Marc J. Halsema is the US Managing Parter for Spencer West based in New York City. Marc brings more than 25 years of experience in transnational tax and legal planning, business strategy and family office design and operations. His career spans the Americas, Europe, CIS, the Middle East and Asia, equipping him with a truly global perspective in advising local and international clients.
Before joining Spencer West, Marc headed a strategic advisory firm focused on serving complex families and family offices worldwide. Drawing on his deep expertise, Marc provides sophisticated guidance on transnational tax structuring, business operations, governance and direct and co-investment opportunities—delivering tailored solutions to the companies and families he serves.
Marc’s global family advisory work builds upon two decades spent living and working in Russia and the Middle East, alongside an earlier career as a corporate lawyer in New York and Chicago. He spent more than 15 years with Ernst & Young in Moscow and New York in private client advisory roles, followed by several years as Managing Director and General Counsel of a boutique merchant bank headquartered in the Middle East.
With extensive experience advising multinational corporations, privately held businesses, family offices, endowments and foundations, Marc specialises in board governance, regulatory compliance, internal policy structuring and succession planning for family-owned enterprises.
Marc holds a J.D. from Northwestern University School of Law and a B.A. in International Relations, Soviet Studies and Russian Language from the University of Notre Dame. A lifelong enthusiast of art, history, classic literature, classical music and foreign languages, Marc enjoys international travel, writing spy thrillers and spending coveted time with his family.
Specific areas of expertise:
- Advising on domestic and cross-border private equity and venture capital/preferred stock financings, including drafting and negotiating stock purchase agreements, investors’ rights agreements, voting agreements, co-sale agreements and indemnification agreements, primarily in the technology and financial services industries
- Drafting and reviewing a wide array of complex commercial agreements, including letters of intent and term sheets, operating agreements, shareholder agreements, global master service agreements, software development and licensing agreements, SaaS master agreements, franchise agreements, various forms of service agreements (including third-party vendor and consulting agreements), joint venture agreements, asset and stock purchase agreements, stock redemption agreements, loan and security agreements, buy-sell agreements, confidentiality and non-circumvention agreements, senior employment and equity award agreements and venture capital/preferred stock financings
- Orchestrating tax, legal and real estate due diligence reviews in connection with prospective mergers, acquisitions and corporate reorganizations
- Counseling on corporate governance matters, including corporate bylaws, resolutions, minutes and board of director support
- Forming and papering US corporations, limited liability companies and partnerships
- Overseeing cross-border private equity and capital markets transactions