Kenton J. King

King is known for his creative approach in structuring complex multibillion-dollar transactions.

NXP Semiconductors N.V., a Dutch company, is relying on King’s legal advice in its $47 billion sale to Qualcomm Inc. The deal is said to be one of the largest in history.

“We had represented Freescale, another semiconductor company, when it was sold to NXP,” King said. “We were very flattered that after having been on the other side of NXP that they asked us to represent them when they themselves were going to sell to Qualcomm.” The matter is still ongoing.

Intel Corp. relied on King for its $15.3 billion acquisition of Mobileye N.V., a developer of computer vision and machine learning, data analysis, and location technology designed for driverless cars. The deal is expected to position Intel as a one of the top technology providers in the autonomous vehicles market. But there were issues attorneys had to work through before the deal closed, King said.

“There were unique structuring issues that arose as a result of Mobileye being a company incorporated in the Netherlands, listed on the New York Stock Exchange with operations in Israel under an Israeli tax regime,” King said. “In order to address those kinds of structural issues, it really takes tight coordination, brainstorming and creativity that is coordinated among a lot of different practitioners.”

The deal could have been subject to a 25 percent tax under Israeli law. Attorneys worked with the Israeli Tax Authority to get a waiver of the tax. The deal closed earlier this year.

“It’s not just the dollars which are significant,” King said. “It’s a fairly transformative deal because it gets Intel into a different type of business.” King is partner in charge of Skadden’s Palo Alto office and a member of the firm’s policy committee.

“I get a lot of satisfaction out of helping clients achieve their goals,” he said. “I enjoy my colleagues, my partners and working in the teams that we have.”

— Melanie Brisbon