2018 Independent Sponsor Conference

October 2-3, 2018

The Ritz-Carlton
2121 McKinney Ave.
Dallas, TX, USA, 75201

Independent sponsor activity remains a force in the strong M&A environment. Recently named Most Innovative Firm for Business of Law by Financial Times for its work with independent sponsors, and “Law Firm of the Year” in Mergers & Acquisitions magazine’s 2017 Mid-Market M&A Awards, and ranked No. 1 in Thomson Reuters’ league table for U.S. M&A transactions up to $50 million, McGuireWoods is frequently recognized for its innovations in the independent sponsor market.

Learn More

“Our team has exclusively focused on investing in partnership with independent sponsors since our founding two decades ago. The inaugural 2017 McGuireWoods conference was a superior event for networking and learning for the burgeoning Independent Sponsor investing community, the best we’ve attended to date. We view the 2018 conference as a ‘need to be there’ event for our firm and other Capital Providers focusing on this investing community.”
- Nick Russell, Partner, Tuckerman Capital
“Attending the McGuireWoods IS Conference in October was one of the best things my partner and I did in 2017. It provided our, less than year old firm at the time, an incredible boost in developing relationships with a broader range of capital providers."
- Rena Clark, Managing Partner, Laurel Oak Capital Partners
"The McGuireWoods Independent Sponsor Conference is the gold standard in the industry. We have been to several similar events over the years, but none come close to this one in terms of scale and productivity. It is the ‘don't-miss event’ of the year."
- Grant Kornman, Managing Partner, NCK Capital
“For a short event, you can’t beat it. You leave with your thumb on the pulse of the industry, with fresh perspectives from your peers and colleagues, and most importantly, with new capital partner relationships and ideas. McGuireWoods is a major hub of our industry and has become an invaluable resource and partner for Starboard.”
- Andrew Runk, Managing Director, Starboard Capital Partners
“Without question, McGuireWoods is bringing value to all parties involved in independent sponsor transactions, and last year’s conference is one example of that. I was impressed by both the quantity and quality of attendees, and the panel topics were well-chosen, with good execution. The conference was extremely well-done in all respects and was very helpful for me on multiple fronts, including networking.”
- Wyche H. Walton, Managing Partner, Walton Capital Management LLC
“This is the best conference out there connecting independent sponsors and capital partners active in the IS space. Last year’s inaugural event was a huge success, and we met several new capital partners at that conference with whom we’ve explored opportunities in 2018 already. This is a must-attend event for anyone active in the PE space who wants to work with independents and sponsors looking for quality, engaged capital partners.”
- Todd Dauphinais, Managing Partner, Clavis Capital Partners
“I’ve been involved in private equity investing for 18 years and this is the best conference I’ve ever attended! Partnership is a key word for Bassett Creek Capital. Last year’s Independent Sponsor conference was invaluable to us in finding partners who share our vision. Kudos to McGuireWoods for organizing such a great event with fantastic firms, informative panels and thoughtful discussion among all participants.”
- Rob Bauer, Managing Member, Bassett Creek Capital