David Eaton is highly experienced in securities offerings and capital markets transactions, mergers and acquisitions, and advising public companies and their directors and officers on securities regulatory, corporate governance, stock market, and fiduciary issues.
Mr. Eaton has served as issuer’s counsel in many billions of dollars of equity and debt security offerings during his career, and has extensive experience in representing companies issuing stock, bonds and other securities in capital-raising and other transactions. His knowledge encompasses a wide variety of offering methods, security types and transaction structures, including: SEC-registered initial and follow-on public offerings, Rule 144A and traditional private placements; common stock, secured and unsecured corporate bonds, trust preferred or “capital” securities and other instruments; and “shelf” registrations, “at-the-market” equity offerings, balance sheet liability management transactions such as tender and exchange offers and other transactions. He also has a significant background in representing public and private buyers and sellers in mergers and acquisitions.
Complementing his transactional practice, Mr. Eaton is a regular counselor to companies of all sizes and across industries on the corporate and securities law aspects of being a public company. He routinely advises and assists boards and management in areas such as: corporate governance and fiduciary duties; SEC reporting and public disclosure; insider trading, Rule 144 and Section 16 compliance; proxy statements; stock market listing standard compliance; Sarbanes-Oxley matters; and the securities law aspects of executive and employee compensation and benefits.
Mr. Eaton has been named as one of The Best Lawyers in America® in the area of Securities and Capital Markets Law, and has been recommended by Legal 500 US for Capital Markets–Debt Offerings. He has also been named in the "Big Deals" column of the American Lawyer and as a top "Dealmaker" by the Atlanta Business Chronicle. In addition, he has been recognized as a Georgia "Super Lawyer" in the areas of Securities & Corporate Finance, Mergers & Acquisitions and Business/Corporate by Super Lawyers magazine. In 2013 and 2014, Mr. Eaton was recognized by Georgia Trend magazine as a 'Legal Elite' in the area of corporate bonds. He is a frequent speaker on securities law topics.
