GTA Accountants & Finance Network

John Koeppel is a Partner and the Team Leader of Lippes Mathias' Private Equity and Independent Sponsor Practices. He is a corporate lawyer who has successfully structured, negotiated, and closed over 250 transactions in the past two plus decades, which typically involve mergers and acquisitions, fund formations and investments, and various private equity transactions (including co-investments, venture financings and cross-border deals). He also works with clients on reviewing/ structuring their Qualified Opportunity Zone and Qualified Small Business Stock investments.

Mr. Koeppel acts as counsel to a number of leading funds, independent sponsors, middle market companies, institutional investors, family offices, and high net worth investors focused on buy-out, growth, venture, real estate, intellectual property, energy, debt, fund-of-funds, co-investments, secondaries, and other strategies. He also often acts as US counsel to non-US clients on their US private equity and investment fund transactions. He also serves as a director for several private equity-backed companies.

Devon R. McDonald, CPA, has over 15 years of diverse tax experience, delivering transactional tax advice to clients including domestic and foreign business entities. Devon has specific expertise in entity tax matters, with a focus on privately and closely held business entities, including private equity-backed businesses.

He counsels clients in a variety of areas including domestic and international tax matters for family-owned businesses, mergers, acquisitions, and other transaction-related tax matters, structuring for private equity backed and privately/closely held portfolio companies and funds, state & local tax issues, as well as routine tax planning and compliance services. Devon also has experience advising clients on Qualified Opportunity Zones (QOZ) and Qualified Small Business Stock (QSBS) investments.

Devon’s industry experience includes private equity funds, hedge funds, real estate companies, fund-of-funds, manufacturing companies, and family offices. He has represented clients before the IRS and state taxing authorities regarding audits, delinquent filings, and other tax controversy matters.

Prior to joining Lippes Mathias, he worked as a Tax Principal at a Buffalo accounting firm after spending the first twelve years of his career as a member of EY & Andersen’s NYC tax practices serving as a Senior Tax Manager.