Donald A. Bussard

Director

One Rodney Square
920 North King Street
Wilmington, Delaware 19801
302.651.7716 - direct
302.498.7716 - fax
bussard@rlf.com
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Assistant Contact

Lillian Burlotos
302.651.7723 - direct
burlotos@rlf.com

Knowledge Center

Donald A. Bussard focuses his practice on advising corporations, boards of directors and board committees in connection with mergers and acquisitions, recapitalizations, stock issuances, stockholders’ meetings and relations, and corporate governance matters.

Don is the senior member of the Corporate Department’s transactional group. He is a contributing author to The Delaware Law of Corporations and Business Organizations, a multi-volume treatise on Delaware corporate law coauthored by Messrs. Balotti and Finkelstein of Richards, Layton & Finger.

Representative Experience

  • Represented BHP Billiton in its acquisition of Houston-based Petrohawk Energy Corp. for $15.1 billion
  • Represented Pharmasset Inc. in its acquisition by Gilead Sciences Inc. for $11 billion
  • Represented the U.K.’s Ensco plc in its acquisition of Price International Inc. of Houston for $7.3 billion in cash and stock
  • Represented Beckman Coulter Inc. in its acquisition by manufacturer Danaher Corp. for $6.8 billion
  • Represented Varian Semiconductor Equipment Associates Inc. in its cash acquisition by Applied Materials Inc. for $4.9 billion
  • Represented reinsurer Transatlantic Holdings Inc. in its acquisition by property and casualty insurer Alleghany Corp. for $3.5 billion in cash and stock

Prior Representative Experience

  • Represented Wyeth in its acquisition by rival Pfizer for $68 billion
  • Represented Mars, Incorporated in the acquisition of Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co. for nearly $23 billion
  • Represented Marvel Entertainment in its $4 billion acquisition by Walt Disney Company
  • Represented CBS Corporation in its $1.8 billion acquisition of CNET Networks Inc.
  • Represented Microsoft in its proposed acquisition of Yahoo!
  • Represented the DIRECTV Group, Inc. in its combination with Liberty Entertainment, Inc.

Professional and Community Activities

  • Delaware State Bar Association, Council of the Corporation Law Section, Past Chair
  • American Bar Association

Professional Recognition

  • Chambers USA, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008
  • The Best Lawyers in America, since 1995
  • Lawdragon 500 Leading Lawyers in America, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008
  • Super Lawyers, 2011 (Top 10), 2010 (Top 10), 2009, 2008
  • Who's Who Legal, since first edition in 2001
  • Delaware Today, "Top Lawyer," 2010

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Practice Areas

Education

  • J.D., Temple University School of Law, 1976
  • B.A., Williams College, 1973

Admitted to Practice

  • Delaware
  • United States Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
  • United States District Court, District of Delaware