Christopher J. Kula

Christopher J. Kula is a Partner in Dentons' Corporate practice. His primary practice area is Corporate Law, focusing on advising investment managers and sponsors on a wide variety of matters, including fund formation, structuring, governance, regulatory and compliance.

His practice is focused on representing sponsors in connection with forming and structuring private funds (including master-feeder funds, parallel funds, rated note feeders, blocker vehicles, "evergreen" funds and co-investment vehicles), "funds of one", joint ventures, special purpose vehicles and separately managed accounts (investment management and sub-advisory agreements) that primarily pursue structured finance, private credit, private equity, real estate or venture capital investment strategies.

He also handles a variety of fund transactional and regulatory matters for such clients, including investment adviser registration and exempt reporting adviser reporting on Form ADV, GP and LP-led "secondaries" transactions, SEC examinations, and investment management M&A matters. He represents institutional limited partners in connection with their investments into private funds, including side letter negotiation.

His representative experience includes representing a global investment management firm sponsor in connection with the formation of several "funds of one" focused primarily on residential mortgage loan pools vis-à-vis institutional investors (mainly insurance or reinsurance companies) totalling over $2 billion in commitments; representing a global investment management firm sponsor in connection with separately managed accounts with institutional investors focused on mortgage loan strategies totalling over $5 billion; and representing a global investment management firm sponsor in connection with the formation of an "evergreen" fund complex that included a US-based master-feeder fund and a rated note sleeve focused on real estate debt income investments with invested capital in excess of $570 million.

He has also represented an established venture capital sponsor in connection with the formation of its third early-stage venture capital fund focused on artificial intelligence B2B tech companies targeting $150 million in commitments; represented a multifamily investment firm as sponsor in connection with the formation of a strategic joint venture with a private equity firm, with commitments exceeding $50 million; represented a NYSE-traded REIT in connection with its $100 million investment into an MSR-focused "fund of one"; and served as fund counsel for a real estate fund complex with commitments upwards of $2.5 billion, together with its two predecessor funds with commitments of over $650 million and $100 million respectively.

Other matters include representing an emerging sponsor formerly associated with a leading global investment firm in connection with the formation of a "fund of one" focused on co-investments in various media and entertainment companies for the benefit of a prominent private equity group with commitments upwards of $73 million; representing an independent wealth management firm with $15 billion in assets under management in several acquisitions of regional investment advisers; serving as fund counsel for a private equity fund complex focused on domestic and cross-border secondary transactions and co-investments in the media space with $130 million in assets under management; and representing a leading real estate investment and management firm in the formation of a hybrid commercial real estate and debt fund with commitments upwards of $76 million.

He is the author of "Specific Corporate Compliance Challenges by Industry: Asset Management for Private Investment Funds, Investment Advisors and Registered Funds" in the LexisNexis Corporate Compliance Practice Guide, and has co-authored numerous Dentons client alerts on topics including the Corporate Transparency Act and the SEC Private Fund Advisers Rule.

He is a member of the New York Bar Association, the American Bar Association and the Association for Corporate Growth. He holds a JD from Hofstra University School of Law (2002), where he was Associate Editor of the Journal of International Business and Law, and a BS in Biology from Villanova University (1997). While in law school, he was a judicial intern for the Honorable Lawrence M. McKenna in the Southern District of New York.