Mark Skerry is a Partner in Simpson Thacher’s National Security Regulatory Practice. Mark has more than a decade of experience practicing national security law, including having served as an attorney within the Office of the General Counsel of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Mark regularly advises some of the largest private equity asset managers, institutional investors, and multinational corporations on their most sophisticated and high-profile transactions before the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) and analogous foreign direct investment (FDI) screening regulators worldwide. Mark has successfully secured CFIUS approvals and coordinated worldwide FDI clearances for transactions across a variety of industries considered sensitive to national security, including aerospace and defense manufacturing, classified government contracting, sea and airports, semiconductors, telecommunications, technology and software, social media, energy infrastructure, financial services, and life sciences, among others. Mark has negotiated commercially acceptable mitigation on behalf of numerous clients before the Committee, secured unilateral CFIUS approval for multiple hostile takeovers, and advised on investigations initiated by the Committee with respect to non-notified transactions. In addition, Mark regularly advises clients on facility security clearance matters before the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency relating to the mitigation of foreign ownership, control, or influence (“FOCI”), as well as transactional filing obligations with the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (“DDTC”) concerning International Traffic in Arms Regulations licensing.
Mark has been recognized by The Legal 500, where sources say that Mark “is a star” and “provides services of a veteran of decades of practice.” Mark is also recognized by Chambers, with commentators noting that “Mark consistently delivers practical advice and commercial solutions.” Mark was named a Rising Star for International Trade by Law360, a Rising Star by IFLR1000, and a Litigation Star by Benchmark Litigation.
Mark’s recent representations include:
- Blackstone, The Carlyle Group and Hellman & Friedman in securing worldwide foreign investment approvals for the private equity consortium’s $34 billion acquisition of a majority interest in medical supplier Medline Industries, named “Deal of the Year in North America” by Private Equity International
- Microsoft in securing worldwide foreign investment approvals for its $19.7 billion acquisition of Nuance Communications
- Cisco Systems in securing worldwide foreign investment approvals for its $28 billion acquisition of Splunk
- Versum Materials in connection with CFIUS approval of its acquisition by Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany for $6.5 billion, which garnered the “Cross-border Deal of the Year” from The Deal
- Oaktree Capital Group, LLC in securing necessary regulatory approvals before CFIUS, DDTC, and DCSA in connection with a proposed $4.7 billion merger with Brookfield Asset Management, Inc., resulting in one of the world’s largest asset managers with approximately $475 billion in combined assets under management
- Melrose Industries PLC in securing CFIUS and other national security regulatory approvals for its unsolicited £8 billion offer to acquire GKN PLC, an automotive, aerospace and defense manufacturing giant
- Refinitiv in connection with CFIUS and worldwide foreign investment approvals relating to its blockbuster $27 billion acquisition by the London Stock Exchange Group plc
Mark has been recognized by the Firm for his pro bono work for Kids in Need of Defense (KIND), a non-profit that provides immigration and legal services to children in need, and the Election Protection hotline, a non-partisan volunteer service providing voter information and assistance.
Prior to joining Simpson Thacher, Mark clerked for the Honorable Reggie B. Walton, United States District Judge for the District of Columbia and a former Presiding Judge of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. He received his J.D., magna cum laude, from Case Western Reserve University, where he was elected to the Order of the Coif, and his B.Sc. from Cornell University. He is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia.