Peter Juzwiak is a partner in the transactions workgroup and resident in the Los Angeles office. His practice covers a broad range of corporate transactions, including strategic alliances, mergers and acquisitions, and public and private financing transactions, as well as general advice to corporate clients and their boards and management. Among other areas, Mr. Juzwiak has substantial experience in the retail industry (both land-based and online), strategic media and sponsorship alliances, and the purchase and sale of professional sports teams.

Before joining Irell & Manella as a partner, Mr. Juzwiak was the general counsel of eToys Inc., a publicly traded online retailer of children’s products, where he specialized in legal matters pertaining to the Internet and high-technology industries. These matters include online marketing transactions; the acquisition and development of intellectual property rights, including software licenses, domain name transfers and trademark registrations; compliance with regulatory requirements, such as the Federal Trade Commission’s privacy guidelines; and website development transactions.

Mr. Juzwiak previously served as law clerk to the Honorable Harry L. Hupp of the U.S. District Court located in Los Angeles.

Representative Matters

Mergers and acquisitions:

• The acquisition of Lifetime Entertainment Services by A&E Television Networks, resulting in a combined company operating 10 domestic television networks and over 20 websites throughout the world.   
• The sale of a chain of over 300 specialty retail stores in North America to The Children’s Place and the subsequent repurchase of those retail stores through a bankruptcy proceeding 
• The acquisition by a major international entertainment company of Club Penguin Entertainment, operator of a popular children’s online interactive community with more than 700,000 subscribers worldwide     
• The sale of the Movies.com entertainment website to Fandango.com, a leading online movie ticketing service 
• The sale of the World Series Champion Anaheim Angels baseball club to Arturo Moreno
• The sale of the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim professional hockey club to Dr. Henry Samueli
• The acquisition by private equity fund Laurel Crown Capital of a minority investment in Harley Marine Services, a major provider of transport, towing and other port services in the U.S.   
• The acquisitions of BabyCenter and eParties by eToys and the sale of the Consumer Health Interactive division of BabyCenter to Advance Paradigm
• The acquisition of Infoseek by a major media company and the subsequent formation of its internet group through the combination of internally developed Internet assets and the newly acquired company
• The joint establishment of an Argentina film production company by a major U.S. media company and Patagonik Film Group
• The acquisition of PayLess Drug Stores by Thrifty Drug Stores and the sale of Thrifty/PayLess to Rite Aid Corporation
• The acquisition of the electron devices division of Varian Associates by Communications & Power Industries
• The acquisition of Mall Advertising and Promotions by Revere Holding Corporation  

Strategic media and sponsorship alliances:

• Representation of a major international media company in its investment in Hulu, LLC, a free online video service offering TV shows, movies and other content from its media partners
• Representation of the buyer of a preferred equity investment in NBA China, a subsidiary of the National Basketball Association formed for the purpose of developing and utilizing the NBA’s intellectual property and related assets in China 
• The establishment of a new co-branded credit card program among a major media company, Bank One and Visa
• Media sponsorship and consumer product licensing transactions with Kodak, UPS, Office Max and Kellogg
• Online marketing and promotional transactions between eToys and AOL, Yahoo!, The Rosie O’Donnell Show, McDonald’s and The Gap

Financing transactions:

• Initial public offerings of common stock for eToys, Thrifty/PayLess Drug Stores, Channell Commercial Corporation, Herbalife International and Mustang Software
• Debt and convertible securities offerings, including a convertible preferred stock offering and a convertible note offering for eToys; multiple bond offerings for Thrifty/PayLess Drug Stores; and medium-term note programs for a number of public companies
• Secured financing transactions for eToys, Barry’s Jewelers and Channell Commercial Corporation
• Restructuring transactions and related activities for Barry’s Jewelers, Acme Rentals and eToys

General corporate representation and counseling:

• Responses to inquiries and investigations by the Federal Trade Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission
• Labor matters, including employment agreements, severance agreements, noncompetes and confidentiality agreements, as well as implementation of workforce reductions requiring compliance with the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act
• Preparation and review of public company disclosure materials, including SEC reports, earnings releases, press releases and analyst presentations; shareholder communications, including annual reports and proxy statements; compliance with Section 16 reporting obligations and rules pertaining to resales of restricted securities; and development and oversight of insider trading policies and other corporate legal policies

Bar & Court Admissions

• 1991, California
• U.S. District Court, Central District of California; U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit