TOP CORPORATE ATTORNEYS
ROBERT CORNISH Attorney
Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker LLP
Robert “ Bob ” Cornish is an attorney at Wilson
Elser in Washington D . C . He focuses on litigation , arbitration , regulatory and compliance matters for broker-dealers , investment advisers , hedge funds , commodity firms , institutional investors and family offices domestically and abroad . Cornish emphasizes alternative investment , broker-dealer and EB-5 fund formation , compliance and governance matters , including litigation , arbitration and enforcement . Previously , he served as chief legal and compliance officer and in-house counsel for prominent investment firms , where he acquired valuable experience handling complex business management and marketing matters for investment management clients . Cornish is a member of the EB-5 Securities Roundtable , a group of leading EB-5 securities attorneys organized to facilitate best practices in the offerings of EB-5 securities and to urge harmonization of the EB-5 program when it comes to securities laws .
WHAT DO YOU THINK THE FUTURE OF THE EB-5 INDUSTRY LOOKS LIKE ?
The EB-5 industry will continue to mature and consolidate into a more mainstream component of the financial markets . Regional centers and individual advisers will likely gravitate toward investment adviser registration as additional projects create new revenue streams , and will likely use more conventional players in the financial markets through which capital may be raised . An overall culture of securities compliance similar to that in the investment adviser or broker-dealer industries will go further in bringing about EB-5 reform than any regulation or legislation . A credible , compliant industry can and will drive conversations on legislative and regulatory reform to benefit its participants .
HOW ARE YOU HANDLING THE ISSUE OF REDEPLOYMENT ?
I counsel regional centers on redeployment issues assuming that they do not want to assume the role of an investment adviser or broker-dealer . My views on redeployment are somewhat contrarian : I believe a regional center or developer should leave as much management as possible of funds subject to redeployment to entities traditionally suited and regulated for that purpose . Namely , I advocate for trust structures where an independent trustee selected by the regional center or developer manages the investor ’ s funds are managed in tandem with I-829 processing times . That trustee , rather than the regional center or developer , manages the funds in accordance with USCIS policies .
RONALD R . FIELDSTONE Partner Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr LLP
Ronald R . Fieldstone is a partner with Saul
Ewing Arnstein & Lehr LLP and chair of its EB-5 , Global Immigration and Foreign Investment Advisory Practice Group , which practices primarily in the areas of corporate / securities and taxation law . Fieldstone has actively served as corporate and securities counsel for multifaceted industries involving EB-5 immigrant visa investor offerings . He represents both developers and regional centers in EB-5 matters , currently handling more than 300 EB-5 projects with a combined capital raise of nearly $ 7 billion . His corporate and securities work includes the preparation of private placement memoranda and related documents . Fieldstone frequently lectures and publishes about the subject of EB-5 corporate / securities for numerous governmentsponsored organizations , industry groups and professional associations . He recently served as a member of the IIUSA Best Practices Committee and now is a member of IIUSA ’ s Compliance Committee .
WHAT DO YOU THINK THE FUTURE OF THE EB-5 INDUSTRY LOOKS LIKE ?
The EB-5 program ’ s future is somewhat in limbo with pending legislation . The delay of new legislation has tamed the marketplace , particularly in China where investors are seeking alternatives to EB-5 . I would like reforms to include updated integrity measures to reduce the compliance burden . Regional centers need more independent accountability concerning the loan transaction where the party is required to distribute monies either on a loan model or equity model that is independent from the NCE principal . The visa cap should also be increased or derivatives removed . An additional set-aside for infrastructure and urban poverty is also necessary to account for the economic conditions that should be available to promote EB-5 investments .
HOW ARE YOU HANDLING THE ISSUE OF REDEPLOYMENT ?
We provide language in offering documents contemplating redeployment both from an immigration and corporate security standpoint . We provide as much detail as possible on how redeployment will take place , even identifying projects or opportunities that would be appropriate for redeployment in a particular offering . Likewise important is navigating other redeployment options that would otherwise meet the June 14 , 2017 Policy Guidelines . For existing transactions where redeployment was not dealt with in the documentation , the issues are more complex and should be addressed in more detail , including the need for proper due diligence , notification to investors and possibly investor consent to any redeployment not adequately described in the original offering document package .
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