People

Edward Ristaino

Chair, Sports Practice

Fort Lauderdale T: +1 954 468 2472

[email protected] vCard

Connect With Me

Counsel to numerous professional sports franchises, leagues, team owners, and government bodies, Edward Ristaino is Areas of Experience chair of Akerman’s Sports Practice and a partner in the Corporate Finance and Lending Corporate Practice Group. Ed divides his practice between Corporate general corporate, mergers and acquisitions and sports law. Corporate Governance Distressed Transactions and Corporate He focuses on the representation of professional sports Restructuring teams and sports venues, arenas and stadiums, and M&A and Private Equity municipal and county governments in securing and Public Finance structuring public funding for the development of sports Sports venues, arenas, and stadiums. In his broader corporate Financial Services practice, he has served as lead counsel in hundreds of mergers and acquisitions, spin-offs, and restructurings of Education private and public companies. LL.M., University of Miami School of Law, 1988 J.D., Notre Dame Law School, 1984, magna cum Ed’s sports experience includes numerous matters for the laude , , the and the B.S., Stonehill College, 1974 , as well as for a number of individual sports teams, owners, and related entities. He has Admissions been involved in a number of matters relating to the acquisition, financing, operation, and equity funding of Bars professional sports teams, including the acquisition of the Florida Miami Dolphins, the Florida Panthers, and the Florida Marlins for H. Wayne Huizenga, and the sale of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to Malcolm Glazer, the sale of the Miami Related Content

Dolphins to Stephen Ross, the sale of the Florida Marlins to 10 Akerman Lawyers Recognized As Top Lawyers John Henry, and the sale of the Florida Panthers to Alan in Broward County in Fort Lauderdale Illustrated Cohen and to Vincent Viola and Doug Cifu. August 16, 2021 Record Number of Akerman Lawyers Across the Ed has represented both teams, municipal governments, United States Named to The Best Lawyers in America 2020 Guide facility operators, and bond issuers in transactions relating August 15, 2019 to sports properties, including facility development and 197 Akerman Lawyers Across the United States construction, facilities financings (such as the bond financing Named to 2019 Super Lawyers and Rising Stars for in Miami Gardens, Florida, the BB&T Lists Center in Broward County, Florida), Marlins Park in Miami, July 02, 2019 FL, the Amway Center in Orlando, FL and the renovation of the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, FL. In addition, Ed has represented teams and team owners in connection with financings, credit facilities and loans.

In addition to his sports law practice, Ed represents operating companies, family offices, buyers, sellers, investors, special committees of boards of directors, and other stakeholders in mergers and acquisitions, spin-offs, roll-ups, corporate compliance and governance issues and public and private securities transactions.

Notable Work Franchise Transfers and Financing: Represented clients in the sales of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Miami Dolphins, Florida Panthers, Miami Marlins, the Pawtucket Red Sox, and other minor league baseball, and American Hockey League teams.

South Florida Facility Lease, Development and Financing: Represented clients in transactions related to the financing, development and operating lease preparation for the Hard Rock Stadium, the home of the Miami Dolphins, Marlins Park, the home field of the Miami Marlins, and the BB&T Center, home ice for the Florida Panthers.

Orlando Facility Lease Development and Financing: Represented the City of Orlando in the design, development, construction, financing, operation, and lease of the Amway Center, the home arena of the Orlando Magic, the Orlando City Stadium, the home pitch of the Orlando City SC, and the renovation of the Citrus Bowl.

Family Office/Holding Companies: Represented family office for more than thirty years, including hundreds of mergers and acquisitions in connection with roll-ups, divestitures, financings and operating contracts in numerous industries, including equipment leasing, utility companies, boat construction companies, real estate developers, technology and healthcare.

Naming Rights: Represented teams and facilities in the sale of naming and marketing rights to Miami Dolphins’, Florida Panthers’, Florida Marlins’ and Cleveland Browns’ naming sponsors

Published Work and Lectures The University of Miami School of Law, Sports Law Class, Guest Lecturer, “Purchases and Sales of Professional Sports Franchises,” November 11, 2008-2016 Affiliations Jack and Jill Early Childhood Development Center and Museum of Discovery and Science, Ft. Lauderdale, FL, Board of Trustees, since 2008 U.S. Coast Guard Reserve, Retired Commander Akerman Fort Lauderdale Office Corporate Practice, Chair, since 2005 The Florida Bar, Business Law Section, Member Broward County Bar Association, Member Indiana Bar Association, Past Member Honors and Distinctions Chambers USA, Ranked in Florida for Corporate/M&A The Best Lawyers in America 2017, 2019, 2020-2022, Listed in Florida for Mergers & Acquisitions Law, 2020 “Lawyer of the Year” in Fort Lauderdale for Mergers and Acquisitions Law Fort Lauderdale Illustrated, Recognized as a “Top Lawyer in Broward County” for Mergers and Acquisitions Law, 2021 Super Lawyers Magazine 2014-2018, Listed in Forida for Business/Corporate