of Compliance/Legal Matters, Bingham Seminar, New York (2012)
  • Presenter, Credit-Suisse Form PF Seminars, Boston and New York (2012)
  • Presenter, Form PF: The Second Wave, Bingham Seminar, New York (2012)
  • Panelist, Goldman Sachs’ Prime Seminar, New York (2012)
  • Panelist, Deutsche Bank’s “On the Radar” Roundtable: Form PF Discussion, New York (2012)
  • The Importance of Administration Analytics — Form PF, FATCA and Beyond, Deutsche Bank, New York (2012)
  • Form PF: Inside and Out, MFA, New York (2012)
  • Form SHC and Other Treasury and BEA Forms, Bingham Seminar, New York (2012)
  • Presenter, Regulatory Update on Form PF, Bingham — Morgan Stanley Luncheon Presentation, Dallas, Texas (2011)
  • Panelist, Changes in the Legal Regulatory Environment for Hedge Funds and Asset Management Firms, BNP Paribas CFO/COO Hedge Fund Summit, New York (2011)
  • Moderator, Prime Brokerage Agreements in the New Regulatory Environment, Bingham Seminar, New York (2011)
  • Panelist, Legal Landscape for Hedge Funds and Family Offices, Jefferies’ Capital Introduction Group, New York (2011)
  • Getting It All Done Correctly — Compliance Best Practices and Your Form ADV Part 2, Bingham Seminar, New York (2011)
  • Living in a Post-Registration World — What Is the Impact on Your Business?‚ Credit Suisse Compliance Workshop, New York (2011)
  • Expansion of IA Regulation: Implications for Private Fund Managers, New York (2010)
  • What You Need to Know About the U.S. Financial Reform, New York (2010)
  • Presenter, Legal Due Diligence, Duff & Phelps Alternative Investments Best Practices Roundtable, New York (2010)
  • Moderator, Alignment of Interests, AlphaHedge, Southampton, Bermuda (2010)
  • Panelist, Legal and Regulatory Issues, BNP Paribas CFO/COO Summit, New York (2009)
  • Panelist, Funds of Funds: Setting Up a Managed Account Platform, Infovest21, New York (2009)
  • Panelist, Regulatory Symposium, Jefferies Prime Brokerage Services, New York (2009)
  • Navigating Current Markets — A View From the Front Lines, Advent Web Seminar (2009)
  • Hedge Funds A to Z, Financial Research Associates Conference, New York (2008)
  • How to Value and Structure Asset Management M&A Transactions, Berkshire-Bingham Seminar, Boston and New York (2008)
  • Hedge Funds 101 & 102, Financial Research Associates Conference, New York (2008)
  • Panelist, Market Volatility and Its Practical Effects: Weathering the Storm, New York (2008)
  • Panelist, Supporting Your People at All Stages of the Employee Life Cycle, Hedge Fund Human Capital Management Seminar, Goldman, Sachs and Co., New York (2007)
  • Key Hedge Fund Employment and Talent Retention Considerations, New York (2007)
  • Successor Planning, Banc of America Securities: 6th Annual Northeast CFO/COO Summit, New York (2007)
  • Focus on Due Diligence: Litigation Trends Across the Hedge Fund Industry and Investor Rights and Remedies, Hedge Fund Regulation & Compliance, New York (2007)
  • Focus on ERISA: Update on Hedge Funds and Their Interaction With ERISA, Hedge Fund Regulation & Compliance, New York (2007)
  • Insider Trading and Hedge Funds — What’s All the Fuss?, New York (2007)
  • Global Regulatory Outlook, MARHedge, Grand Cayman (2006)
  • The Alchemy of Hedge Funds: The Implications of Collapse, Stamford CFA Society (2006)
  • What Do Institutional Investors Look for in a Hedge Fund Manager?, New York (2006)
  • Bank of America Prime Brokerage Services 5th Annual Northeast CFO/COO Summit (2006)
  • Hedge Fund Regulation & Compliance Forum, New York (2006)
  • Maintaining Bench Strength and Morale During a Period of Low Performance, GAIM USA Conference, Boca Raton, Fla. (2006)
  • Hedge Fund Incubation and Seeding Conference, New York (2006)

Publications

Memberships

  • Steering Committee for Managed Funds Association Outside Counsel Forum

Awards & Honors

  • Super Lawyers (2006–2009)
  • The Legal 500 US (2008, 2012)
  • Notes editor, Brooklyn Law Review (past)

Legal insight. Business instinct. Global intelligence. ™