Our Team
Jeff Harder
As far back as 1981 with Amoco (Standard Oil of Indiana) in Chicago, then Mitchell Energy & Development in The Woodlands from 1984 to 1986 through to the present in private practice, Jeff Harder has been at the center of venture capital and angel investor transactions in a wide variety of industries. This experience and passion led to Jeff’s engagement as VP for Corporate Development and General Counsel at a Nasdaq listed public company, The ForeFront Group, Inc., that he had taken public in 1995. His leadership contributed to the sale of ForeFront two years later to CBT Group PLLC for nearly $160 million.
Over the years, Jeff has advised and assisted innumerable entrepreneurs, officers, directors, and investors on matters such as:
Corporate governance
Private offerings
Public offerings, including IPO’s, PIPE’s and shelf registrations
Going private transactions
Mergers and acquisitions
Strategic alliances
Licensing transactions, both in-licensing and out-licensing
SEC compliance
Executive compensation and stock incentive plans
Employment and consulting agreements
Jeff’s role with start up companies is often similar to that of an in-house, general counsel position. In many cases, Jeff is also involved with the entrepreneur and start up as an advisor or board member, using his extensive experience and contacts in industry to provide additional services as an added value for his clients.
Jeff also regularly represents numerous middle market and more established companies, both public and private, and provides experienced counsel to their executives or senior in-house counsel, in complex matters such as insider trading, regulatory compliance and public disclosure issues, mergers and acquisitions, strategic transactions, and other similar matters. Jeff’s employment for over 10 years as in-house at companies such as Exxon Corp., Amoco, MEDC and ForeFront and over 30 years in private practice has provided him with a unique blend of experience and a more practical, business-like approach to his practice.
B.A., highest distinction, Valparaiso University
