George Kleeman, a member of Brock Clay’s Business and Transactional Law practice, assists entrepreneurs who are forming new businesses or seeking to purchase or sell an existing business; represents businesses, private investors, venture capital groups and lenders in mergers and acquisitions and equity and debt financing transactions; and assists clients in resolving business disputes including shareholder disputes, breach of fiduciary duty suits, shareholder oppression cases and “business divorces,” loan workouts and contractual matters.

Mr. Kleeman also represents owners, general contractors and subcontractors in constructions matters, including negotiating contracts, procurement issues, acceleration and delay claims, payment, bond and line disputes and contract interpretation and performance issues.

Mr. Kleeman’s clients include businesses in the energy, insurance, construction, real estate, manufacturing, technology, food services and health care industries.

Prior to joining Brock, Clay, he practiced law with Ranitz, Mahoney & Mahoney, P.C., a general practice firm in Savannah, Georgia.

REPRESENTATIVE CLIENT HIGHLIGHTS

Some of Mr. Kleeman’s recent notable client highlights include:

• Counseling a large insurance group in connection with multistate expansion into new business lines and the negotiation of a $14 million line of credit.
• Representing the trustee of a liquidating trust in connection with the sale and disposal of seven subsidiaries over the course of a three-year period.
• Representing a food processing company in connection with $2.1 million acquisition of a new manufacturing facility in Virginia and the $600,000 acquisition of equipment from a Georgia-based competitor, as well as negotiating a $3 million line of credit to fund expansion and provide working capital to the company.

• Representing nine guarantors in the workout of a $21 million loan for construction of three lakefront condominium buildings, asserting numerous counterclaims against the lender and obtaining very favorable releases on behalf of the guarantors.

• Obtaining summary judgment on behalf of an electric cooperative, natural gas affiliate and energy services corporation in a contested hearing before the Georgia Public Service Commission.

• Obtaining a court order requiring a minority shareholder to recognize that his removal as CEO of a company by majority shareholders was lawful, and subsequently negotiating the majority shareholders’ purchase of the minority’s stock in business on favorable terms.

• Serving as primary counsel to a public sector client in connection with construction issues related to a $700 million construction program, providing advice with respect to procurement, bond, lien and payment issues, acceleration and delay claims, contract interpretation and dispute resolution.

PROFESSIONAL & COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT

• Member, State Bar of Georgia
  - Active in Business Law Section and Younger Lawyers Division
• Served on State Bar of Georgia’s Committee on the Judiciary
• 2011 Graduate of YLD Leadership Academy
• Co-Founder, Cobb Bar Association Business Law Section
  - 2010-2011 President
  - Trustee of the Cobb Bar Association
• Paralegal Instructor, North Metro Technical College – Corporations and Business Associations Class

SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS & PUBLICATIONS

• Author, “The Proposal to Implement Article 23 of the Basic Law in Hong Kong: A Missed Opportunity for Reconciliation and Reunification Between China and Taiwan,” focusing on relationships between China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law (Spring 2005).
• Speaker, “General Conditions, the Rules of the Road,” Fulton County Schools’ Contractor and Vendor Conference (Spring 2010).