______________________________________________________________ Mark
Foster- American Healthcare REIT
I saw first-hand how in-house counsel could influence the intersection of business and legal strategy
Capital cycles and risk
His next move came through a college connection at Oaktree Capital, which was building a platform for the management of non-performing loan portfolios.“ He called me and said,‘ Foster, we need a general counsel and you’ d be perfect’,” Mark recalls.
At Sabal Financial Group, he oversaw the management of loan and real estate portfolios acquired with limited diligence.“ We were buying large portfolios without traditional due diligence, and I frequently referred to it as a“ grab bag” investment strategy.” The work meant getting comfortable with uncertainty.“ You get some good assets and some bad ones, then you work through them. You see what’ s in the bag and decide what to sell, what to hold, and what to reposition.”
Mark values having a seat at the decisionmaking table.“ From the outside counsel perspective, you often receive a deal after it’ s already been negotiated. You don’ t see the business from start to finish.” That visibility shapes his work in-house.“ As inhouse counsel, you are involved from the beginning to the end and have a seat at the table throughout,” Mark says.
Creating legal value
At AHR, Mark focuses on legal operations, transaction structuring and deal efficiency.“ One way legal adds value is by shaping transaction structure. How deals are structured matters.”
Tax and financing considerations play an important role early in that process.“ There’ s value in understanding the tax and financial
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