Alexis Crump

Crump is is the co-chair of Lewis Brisbois’ commercial lending practice and the vice chair of its corporate and Italy practices. Her focus is on private debt and equity, institutional lenders, developers and public entities throughout the U.S.

She handles both buy-side and sell-side business acquisitions for small to mid-market companies. She has led in deals totaling more than $1 billion in transactions during a 34-year legal career.

The realities faced by law firms as they consider downsizing their offices amid the pandemic is also heavily on the minds of many of Crump’s clients. “One of firms’ highest expenses is its real estate, and I hear it from clients too: We’re going remote, so how do I get out of this lease? We have restructured a lot of leases. It’s a new model that has emerged from the pandemic.”

Yet it’s been a mixed bag. “I was breaking leases for clients in June and July last year, but I also closed two deals involving the sale of large commercial buildings in Los Angeles and Santa Monica. We always seem to be resilient, able to use any situation to our advantage.”

Along with those deals, Crump led in the sale of a national manufacturing company; the sale of an international food service software company; the sale of a concierge veterinary hospital; the sale of an international children’s educational toy company and the acquisition and financing of a gym equipment company.

There were others too. “There’s a lot of so-called ‘dry powder’ available to be expended in mid-market, in the $20 million to $400 million range,” she said.

Among her specialties is the managed disposition of companies by their aging legacy owners. “We do quarterly ‘going liquid’ presentations to people who are thinking about what to do next: do they want to sell, transfer the company to their children or something else. We show how to set yourself up and get all the issues worked out over a year or so to be ready to present to bankers who will do the marketing. We talk about structuring a sale so people can live the life they want.”

The job’s never boring. “We delve into the businesses we handle, and I do enjoy it immensely. It’s never boring,” Crump said.

— John Roemer