Jonathan A. Dhanawade

Industry Focus

Jonathan has extensive experience across a broad range of sectors, including technology and software, business and financial services, mortgage, chemicals, real estate, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, media and entertainment, aviation, aerospace and defense, and education.

Thought Leadership

A recognized voice in the private equity industry, Jonathan is regularly quoted in The American Lawyer, PE Hub, Pitchbook, Crain's Chicago Business, Bloomberg Law, Reuters, The Deal, Law360, Middle Market Growth, and Private Funds CFO. He is a co-host of Mayer Brown’s Global Corporate M&A Podcast, where he leads conversations with leading dealmakers and investment bankers on the state of global M&A and private capital, and has appeared on other industry podcasts such as M&A Science. Jonathan has led many legal seminars and authored articles published by the Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance, the American Bar Association's Business Law Today, Deal Lawyers, and the Daily Journal, including a multi-part series on GP stake transactions, a multi-part series on preferred equity in private capital markets, and a series of Delaware law alerts addressing key M&A and private equity developments. Jonathan also serves on Law 360’s Editorial Advisory Board (Private Equity), and in that role, provides feedback and offers insight that helps shape Law360’s coverage of private equity-related matters.

Community and Academic Engagement

Jonathan serves as an adjunct professor at Northwestern Pritzker School of Law, his alma mater, where he teaches students the fundamentals of private equity transactions. He also mentors entrepreneurs and startup founders through 1871, mHUB, and Techstars, and serves on the Chicago board of directors of Susan G. Komen and the board of directors of VOCEL.

• OpenGate Capital in its acquisition of Player One Amusement Group
• Heartland Business Systems, a portfolio company of Alvarez & Marsal Capital, in its acquisition of Midwest Computech
• Four Seasons Heating and Air Conditioning, a portfolio company of Cortec Group, in multiple add-on transactions that expanded its footprint across the Midwest
• Fireside Investments in its acquisition of an Illinois-based owner and operator of car washes
• A portfolio company of a middle-market private equity firm in a complex out-of-court restructuring that involved successfully negotiating with multiple lenders and equityholders
• BPOC in its launch of Atlas Clinical Research
• H.I.G. Growth Partners in its strategic growth investment in ProsperOps
• Cortec Group in its acquisition of Four Seasons Heating and Air Conditioning and Four Seasons Home Services
• Resonetics, a portfolio company of GTCR with significant investment from Carlyle, in its acquisition of Agile MV
• Water Street Healthcare Partners in its sale of Custopharm to Hikma Pharmaceuticals PLC
• GTCR and Reverence Capital Partners in their definitive agreement with Wells Fargo & Company to acquire Wells Fargo Asset Management
• Paya, a portfolio company of GTCR, in multiple add-on transactions, including its acquisition of VelocIT Business Solutions
• Summit Partners in multiple transactions, including its investment in Rocky Mountain Senior Care, Chase Grant Billing, and AutoMedical; its recapitalization of Ylopo; its acquisition of Marietta Eye Clinic; and its sale of Healthline Media to Red Ventures
• AFV Partners in its PIPE investment in Canoo
• GTCR in multiple transactions, including its recapitalization of Jet Support Services
• Stable Road Acquisition Corp. in its merger with Momentus
• Centerbridge Partners in its majority equity investment in Syncapay
• Thoma Bravo in its acquisition of Majesco
• iOffice Holdings, a portfolio company of Waud Capital Partners, in its acquisition of ManagerPlus Solutions
• Home Care Assistance, a portfolio company of Summit Partners, in multiple add-on transactions, including its acquisitions of Alpine Health Ventures, Seniorcorps, and Hyperion Ventures
• Parthenon Capital in its sale of Relation Insurance Services to Aquiline Capital Partners
• Audax in its acquisition of Aspen Surgical from Hillrom
• Arcline Capital Partners in its acquisition of Pride Engineering from May River Capital
• AssuredPartners, a portfolio company of GTCR and Apax, in its acquisition of Corkill Insurance Agency
• Valaris Limited in its financial restructuring and emergence from Chapter 11
• Arsenal Capital in its sale of Polymer Solutions Group's Polymer Additives division to The Jordan Company
• Waud Capital Partners in multiple transactions, including its launch of veterinary services platform, Heart + Paw, and its acquisition of the Apotheco Pharmacy Group
• Federal Street Acquisition, a special-purpose acquisition company sponsored by an affiliate of Thomas H. Lee Partners, in its business combination with Agiliti Holdco, the holding company of Agiliti Health
• Reedy Industries in its recapitalization by Audax
• Periscope Equity in its investment in Power Digital Marketing

Certain matters listed above represent work performed by Jonathan A. Dhanawade while at a previous firm.