Stewart M. Landefeld
Stewart is a highly regarded advisor to global and local businesses, as well as longtime leader in the firm and the community.
Stewart Landefeld has counseled corporations and boards of directors for more than 40 years in the areas of corporate governance, securities compliance, mergers and acquisitions, public offerings, private equity investments, and venture capital.
Stewart has provided corporate governance and general corporate counsel to dozens of leading companies, including Microsoft Corporation, Costco Wholesale Corporation, T-Mobile, and the Seattle Mariners, among many others. His guidance to clients is informed by his experience as interim chief legal officer of Washington Mutual Inc. during the global financial crisis, as well as his decades of board leadership, including the Pike Place Market PDA, The Seattle Foundation, Plymouth Housing Group, and the Seattle Art Museum.
Stewart is both the editor-in-chief and co-author of The Public Company Handbook: A Corporate Governance and Disclosure Guide for Directors and Executives (Sixth Edition). In addition, he is the co-founder and Perkins Coie responsible partner for OnBoarding Women and the Black Boardroom Initiative, leading Seattle and New York-based programs dedicated to increasing gender and racial equity in public company boardrooms.
Stewart has been recognized every year since 2005 as one of “America’s Leading Business Lawyers” by Chambers USA.
Areas of focus
Industries
Services
Education & Credentials
Education
- The University of Chicago Law School, J.D., 1980
- Yale University, B.A., 1976
Bar and Court Admissions
-
Washington
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
Related Employment
- Washington Mutual Inc., Interim Chief Legal Officer, December 2007-June 2008, Interim Chief Compliance Officer, June 2008-October 2008, Executive Vice President, General Counsel during seizure of Washington Mutual Bank and Chapter 11 filing of Washington Mutual Inc.
Professional Recognition
Lifetime Achievement Award and Director of the Year, Puget Sound Business Journal, 2023
Received the Burton Award for Legal Achievement, 2009
American Law Institute, Member
Ranked by Chambers USA as "America's Leading Lawyer" in Corporate/Mergers and Acquisitions, 2005-2024
Named Best Lawyers' Seattle, Mergers and Acquisitions Law Lawyer of the Year," 2015; Corporate Governance Law Lawyer of the Year, 2016; "Corporate Law Lawyer of the Year," 2011, 2019
Listed in Best Lawyers in America: Corporate Governance Law; Corporate Law; Mergers and Acquisitions Law; Private Funds / Hedge Funds Law; Securities / Capital Markets Law; Securities Regulation, 1993-2024
Listed in Super Lawyers Magazine, "Washington's Super Lawyers", 1999-2023
Named a “Leading Lawyer” by The Legal 500 for M&A/Corporate and Commercial - M&A: middle market (sub-$500m), 2015
Recommended by The Legal 500: Industry Focus: M&A/Corporate and Commercial - M&A: middle market (sub-$500m), 2015
Recommended by The Legal 500: Industry Focus: M&A/Corporate and Commercial - M&A: middle market (sub-$500m), 2015
Impact
Professional Leadership
- Seattle University, Berle Center Governance Colloquium, Co-Chair, 2011-2013
- SEC Hot Topics, Seattle Co-Chair, 2001 - 2016, co-sponsored by RR Donnelley and Society of Corporate Secretaries and Governance Professionals
Community Involvement
- Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (SCCA), Past Director/Board of Directors, Vice Chair of the Board
- Seattle Art Museum, Chair, Board of Trustees Member and 2017-2020; Immediate Past Chair of the Boards of Directors
- Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, Former Member, Board of Trustees
- Plymouth Housing Group (Permanent Housing for the Homeless), Immediate Past President, Board of Trustees
- Seattle Foundation, Past Chairman of Board of Trustees
- Henry Art Gallery, Past Chairman of Board of Trustees
- Pike Place Market Preservation and Development Authority, Past Council Chair
- Seattle Symphony Foundation, Former Vice President, Board of Trustees
- Norman Archibald Charitable Foundation, Board Member
- Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (SCCA), Past Director/Board of Directors, Vice Chair of the Board
- Norman Archibald Charitable Foundation, Board Member
Insights
News
Professional Experience
Public Companies
PetSmart, Inc.
Corporate governance counsel.
Tribune Publishing Company
Corporate governance counsel.
Microsoft Corporation / Yahoo! Inc. Search Agreement
Represented Microsoft in aspects of its Internet search agreement with Yahoo!
Microsoft Corporation Acquisitions, 2010 - 2016
Ongoing counsel to Microsoft in a variety of transactions, from its 2010 acquisition of healthcare software provider, Sentillion Inc., to ongoing transactions in 2016.
Cardiac Science Corporation Sale
Represented Cardiac Science Corporation (NASDAQ:CSCX) in its $54 million sale to Opto Circuits (India) Ltd.
Aircastle Limited
Counsel to independent directors.
Quinton Cardiology Systems Inc. Public Offerings
Represented Quinton Cardiology Systems in initial public and secondary equity offerings.
Quinton Cardiology Systems Inc. - Merger with Cardiac Science Inc.
Represented Quinton Cardiology Systems Inc. in its merger of equals with Cardiac Science Inc. to form Cardiac Science Corporation.
AT&T Wireless Services Inc. - Sale of Fixed Wireless Business
Represented AT&T Wireless Services Inc. in its sale of fixed wireless division assets to Netro Corporation.
Orbitz LLC
Counsel to independent directors.
Costco Wholesale Corporation
Ongoing special representation of public company.
Ragen MacKenzie Group Inc. IPO
Represented Ragen MacKenzie in its initial public offering and subsequent sale to an affiliate of a large national bank.
Starbucks Corporation IPO
Represented the underwriters, Alex. Brown and Wertheim Schroeder & Company, in Starbucks initial public offering.
Mergers & Acquisitions
Tribune Publishing Company
Acquisition of the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Acquisition of the Seattle Mariners
Continued representation of The Baseball Club of Seattle, LLC.
Acquisition of Seattle SuperSonics and Seattle Storm
Represented The Basketball Club of Seattle, LLC in its acquisition of Seattle SuperSonics and Seattle Storm.
Laundry Services Inc. - Sale to ARAMARK Uniform and Career Apparel Inc.
Represented Overall Laundry Services in a sale of the business to ARAMARK Uniform and Career Apparel Inc.
Sale of Wizards of the Coast Inc.
Represented Wizards of the Coast Inc. in its sale to Hasbro Inc.
Acquisition by Microsoft Corporation
Represented Microsoft in its acquisition of AVIcode Inc.
Acquisition by Microsoft Corporation
Represented Microsoft in its acquisition of Yammer Inc.
Private Equity
Hollister-Stier Laboratories, LLC
Represented private equity firm Windward Capital Partners in its purchase and sale of Hollister-Stier.
Callison Architecture Inc.
Represented Callison Architecture in its recapitalization with private equity fund, Blue Point Capital Partners.