Chip Lion is a partner in the Corporate Finance Group with Morrison & Foerster LLP in Palo Alto, California, where he leads the firm’s Palo Alto Corporate Finance Group and is the firm-wide co-chair of firm’s Private Equity Fund Group. He is the Immediate Past Chair of the Venture Capital & Private Equity Committee of the ABA’s Business Section. Mr. Lion represents both public and private companies in a broad range of industries and sectors, including biotechnology, medical device, and information technology sectors. Mr. Lion regularly advises institutional investors and fund sponsors in connection with the formation of venture capital funds, leveraged buyout funds, real estate opportunity and other private equity funds. He also regularly counsels emerging-growth technology companies on formation, finance and operation matters as well as merger and acquisition strategies and other liquidity and exit alternatives. He has extensive experience in structuring, negotiating, and advising clients on a wide variety of acquisition transactions and related matters, including stock acquisitions, asset acquisitions, mergers, divestitures, auction transactions, tender offers, defensive strategies, leveraged buy-outs, and cross border transactions.

Mr. Lion’s clients include: Saba Software (NASDAQ: SABA) (enterprise education marketplace), Gemini Mobile Technologies, (leading developer of messaging platforms for the wireless industry), Kerberos Proximal Solutions, Inc. (Simultaneous Rinsing and Aspiration devices), recently sold to Foxhollow Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: FOXH), Panomics, Inc. (fiber optics microarray technology), Hansen Medical, Inc. (instinctive catheter movement technology), Global Cash Access (NYSE: GCA) (provider of cash advance services to casino patrons), Infonox on the Web (custom Web software development), Rainfinity, Inc. (non-stop access of networked resources technology) recently sold to EMC Corporation (NYSE: EMC), and the Founders of Rackable Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: RACK) (server and storage solutions). Mr. Lion represents a number of venture capitalists in private equity financings and fund formation and operation matters, including Pequot Capital, NEA, Invesco, Skymoon Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Longitude Capital, VentureTech Alliance, Anthem Venture Partners, Allegis Capital Partners and Inspiration Venture Partners.

Mr. Lion is nationally recognized for his work with Limited Liability Companies (LLCs). He has written and edited numerous articles, outlines, and books on LLCs and partnerships and has participated on many panels on LLCs, including the American Law Institute — American Bar Association LLC satellite telecast for the past ten years. As former Chair of the Partnerships Committee of the Business Law Section of the California State Bar, he formed and participated in the Committee that helped draft the California LLC Act that became law on September 30, 1994. He has served as an advisor to the Uniform Limited Liability Company Act and the Revised Uniform Partnership Act Drafting Committees of the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws and currently is an advisor to the Model-Entity Transaction Act drafting committee of NCCUSL.

Mr. Lion earned a B.A. degree, with honors, at the University of California at Davis in 1979, where he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa. He received his J.D. degree, magna cum laude, from Santa Clara University School of Law in 1983, where he was an Associate Editor of the Santa Clara Law Journal. He also holds an LL.M in taxation from New York University.