Private Capital • M&A • Corporate Counsel
Wall Street Deal Experience for Businesses Raising Capital, Buying Companies and Building for Growth.
RAETZER PLLC advises established businesses, founders, sponsors and investors on private securities offerings, mergers and acquisitions, and complex corporate transactions.
Led by a corporate and securities lawyer with more than 20 years of transactional experience, we bring institutional deal discipline to businesses that want sophisticated counsel without building an in-house legal department.
New York and Texas licensed attorneys. Remote representation and transactional support subject to applicable jurisdictional requirements.
Joseph J. Raetzer, MBA, JD — Transaction Counsel
Senior legal judgment for consequential business decisions.
20+ YEARS
Corporate, M&A and securities experience
WALL STREET BACKGROUND
Big Law experience in corporate transactions and structured finance
TRANSACTION-FOCUSED
Private capital, acquisitions, dispositions and corporate matters
NEW YORK + TEXAS
Business counsel with remote-first service
Private capital strategy
Planning to Raise $2 Million–$25 Million in Private Capital?
A private offering should not begin with a document. It should begin with a transaction strategy.
Before approaching investors, an issuer needs to make deliberate decisions about the amount being raised, the issuing entity, the security and economics, the applicable securities exemption, the intended investors, marketing and solicitation, intermediary compensation, financial readiness and the offering timeline.
RAETZER helps businesses structure and execute private offerings with the same transaction discipline expected in institutional capital markets.
Not sure whether you're ready to begin?
The Private Capital Raise Readiness Assessment evaluates your business foundation, offering architecture, investor strategy and execution readiness before you invest in a full offering process.
Take the 3-minute readiness assessmentThe assessment is for educational and screening purposes only and does not provide legal advice or create an attorney-client relationship. Please do not submit confidential information.
Wall Street to Y'all Street
RAETZERPrivate Capital Raise Readiness Assessment
Which best describes your current capital plan?
Core practice areas
Counsel for the Transactions That Change a Business
The most important legal needs of an established business tend to occur at inflection points: raising capital, buying or selling a company, restructuring ownership, entering major contracts, or preparing for the next stage of growth.
01 / Private Capital
Private Capital & Securities
Structure and execute private offerings with careful exemption analysis, investor materials, subscription mechanics and issuer approvals.
Explore private capital02 / M&A
Mergers & Acquisitions
Navigate buying, selling and combining businesses with disciplined diligence, negotiation, documentation and closing support.
Explore M&A counsel03 / Corporate Counsel
Corporate Counsel
Keep contracts, governance and day-to-day legal decisions aligned with the business you are building and the deals ahead.
Explore corporate counselDefined scope. Transaction discipline. Predictable fees.
The RAETZER Private Offering Launch Program
A focused legal engagement for qualifying standard-scope private offerings. We move from structure to launch through a defined sequence, with clear decisions, disciplined documentation and a predictable legal fee.
Standard-scope offering
$19,500
Flat Legal Fee
For qualifying standard-scope offerings, subject to conflicts review, scope confirmation, jurisdiction and a written engagement agreement.
01
Offering Structure & Exemption Analysis
02
Offering Documentation
03
Investor Subscription Process
04
Issuer Approvals
05
Form D & Standard Blue Sky Coordination
06
Defined Revision Process
Is your offering a fit?
The program is designed for an issuer with a defined business, a clear capital objective and a standard-scope offering that can move through an efficient legal process. Start with the assessment to identify open questions.
01
Structure
02
Document
03
Prepare
04
File
05
Launch
A clear boundary
Legal Counsel for the Raise. Not an Investor Introduction Service.
RAETZER provides legal counsel for the structure, documentation and execution of a private capital raise. We do not find investors, broker securities, market offerings or promise access to a particular investor network. That distinction helps keep the engagement focused and helps qualifying businesses understand exactly what legal counsel can — and cannot — do.
If you already have relationships, a defined investor strategy or a credible plan to reach prospective investors, we can help you prepare the legal architecture for the conversation.
The engagement
How a Private Capital Engagement Works
01
Assess
Clarify the business, target, timeline, investor strategy and readiness questions.
02
Structure
Choose the issuing entity, security, economics and exemption architecture.
03
Document
Build the offering materials and subscription process around the deal.
04
Prepare
Coordinate approvals, diligence responses, execution details and filing readiness.
05
Launch
Move into the offering process with a clear legal record and defined next steps.
Joseph J. Raetzer, MBA, JD
Counsel with a practical point of view.
Why Joe / Why RAETZER
Institutional Transaction Experience. Entrepreneurial Perspective.
Joseph J. Raetzer, MBA, JD began his transactional career at Thacher Proffitt & Wood in 2004, working on structured finance and corporate transactions before being recruited to Clifford Chance for M&A.
His work has included public and private companies, financial institutions and investment funds, across middle-market and cross-border transactions.
RAETZER was built to bring that experience to established businesses in a practical way: senior judgment, direct communication and counsel calibrated to the realities of running a company.
A longer view
One Transaction Can Be the Beginning of a Longer Relationship
Businesses rarely experience capital, contracts, governance and transactions as separate lanes. Each decision changes what comes next. RAETZER stays close to the business so the legal work can compound into better decisions over time.
Raise Capital →
Operate & Govern →
Acquire →
Raise Again →
Strategic Transactions →
Exit
Private Capital
Plan, structure and execute private offerings with a legal process that respects the business objective and investor strategy.
Corporate Counsel
Keep governance, commercial contracts and day-to-day decisions ready for the next stage of growth.
M&A
Buy, sell or combine companies with counsel that carries context from first conversation through closing.
The show
Wall Street to Y'all Street
Private capital and deal strategy for established business owners, sponsors and executives.
A practical conversation about how capital, acquisitions, governance and legal strategy work in the real world — away from the jargon and closer to the decisions business leaders actually face.
Episode 01
Upcoming episode
Episode media and details to come.
Episode 02
Upcoming episode
Episode media and details to come.
Episode 03
Upcoming episode
Episode media and details to come.
From the desk
Private Capital & Deal Insights
Securities exemption
Rule 506(b) vs. Rule 506(c)
How the two private offering pathways differ in general solicitation, investor eligibility and execution strategy.
Read the insight →Offering documentation
Do You Actually Need a Private Placement Memorandum?
The practical question is not whether a PPM is a universal requirement, but whether the offering record fits the transaction and risk.
Read the insight →Intermediary compensation
Can You Pay a Finder a Percentage of the Capital Raised?
Why finder-fee questions require careful attention to broker-dealer rules, activity and the structure of the relationship.
Read the insight →The next decision
Considering a Private Capital Raise?
Start with a structured view of your business foundation, offering architecture, investor strategy and execution readiness.
Take the private capital raise readiness assessmentBuying or selling a company? Need ongoing corporate counsel?
Schedule a conversationRAETZER PLLC is a New York and Texas licensed business law firm focused on private capital and securities transactions, mergers and acquisitions, commercial transactions and ongoing corporate counsel for established businesses, sponsors, investors and entrepreneurs.