Lippes Mathias LLP is proud to announce its role as legal counsel to Seneca Holdings, LLC, a wholly owned entity of the Seneca Nation, in its acquisition of the Rochester Knighthawks, a National Lacrosse League franchise, from the Pegula family, marking a significant milestone for the Seneca Nation as it expands its business operations into the professional sports industry. 

The Lippes Mathias team advising Seneca Holdings was led by Brendan J. Rich, partner and leader of the firm’s corporate and mergers & acquisitions practice teams, with support from partner Eliza P. Shea, associate Elyse J. Ponterio, and firm director of tax Devon R. McDonald. 

About Brendan J. Rich 

Brendan J. Rich is a partner and team leader of the firm’s corporate and mergers and acquisitions practice teams. His practice is focused on all aspects of corporate law, including mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures, joint ventures, securities offerings and related matters, private equity and venture capital, corporate structuring, succession planning, corporate governance, and legal compliance issues and programs. Rich is counsel for clients ranging from startups and nonprofits to Fortune 500 companies in a broad range of industries, including marketing and advertising, architecture and engineering, banking and financial services, biotechnology, food and beverage production, healthcare, investment banking, private equity sponsors and investors, real estate development, software, technology and telecommunications, among others. 

About Eliza P. Shea 

Eliza P. Shea is a partner in the corporate and securities practice teams at Lippes Mathias LLP (working remotely in Boston, MA), where she concentrates her practice on the representation of private companies in all stages of the growth cycle, as well as the venture capital firms and strategic investors that finance these companies in debt and equity offerings. Eliza is also General Counsel of Varia Ventures and General Counsel to Impact Capital, a Series A Venture Fund. 

About Elyse J. Ponterio 

Elyse J. Ponterio concentrates her practice on corporate law, including debt and equity investments, private placements, corporate governance, mergers and acquisitions, and other general corporate and contract matters. After earning her J.D. from the University at Buffalo School of Law, she was awarded the Order of the Coif in recognition of her outstanding academic achievements and excellence in legal education. 

About Devon R. McDonald 

Devon R. McDonald, CPA, has more than 15 years of diverse tax experience, delivering transactional tax advice to clients, including domestic and foreign business entities. He has specific expertise in entity tax matters, with a focus on privately and closely held business entities, including private equity-backed businesses. His work includes advising on mergers, acquisitions, private equity structuring, state and local tax issues, Qualified Opportunity Zones and Qualified Small Business Stock investments, and tax controversy matters. McDonald has advised tribes on green energy investment tax credits under the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 and on state and local tax matters involving tribal-owned LLCs. 

About Lippes Mathias LLP 

Lippes Mathias is a full-service law firm with nearly 220 attorneys serving clients regionally, nationally, and internationally. With offices in Buffalo, Clarence, Albany, Long Island, New York, Rochester, Syracuse, and Saratoga Springs, N.Y.; Greater Toronto Area; Chicago, Ill.; Jacksonville, Tampa Bay, and West Palm Beach, Fla.; Cleveland, Ohio; San Antonio, Texas; Oklahoma City, Okla. and Washington, D.C., the firm represents publicly and privately-owned companies, private equity and venture capital firms, independent sponsors, real estate developers, financial institutions, municipalities, governmental entities, and individuals.