Mike Stevens is a partner in the firm’s Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation Group. He focuses on executive compensation matters, with a particular emphasis on tax, securities and corporate governance issues relating to stock plans, incentive compensation arrangements, executive employment agreements and deferred compensation. Mr. Stevens frequently advises clients with respect to executive compensation issues relating to mergers and acquisitions and other corporate transactions.
Mr. Stevens is a frequent speaker and writer on a variety of matters relating to executive compensation, corporate governance and securities aspects of benefit plans. He has served on the faculty of the Institute of Applied Management and Law and has spoken for numerous organizations, including the National Association of Stock Plan Professionals, the National Center for Employee Ownership, the Society of Corporate Secretaries and Governance Professionals, and the National Investor Relations Institute.
Mr. Stevens received his J.D., with distinction, from Emory University School of Law in 1993, where he was an editor of the Emory Law Journal, was elected to the Order of the Coif, and received the Lexis Excellence in Writing Award. He received his undergraduate degree, with high honors, from Emory University in 1990, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.
Mr. Stevens serves as special executive compensation counsel to many publicly traded companies, closely-held businesses, and individual executives, including:
- one of the nation’s preeminent energy services companies;
- an industry-leading supplier of residential and commercial flooring products;
- a global alternative asset manager with over $150 billion in assets under management;
- the world’s leading hospitality company;
- the world’s largest home improvement retailer;
- a national real estate investment company;
- one of the largest independent commercial banking organizations in Florida;
- the executive team of a leading real estate development company; and
- the CEO of U.S. operations for the manufacturer of the world’s most awar- winning ultra-premium vodka.
Representative transactional experience includes:
- Counsel to a global private equity fund with respect to executive compensation issues in connection with its $3.9 billion acquisition of a telecommunications equipment company.
- Counsel to a leading provider of technology and business solutions with respect to equity compensation, change in control agreements and related tax issues in connection with its $2.6 billion acquisition by an asset management company in a going-private transaction.
- Counsel to a leading hospital services company regarding retention and severance arrangements and “golden parachute” tax planning in connection with a $1.7 billion merger transaction.
- Counsel to the management of one of the nation’s largest optical companies relating to executive investment and equity incentives in connection with an acquisition by a private equity investor.
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October 13, 2011
In The Press
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October 29, 2010
In The Press
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July 6, 2010
In The Press
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June 20, 2008
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23 July 2007
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"Paying for Excess: The Enduring Battle Over Executive Compensation," Financial Executive, June 2010.
June 2010
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"Save Your Deferred Compensation! Comply with the Final Section 409A Regulations," Benefits Law Journal, Vol. 20, No. 3, Autumn 2007.
Autumn 2007
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Executive and Director Compensation: Understanding the New Disclosure Requirements
Hunter Holliday, Paul Nozick, Mike Stevens and Laura Thatcher of Alston & Bird discuss the SEC's amendemnts of S-K Item 402. To view the presentation,
click here.
August 31, 2006
Past Events
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September 15, 2010
Seminar
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March 26, 2010
Seminar
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March 17, 2010
Seminar
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June 24, 2009
Seminar
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July 9, 2008
Seminar
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March 30, 2007
Seminar
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December 15, 2006
Seminar
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August 31, 2006
Event
- National Association of Stock Plan Professionals
- National Center for Employee Ownership
- State Bar of Georgia, Employee Benefits Section