K&L Gates Broadens Corporate Practice with Raleigh Partner Addition

Raleigh - Global law firm K&L Gates LLP has added Courtney B. Thomas as a partner in the corporate practice. He joins K&L Gates’ Raleigh office from communications networks software and services provider Trilliant Networks Inc., where he was senior vice president, general counsel, and corporate secretary.

“We are pleased to welcome Courtney to the firm’s corporate practice,” stated Annette Becker, co-leader of K&L Gates’ corporate practice area. “His extensive experience with corporate governance and complex corporate transactions will be a valuable addition to our east coast practice and allow us to further serve existing and future clients.”

Thomas joined Trilliant in 2017, bringing extensive experience in corporate transactions as well as commercial, intellectual property, and corporate governance. As the head of the legal and governance function of the technology company, Thomas advised on strategic acquisitions, asset purchases, licensing, data privacy, supply chain, and day-to-day operations.

Prior to joining Trilliant, Thomas was a senior lawyer at Credit Suisse, where he advised on corporate governance, regulatory matters, and leveraged lending transactions, and served as a co-chair of the general counsel diversity committee. Previously, Thomas spent a decade in private practice in New York City, focusing on representation of investment banks, private equity funds, hedge funds, and other institutions.

Thomas has advised private equity and hedge fund clients on various investment opportunities including distressed loans, and has deep knowledge of the asset class and the supporting LSTA documentation and related issues. His transactional experience is primarily focused on leveraged lending and distressed assets, with experience in M&A and other private equity investments spanning multiple industries and verticals.

Thomas is a member of the North Carolina Bar Association’s corporate counsel and minorities in the profession committees and guest lectures at the University of North Carolina School of Law.

Thomas’ arrival follows the additions of Raleigh partners Julie Rizzo (also corporate) and Nicholle Allen-Steele (finance) during the past year, as well as other corporate partners Amanda Albert and Josh Berick in New York, Roberta Chang in Shanghai, Victor Chang in Washington, D.C., Balazs Danko and Mitchell Weiss in Chicago, Jason Putnam Gordon in San Francisco, Kevin McKibbin in Charleston, Yoanna Stefanova in Luxembourg, and Tom Young in Brisbane. They are among nearly 115 new partners and of counsel who have joined the firm globally since the beginning of 2020.

Lee Hogewood, managing partner of K&L Gates’ Raleigh office, commented: “I met Courtney about six or seven years ago and hoped then that we might someday become law partners. His arrival is another step forward for our extraordinary global corporate practice and our Raleigh office. We are delighted that Courtney chose to continue his already impressive career at K&L Gates.”

K&L Gates’ corporate practice is one of the most substantial in the legal industry, with more than 500 lawyers in offices on five continents providing clients with practical legal solutions in the structuring, financing, and completion of domestic, international, and cross-border transactions.