David S. Schaffer
Partner
dschaffer@kftrlaw.com
Practice Areas
Mr. Schaffer concentrates his practice in corporate and transactional law, including mergers, acquisitions, restructurings, and securities transactions, including public offerings and private placements of both debt and equity. He has experience representing secured creditors and indenture trustees in various complex matters. In 2001, The Chicago Law Bulletin honored Mr. Schaffer as one of the leading Illinois attorneys under age 40.
Mr. Schaffer has long represented clients on cross-border investments made in the United States and has handled investments for clients located throughout the world, including Canada, throughout Europe, and in both the Near and Far East. He has traveled widely in the course of his legal practice and has been an active member of the international community, as exemplified by his taking part in a Cook County, Illinois governmental delegation to Egypt and Israel in 1999. In February 2002, Mr. Schaffer participated in a German Marshall Fund Fellowship, which allowed him to travel in several European countries.
Mr. Schaffer has served as a registered lobbyist for various entities, and has handled governmental matters of all types, including tax-exempt financings, investments made by public pension funds, and in contractual, litigation, and other matters as well. Mr. Schaffer has been recognized by his peers as an Illinois “Leading Lawyer,” among the upper five percent of all Illinois lawyers who practice in the following categories: Bankruptcy and Workout Law and Commercial Debtor/Creditor. He has also been recognized by his peers as an Illinois “Super Lawyer” in the following categories: Securities and Corporate Finance.
Professional Associations & Affiliations
Mr. Schaffer is licensed to practice law in the state courts of New York (1989) and Illinois (1990) as well as in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (both 1991.)
Mr. Schaffer has served over the past twenty years on various charitable boards, including the Mission of Our Lady of Mercy and the Mercy Home for Boys and Girls (appointed to each by the Archbishop of Chicago), the Christian Brothers Fund, Nazareth Academy and Holy Name Cathedral High School.
Education/Work History
J.D., Harvard Law School, 1987
A.B., University of Chicago, 1983 (Graduated with high honors.)
Mr. Schaffer began his legal career as a law clerk to the Honorable Jack B. Jacobs of the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware from 1987 to 1988. In 1991, he was appointed as a member of the Governor's Conference on Housing. From 1991 to 1993, he served as Deputy Bureau Chief and Special Assistant State's Attorney for Cook County, Illinois. Mr. Schaffer was appointed twice by the Supreme Court of Illinois as a Director of The Lawyers Trust Fund of Illinois and served thereon from 2000 to 2006.
Publications
Mr. Schaffer has published articles on various topics, including federal securities law, the role of an indenture trustee, and the fiduciary duties of directors. He has spoken on these topics at seminars and presentations both in the United States and abroad.
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