To succeed, manufacturers need foresight, innovation, and a network of cooperative relationships. At Shipman, manufacturing matters. We help business owners, investors, lenders and other parties seize opportunities, minimize risks and protect their investments in this always valuable — and increasingly vulnerable — sector. Our work is client-driven and issue-focused. With decades of legal and business experience working with manufacturers in our respective fields, we provide broad-based regulatory compliance counsel and focused, multidisciplinary guidance in rapidly developing areas of concern, including the following:
As manufacturing in the United States — and in Connecticut, in particular — experiences a renaissance, advanced manufacturers, additive manufacturers and aerospace manufacturers, as well as life sciences, technology-focused and other companies are embarking on an exciting period of growth. Through our collaboration with publicly traded and privately held corporate clients, educational institutions, and state and national manufacturing associations, Shipman is uniquely positioned to help businesses prosper, today and in the future.
Workforce Management
Today’s manufacturing workforce is evolving at a rapid pace and manufacturers across the United States are facing unique obstacles attracting and retaining highly skilled talent. Shipman collaborates with clients at every step of the employment process — and from the executive suite to the factory floor — to offer client-focused solutions to today’s workplace trends and challenges, including remote, contract, temporary and flex-time workers; a multi-generational workforce; and a hypercompetitive recruiting market. Read More
We guide manufacturers through all aspects of the employment relationship, from the initial hiring process to employee termination and separation. Our emphasis on collaboration helps ensure that we effectively manage potential issues that may arise with employees, no matter how simple or complex. Our counseling approach focuses on prevention, which includes training on subjects ranging from sexual harassment policies to union avoidance, and helps our clients mitigate litigation and other risks. We provide solutions to commonly faced problems such as:
- Hiring and training a skilled workforce based on advances in technology
- Restructuring and reorganizing as companies assess their operations
- Protecting intellectual property through confidentiality and non-compete agreements
- Negotiating changing employment terms and conditions with labor representatives
- Succession planning and workforce development
Our full-service immigration practice focuses primarily on employment-based matters in an increasingly challenging immigration climate. We guide manufacturers in areas such as:
- Employing foreign workers to meet the demand for executive, managerial, and technical talent
- Providing accessible and knowledgeable resources for employers seeking to achieve compliance with Form I-9 U.S. employment eligibility verification requirements
- Dealing with site visits by USCIS’s Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate and ICE work site raids, to help clients avoid civil and criminal sanctions for hiring workers without US work authorization
Globalization and Supply Chain Management
Virtually all manufacturers operate in a complex, global network of vendors, suppliers, wholesalers, distributors, retailers, investors, lenders and regulators. Shipman delivers coordinated, multidisciplinary legal counsel that helps clients manage these relationships more effectively and respond to rapidly changing international regulations, trade agreements and tariff disputes. We help clients resolve conflicts with business partners (including financially distressed companies), protect intellectual property and trade secrets, develop proactive business succession strategies, and ensure the timely movement of materials and products at every step in the supply chain. Read More
We represent large, US-based and foreign corporations, as well as start-ups and middle-market manufacturers across the spectrum, and in industries including:
- Aerospace and Transportation
- Metals and Machinery
- Chemicals and Biotechnology
- Food and Beverage
- Medical Devices
- Software and Technology
- Plastics and Rubbers
- Petroleum and Coal
Whether serving as outside general counsel, negotiating a merger or acquisition, financing or disposition, purchasing or leasing real estate assets, or coordinating a multinational project with colleagues from our affiliation with the Interlaw global legal network, we offer each client customized counsel that addresses its specific objectives and challenges. We advise clients on the full range of supply chain issues:
- Contract management and negotiations, including terms and conditions, warranties and terminations
- Import/export and sanctions compliance, including ITAR and EAR
- Federal and state franchise laws
- Procurement matters and related agreements
- Technology transfers and licensing
- Commercial finance, including debt and equity financing
- Business disputes, including litigation, settlement negotiations, mediation and arbitration
- Creditors’ rights in bankruptcy cases, out of court workouts and other insolvency proceedings
We believe that the duration of our client relationships serve as a testament to the quality of our counsel and our service. We have served many businesses across generations and decades — more than a half century, in some cases. Our advice is pragmatic, our attorneys are responsive, our bench is deep, and our fee structure emphasizes value and results.
Product Development
A manufacturer is only as good as its products. In today’s hypercompetitive marketplace, innovation is as important as quality, reliability and reputation. Shipman’s manufacturing attorneys have extensive experience helping clients identify, protect and monetize creative assets; negotiate contracts with vendors, suppliers, distributors and other parties along the entire supply chain; pursue cost-effective and tax-advantaged financing strategies to support research and new-product development initiatives; and address product liability issues. Read More
Working together, we provide coordinated, end-to-end counsel designed to eliminate unnecessary and unproductive handoffs, enabling the delivery of seamless, client-specific solutions.
Our IP attorneys and litigators provide counsel and dispute resolution services to start-ups, middle-market companies and international businesses alike. We help clients develop, acquire, license and manage a range of creative assets, trade secrets and other proprietary information through trademark, copyright, patent and other legal protections. Given the complex, collaborative nature of today’s R&D landscape, we work with businesses to negotiate and document development agreements, ownership rights, technology transfers, non-disclosure and confidentiality agreements, and other contracts that are designed to allow creativity to flourish while avoiding potential infringement.
Our business, finance and regulatory compliance attorneys understand the many challenges facing manufacturers today. We take a 360-degree view of our clients’ businesses to minimize risk and promote product development initiatives to support a company’s overall objectives. We offer guidance on:
- Debt and equity financing
- Tax credits and incentives
- Import/export, customs and other international trade issues
- Regulatory compliance counsel on an array of environmental, health, safety, employment and other laws and requirements
Our product liability attorneys counsel clients at every stage of the product-development process, helping identify, resolve and avoid issues in a manner that can prevent individual, class action and multidistrict litigation down the road. We know our clients’ industries and draw on this knowledge to take effective, preemptive action, including advice on establishing a record of reasonable care and assisting clients in acquiring effective insurance coverage. When disputes do arise, we assemble lean, targeted litigation teams and develop innovative strategies to present our clients’ arguments assertively and effectively.
Environmental Concerns
For manufacturers, the environment is a daily, front-and-center issue. At every step in the supply, distribution and sales chain, businesses must ensure that effective safeguards are in place to avoid potential contamination, limit human exposure to known hazards, and ensure compliance with an ever-growing and increasingly complex list of local, state, federal and international regulations. For their part, developers, investors and lenders need to understand more than current or proposed manufacturing activities; they must also be aware of the history of the facilities and land upon which these processes take place and their own responsibilities and potential liabilities in connection with preventing or addressing the impact of manufacturing processes. Read More
At Shipman, our environmental, energy, land use, real estate and other attorneys help manufacturers identify and resolve the full spectrum of environmental, health and safety (EHS) issues. We have advised clients on issues in jurisdictions across the United States, in Canada and in Europe. Over decades, we have established longstanding working relationships with federal and state agency officials, including at the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP), providing us with important insights into the priorities and strategies of these regulatory bodies.
Among other areas, we regularly provide counsel on:
- Environmental investigation/remediation requirements and opportunities
- Permitting and zoning issues
- Transactional due diligence
- Industrial/specialty chemical and other hazardous-materials compliance
- EHS policies, protocols and emergency-response plans
- Site remediation programs and regulatory site closure
When unforeseen events arise, we take immediate action to help clients identify and contain the situation, work with government agencies and insurers to mitigate potential hazards, and roll out effective public-relations strategies that present our clients’ stories fairly and accurately. We also represent clients in all forms of environmental litigation and help resolve enforcement activity.
Well versed in traditional regulation and compliance issues, we are known for our insights into emerging environmental concerns. Among other developments, we advise clients on potential liabilities and litigation risks stemming from the manufacture and use of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). We counsel clients in Connecticut on the potential applicability of and requirements associated with the Connecticut Transfer Act, a particularly challenging statutory program for manufacturing clients in the state. Finally, we recognize that the environment is a source of opportunity as well as risk, and help clients explore and take advantage of renewable energy options such as the use of solar and other renewable energy sources that limit environmental impacts and reduce overall energy costs.
Technology Transformation
Industry 4.0 — also known as the fourth industrial revolution — is taking manufacturers to the next level in digital integration. Automated technology is now artificial intelligence (AI). Smart factories and robots act not only according to their programming, but are capable of self-diagnosis and self-correction. Connectivity, including the Internet of Things (IoT), is the order of the day rather than an interesting new feature. Shipman helps manufacturers take full advantage of these technologies to protect their market positions while minimizing the risks and challenges that arise from rapid adoption. Read More
We provide IP counsel and dispute resolution services to start-ups, middle-market companies and international businesses alike. We help clients identify, develop, acquire, license and manage a range of creative assets, including trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets and patents, and assist clients in negotiating software development and support agreements, as well as technology transfers involving all types of technologies and products.
Given the multi-party nature — and speed — of today’s technology development, we work with equal diligence to protect clients’ intellectual property rights and avoid costly infringement on the proprietary rights of others.
As technology takes a more central role in manufacturing processes, our attorneys work with clients to manage labor and employment matters arising out of a changing workplace and workforce. We regularly negotiate non-compete and non-disclosure agreements between employers and key personnel; advise on reductions in force, WARN Act compliance, and retraining and professional development programs; provide business immigration counsel; and represent management in disputes with unions and organized labor.
To protect business interests, the sophistication of technological solutions must be matched by equally sophisticated supplier, vendor, distribution and other contracts. Our attorneys are well versed in the nuances of technology-related agreements and help ensure that our clients’ interests are being served without incurring unnecessary risk or exposure.
Technology-related laws and regulation typically lag behind technology development. With experience in Washington, DC and in Connecticut and other states, members of our regulatory and state attorneys general practices help clients identify and address existing and emerging issues, such as consumer and employee data privacy, antitrust, consumer protection and environmental matters.
Data Security and Breaches
Data is a more valuable and powerful resource than ever — especially when it falls into the wrong hands. As the Internet of Things (IoT), biometric security tools, smart medical devices, GPS tracking systems and other powerful technologies become business as usual for companies large and small, hackers, cyberterrorists, industrial spies and other bad actors are likewise stepping up their efforts to obtain and benefit from proprietary and private information. Read More
In response, governments around the globe are implementing legislation and regulations — such as the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) — that require businesses to comply with a host of information-security requirements.
Shipman’s data privacy and protection team helps manufacturers take full advantage of rapidly emerging technologies while maintaining the security of their platforms, processes, customer information, trade secrets and other protected data. Our group has extensive, first-person experience in each of the key domains businesses need to pursue market growth and innovation without compromising the integrity or security of their information assets— privacy and technology law, law enforcement, and in-house corporate cybersecurity leadership. We represent clients across the United States, from New England to Silicon Valley, as well as multinational companies with a global footprint on a broad range of issues, including:
- Collection, storage, maintenance and disposal of data
- Data privacy and protection audits
- Strategies and policies to build and manage efficient privacy infrastructures
- Customer and employee records
- Social media best practices
- Licensing and data-sharing agreements
As data privacy laws expand their scope, even companies that build and ship a single component used to assemble a product in a second jurisdiction (which product may in turn be sold in several other jurisdictions) may find themselves liable for a data breach that occurs far from home. To ensure compliance with applicable laws and regulations, we work hand-in-and with clients to identify and address potential issues. We provide training, help develop and implement compliance hotlines, and meet regularly with business leaders to establish practical privacy best practices and provide guidance on data-security matters.
No system, software or platform is 100% secure. When national and international breaches, thefts and other security incidents arise, we help clients mount an effective, rapid response. We regularly advise on whistleblower and internal investigations and post-breach notifications, help clients cooperate with relevant federal and state health, civil rights, trade, insurance and other agencies, and handle the full spectrum of privacy litigation.
Regulations and Compliance
Manufacturing remains central to the global economy — and, as a result, takes center stage in the complex framework of international, federal, state and local regulations that govern businesses today. To help manufacturers more effectively identify, address and prevent potential compliance issues and resolve disputes with regulators and law-enforcement officials, Shipman draws on the experience of attorneys across all of our core practice areas. Read More
Our tax team has advised numerous manufacturers on federal, state and local tax issues, including tax accounting and reporting, as well as tax credits, opportunity zones and other incentives that can help finance new or expanded operations and facilities while lowering a company’s overall tax burden. We help clients plan for and understand property, sales, use, excise and other tax requirements and exemptions, and resolve apportionment issues.
Over the past decades, corporate governance practices have drawn increased scrutiny from legislators and regulators. Our attorneys help clients at every step, from business formation and incorporation, to establishing and maintaining effective boards of directors and committees, drafting charters and codes of ethics, and handling special investigations. We regularly advise on conflict-of-interest issues, fiduciary duties, and compliance with a host of federal and state securities, data privacy, antitrust and other regulations, as well as the requirements of industry and financial oversight groups.
In a global economy where trade and tariff agreements are being dismantled as rapidly as they are being established, we work with clients to develop legal strategies that:
- Minimize risks that arise from trade disputes
- Secure supply chains
- Comply with import, export (ITAR/EAR), sanctions, anticorruption, CITES and other requirements and agreements
- Resolve disputes with federal and state agency officials through voluntary self-disclosures, responses to grand jury subpoenas and, as necessary, litigation
Our state attorneys general practice includes three former Connecticut officials with experience at the highest levels, including a former state attorney general, a former deputy attorney general and the former head of the state attorney general’s Privacy & Data Security Department. We help manufacturers respond to agency inquiries and investigations on a broad range of issues, including disputes involving consumer protection, antitrust, privacy, securities, environmental and other laws.
Interlaw, Global Legal Network
Manufacturers of every size and ownership structure are deeply connected to the global economy. Whether purchasing raw materials or components from overseas vendors, selling to customers around the globe, establishing distribution hubs, or responding to geopolitical forces — such as trade and tariff disputes, Brexit, and rapidly changing regulatory policies — companies need access to experienced local counsel, with true local insights wherever their interests take them. Read More
Shipman is a leading member of Interlaw, the elite global network of pre-eminent independent law firms comprising more than 7,500 lawyers in over 150 cities and 90 countries around the world. Interlaw is led by Board Chair Glenn M. Cunningham, a partner at Shipman who also serves as head of our Manufacturing Team.
Ranked a Band 1 “Elite” law firm network by Chambers Global, Interlaw provides high-quality, cross-border and seamless legal advice to manufacturers and other clients via a single point of contact. Interlaw’s strategic partners are thoroughly vetted before being invited to join the organization and performance is monitored closely and regularly. Member firms and their lawyers are leaders in their specific disciplines and provide efficient and cost-effective advice that is deeply attuned to local laws, regulations, and business practices and customs. No matter how broad the subject matter or the jurisdictional scope of an engagement, Interlaw clients receive a single invoice and are just a phone call away from their primary relationship partner.