Steve has more than three decades of experience counseling domestic and international clients on mergers and acquisitions, public and private securities offerings, securities compliance, and corporate governance matters. As co-head of Hunton's mergers and acquisitions practice group and former co-head of the retail and consumer products industry group, Steve drives growth both within the firm and for his clients. He is skilled in strategic partnership and relationship building, and has a particular interest in helping in-house teams-especially general counsel-manage outside counsel effectively.

While his work spans multiple industries, Steve focuses on retail and consumer products companies. His clients range from supermarkets to a well-known home improvement company to a snack manufacturer to restaurants, retail companies, and more. He has represented them in million- to billion-dollar acquisitions, sales, and public offerings. He also represents numerous public companies and their boards of directors in all aspects of corporate governance, including with respect to major corporate transactions, fiduciary duties, shareholder activism, strategic defenses, and executive matters, such as annual evaluations of chief executive officers by boards of directors. He is a frequent speaker on topics such as corporate governance, crisis planning and management, and strong board foundations.

Steve also plays a lead role in developing strategic relationships with some of the firm's largest institutional clients. Some of these relationships resulted from his distinct interest in working with general counsels to find efficient, effective ways to organize and streamline law department functions and strengthen the inside-outside counsel bond, and others from his inherent abilities to listen, connect, and collaborate. He even co-authored a case study on "Moving From a Cost-Based to a Value-Focused Outside Counsel Strategic Partnership Model" in the treatise Successful Partnering Between Inside and Outside Counsel (2019). Steve is committed to budget management and accountability and has extensive experience with legal project management and creating alternative fee arrangements tailored to meet client needs.

Bar Admissions

Education
JD, Washington and Lee University School of Law, magna cum laude, Editor-in-Chief, Washington and Lee Law Review, 1990

BS, University of Arkansas, cum laude, 1987