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Corinne N.
Sprague

  • Partner

My personal and professional mission is to help good people do good work. Whether they are local small businesses, multi-generational family businesses with national or international reach, or community development financial institutions (CDFIs) and other non-profit entities focused on impact investing, my clients all make significant contributions to their communities. Helping them accomplish this allows me to do the same, to make a difference, and that really matters to me.

A seasoned corporate attorney, Corinne Sprague advises companies on mergers and acquisitions, commercial contracts, ownership planning and transfers, and corporate planning and governance. In addition to her general corporate practice, Corinne assists family-owned businesses and family offices in designing governance, ownership and compensation structures to align with their long-term succession planning and business objectives. She also represents nonprofit issuers of securities (primarily in the impact investing space) with their debt offerings.

    • Advises privately held businesses with business organization, succession planning, governance and other corporate matters, including multigenerational succession planning for family-owned businesses.
    • Drafts and reviews a variety of commercial contracts, including supply agreements, distribution agreements and consulting agreements, for clients in the retail, manufacturing, information technology and medical device industries.
    • Represents nonprofit issuers of debt securities in structuring and completing single-state, multistate and national offerings of debt securities while complying with registration/exemption and disclosure requirements under federal and state securities laws.
    • Advises privately held businesses with business organization, succession planning, governance and other corporate matters, including multigenerational succession planning for family-owned businesses.
    • Drafts and reviews a variety of commercial contracts, including supply agreements, distribution agreements and consulting agreements, for clients in the retail, manufacturing, information technology and medical device industries.
    • Represents nonprofit issuers of debt securities in structuring and completing single-state, multistate and national offerings of debt securities while complying with registration/exemption and disclosure requirements under federal and state securities laws.

 

General Corporate Advising

  • Assists several multigenerational family businesses, including Louis Padnos Iron and Metal Company, a leading recycler of paper, plastics and metals throughout the United States, and EJ Group, Inc., a world leader in infrastructure access solutions with corporate planning and governance, ownership planning, commercial contracts, general business matters and business acquisitions.
  • Represents Skytron, LLC, a leading OEM and supplier of medical equipment, with regard to supply and service contracts.
  • Assists Stryker Corporation (NYSE) with respect to corporate structure management, organization and maintenance in connection with domestic and international tax matters.

Impact Investing

  • Advises CDFIs and other nonprofit organizations in multistate and national impact investment offerings of over $1 billion in debt securities on an annual basis. Representative clients include Calvert Impact Capital, Inc., Enterprise Community Loan Fund, RSF Social Investment Fund and Homewise.

Representative Mergers and Acquisitions

  • ChoiceOne Financial Services, Inc. (Nasdaq), the holding company of ChoiceOne Bank, in its acquisitions of County Bank Corp. (parent of Lakestone Bank & Trust) and Community Shores Bank Corporation (parent of Community Shores Bank).
  • Keweenaw Financial Corporation (OTC), the holding company of Superior National Bank, in its acquisition of North Star Financial Holdings, Inc. (parent of Main Street Bank).
  • TCSB Bancorp, Inc., the holding company of Traverse City State Bank, in its merger with Independent Bank Corporation (Nasdaq).
  • CCL Industries, Inc.(TSX) in its $532 million acquisition of Checkpoint Systems, Inc. (NYSE).
  • West Shore Bank, in its acquisitions of West Michigan Bank and Trust and Ellis Capital Management.
  • American Grease Stick Company, a multigenerational family business, in its sale of substantially all of its assets to an affiliate of 3 Rivers Capital.
  • Birmingham Bloomfield Bancshares, Inc. (parent of the Bank of Birmingham) in its merger with Arbor Bancorp, Inc. (parent of the Bank of Ann Arbor).
  • Chemical Financial Corporation (Nasdaq) in its acquisitions of Lake Michigan Financial Corporation, Monarch Community Bancorp, Inc., and Talmer Bancorp, Inc.
  • Action Fabricators, Inc. and Laminin Medical Products, Inc. in their sale to a private equity affiliate of River Associates Investments, LLC.
  • Mercantile Bank Corporation (Nasdaq) in its acquisition of Firstbank Corporation in an all-stock merger of equals transaction.
  • Spartan Stores, Inc. (Nasdaq) in its merger with Nash-Finch Company in an all-stock transaction valued at approximately $1.3 billion.
  • Consumers Energy Company (NYSE) in a $155 million acquisition of a gas-fired power plant from AlphaGen Power LLC.
  • Dri-Design, LLC, in its 2014 sale of stock to Kingspan Group, a global leader in high performance insulation, building fabric and solar integrated building envelopes.
  • Howmedica Osteonics Corp., an affiliate of Stryker Corporation(NYSE), in its acquisition of assets from Marshall Steele & Associates, LLC.
  • Perrigo Company(NYSE) in its acquisition of assets from CanAm Care, LLC.
  • East Jordan Iron Works, Inc., d/b/a EJ USA, Inc., in its acquisition of Syracuse Castings Sales Corporation and Syracuse Castings West Corp.
  • Reid Supply Company in its sale of assets to Filtrona Newton, Inc.

Public Private Partnerships (P3)

  • Part of the Warner team serving as P3 procurement, governance and commercial counsel to the Canadian government and Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority in connection with the multi-billion dollar Gordie Howe International Bridge.
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Corinne N.
Sprague

  • Partner
Grand Rapids

My admin

My personal and professional mission is to help good people do good work. Whether they are local small businesses, multi-generational family businesses with national or international reach, or community development financial institutions (CDFIs) and other non-profit entities focused on impact investing, my clients all make significant contributions to their communities. Helping them accomplish this allows me to do the same, to make a difference, and that really matters to me.

A seasoned corporate attorney, Corinne Sprague advises companies on mergers and acquisitions, commercial contracts, ownership planning and transfers, and corporate planning and governance. In addition to her general corporate practice, Corinne assists family-owned businesses and family offices in designing governance, ownership and compensation structures to align with their long-term succession planning and business objectives. She also represents nonprofit issuers of securities (primarily in the impact investing space) with their debt offerings.