Overview

Emerich Gutter is a corporate attorney in Holland & Knight's Charlotte office. Mr. Gutter focuses his practice on domestic and international mergers and acquisitions (M&A), private equity, growth equity and venture capital investments, corporate governance and other corporate matters.

Mr. Gutter has substantial experience representing strategic and financial buyers and sellers in a variety of complex business transactions, including mergers, acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, cross-border transactions, growth equity and venture capital investments, joint ventures, minority investments and carve-out transactions. His experience spans transactions with valuations ranging from less than $5 million to more than $10 billion, and in a broad range of industries, such as food, fashion, cosmetic and other consumer products, software, infrastructure, packaging, industrial equipment, insurance, healthcare and technology.

In addition, Mr. Gutter advises clients on a variety of general corporate matters, including corporate governance, the formation and structure of business entities, executive employment and incentive arrangements, and other corporate operational legal matters.

Prior to joining Holland & Knight, Mr. Gutter was an attorney at law firms in Charlotte and Chicago.

Representative Experience

  • Represented a private equity fund in its auction and $1.1 billion divestiture of a portfolio company in the baked foods industry
  • Represented a private equity fund in its $350 million leveraged buyout of a manufacturer of healthcare products
  • Represented a publicly traded beauty products company in its $600 million joint venture with an e-commerce cosmetics company
  • Represented a software-focused private equity fund in numerous platform and bolt-on acquisitions and divestitures, including in the areas of e-commerce, healthcare and public policy
  • Represented an industrial conglomerate in its $1.1 billion, cross-border carve-out acquisition of the beverage dispense and merchandising divisions of a publicly traded United Kingdom company
  • Represented a private equity fund in its $362 million acquisition of an industrial adhesives and sealants manufacturer
  • Represented a multinational meat and protein company in its auction and carve-out divestiture of certain non-core businesses to a private equity fund
  • Represented the portfolio company of a private equity fund in its $167 million carve-out acquisition of a lifestyle media and merchandising company from a publicly traded fashion brand holding company
  • Represented a publicly traded consumer goods company in its $13.9 billion merger with a German conglomerate
  • Represented a private equity fund focused on the industrial, infrastructure and business services sectors in numerous platform and bolt-on acquisitions and divestitures
  • Represented the portfolio company of a private equity fund in the approximately $158 million carve-out divestiture of a non-core snacks division to a publicly traded consumer packaged goods company
  • Represented a publicly traded property and casualty insurance company in its $330 million stock-for-stock merger with an insurance underwriter
  • Represented a private equity fund in its $82 million leveraged buyout of a professional employer organization
  • Represented a private equity fund in its approximately $65 million platform acquisition of a manufacturer of food packaging products
  • Represented a publicly traded trucking and freight company in its approximately $3 billion tender offer sale to a publicly traded logistics company
  • Represented an industrial conglomerate in its acquisition of an Indian manufacturer of water filtration systems
  • Represented a publicly traded packaging company in its approximately $150 million acquisition of a packaging product distributor

Credentials

Education
  • Boston University School of Law, J.D., Business Organizations and Finance Law, with honors
  • The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, B.A.
Bar Admissions/Licenses
  • Illinois
  • North Carolina
Honors & Awards
  • The Best Lawyers in America guide, Charlotte Corporate Law and Mergers and Acquisitions Law Ones to Watch, 2022, 2023, 2025; Charlotte Leveraged Buyouts and Private Equity Law Ones to Watch, 2025; Corporate Law, Leveraged Buyouts and Private Equity Law, Mergers and Acquisitions Law, 2024

Publications

News