Nikole Kingston is an experienced M&A lawyer who represents a broad range of clients, including start-up, emerging growth, and Fortune 500 companies, as well as private equity firms, family owned entities, and individual owners, shareholders, and principals. She counsels companies with operations and interests in a broad range of industries, including health care, technology, personal care products, general consumer products, manufacturing, food, and agriculture, and has represented her clients in a wide range of business transactions, including stock and asset acquisitions, mergers, going-private transactions, minority investments, leveraged buyouts, joint ventures, related financings, spin-offs, and tender offers.
Nikole understands the importance of delivering timely and accurate solutions that are in line with her clients’ business goals. To protect their interests, she identifies issues for each transaction—helping her clients weigh the pros and cons—and actively works on fostering the partnerships required for a successful transaction. She also has a general corporate practice, advising management teams, boards, and other governing bodies on securities compliance, fiduciary duties, and other corporate responsibilities.
Nikole serves as O’Melveny’s Firmwide Hiring Partner, responsible for managing recruiting efforts across O’Melveny’s 18 offices.
- Represented Palladium Equity Partners in its investments in Envoy Global
- Represented Seidler Equity Partners in its acquisition of Rawlings Sporting Goods Company, Inc.
- Represented SMART Global Holdings, Inc. in its acquisition of Cree, Inc.’s Cree LED Products business unit
- Represented CoreLogic in each of its acquisitions of Marshall & Swift/Boeckh, Mercury Network, LLC and FNC Holding Company, Inc. and its divestiture of Teletrack® to Equifax®
- Represented Edwards Lifesciences in its acquisition of Valtech Cardio Ltd.
- Represented Skyworks Solutions, Inc. in its acquisition of Avnera Corporation
- Represented Bourns Inc. in each of its acquisition of Komatsulite Mfg. Co. LTD and of certain assets from Transtek Magnetics
- Represented Westar Capital in its sale of Petmate
- Represented Sun Healthcare Group in the restructuring of its business into two separate public companies (Sun Healthcare Group and Sabra Health Care REIT)
- Representing Western Digital in multiple public and private company acquisitions
- Represented Andrews Petroleum, Inc., in its sale to Plains LPG Services, L.P.
- Represented Automobile Club of Southern California in a number of corporate and other governance-related matters
- Represented Five Crowns Capital in its acquisition of Mob Scene, LLC
- Represented Napster, Inc., in its sale to Best Buy Co., Inc.
- Represented Sportsman's Warehouse in numerous acquisitions and general corporate matters
- Represented Stremicks Heritage Foods in multiple acquisitions and general corporate matters
- Represented Targus in its acquisition of Sena Cases
- Represented Tween Brands, Inc., in its sale to The Dress Barn, Inc.
- Represented Warner Bros. in multiple private company investments
Admissions
Bar Admissions
- California
Education
- Chapman University, J.D.: magna cum laude; Distinguished Graduate Award; Staff Editor and Editor-in-Chief, Chapman Law Review
- Northern Arizona University, B.A.: magna cum laude; honors
Professional Activities
Adjunct Professor
- The University of California, Irvine School of Law (Mergers & Acquisitions)
Board Member
- American Heart Association Orange County/Inland Empire
- Human Options
- Project Youth OCBF
Judicial Externship
- Honorable Alex Kozinski, US Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit