Minnetonka is a western suburb of Minneapolis in Hennepin County, with businesses in healthcare, technology, finance and manufacturing. Many owners here sell to strategic buyers from the Twin Cities medical device, healthcare and financial services sectors, or to private equity groups. Send the deal details to start.
A structured, methodical approach to mergers and acquisitions work
1
Transaction Planning
We work with you to define deal objectives, identify targets or buyers, and develop an M&A strategy aligned with your business goals.
2
Due Diligence
We conduct comprehensive legal, financial, and operational due diligence to identify risks and opportunities.
3
Deal Structuring
We structure the transaction for optimal tax treatment, risk allocation, and regulatory compliance, whether as a stock purchase, asset purchase, or merger.
4
Negotiation & Documentation
We negotiate letters of intent, purchase agreements, and all transaction documents to protect your interests and facilitate a smooth closing.
5
Closing & Integration
We manage the closing process and provide post-closing support for integration, earnout disputes, and transition matters.
We don't take every matter. Here is what happens when you reach out.
1
Personal Review (Within 24 Hours)
Alex reviews your transaction details. Your submission is not screened by an intake coordinator before it reaches him.
2
Fit Assessment
We evaluate whether your deal aligns with our practice. Not every matter is a fit, and we will tell you directly if it is not.
3
Initial Conversation
If there is alignment, we schedule a call to discuss your transaction, timeline, and objectives.
4
Clear Engagement Terms
Before any work begins, you receive a written engagement letter with defined scope, timeline, and fee structure.
Request Your Engagement Assessment
Acquisition Stars handles mergers and acquisitions work for buyers and sellers nationwide.
M&A counsel. Nationwide. LOI through closing.
Request Engagement Assessment
Alex reviews each inquiry. If there is alignment, you will hear back within one business day.
Submission Received
Your transaction details are under review. If there is alignment, we will be in touch.
Meanwhile, feel free to call us directly at (248) 266-2790
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions from clients
Will a buyer of my Minnetonka business ask me to sign a non-compete?
Almost always. A buyer pays for the customer relationships and the goodwill, so it wants the seller to stay out of the same business for a period after closing. The scope is negotiable: the length, the area, and the products or customers it covers. Decide what you can accept before you sign the letter of intent.
How do buyers keep key employees after they buy a Minnetonka company?
Buyers use retention bonuses paid over time, rollover equity or new equity grants, employment agreements, and confidentiality and non-solicitation terms. Which tools fit depends on the person and the deal. These agreements should be reviewed by counsel before they are signed.
What does a sell-side M&A attorney do for a Minnetonka owner?
The attorney negotiates the letter of intent, prepares the company for the buyer's diligence, drafts or negotiates the purchase agreement and the disclosure schedules, limits the seller's representations and indemnity, and manages the closing.
What should a Minnetonka seller prepare before signing a letter of intent?
Collect the customer and supplier contracts, the corporate records, employee agreements, real estate and equipment leases, and any open claims. List the key employees the buyer will want to keep and how you plan to keep them. Decide early whether you would accept rollover equity or an earnout, because those choices change the letter of intent.
What does an M&A attorney do?
An M&A attorney advises clients on mergers and acquisitions, including transaction structuring, due diligence, contract negotiation, and closing. We represent buyers, sellers, and target companies in strategic transactions, private equity deals, and corporate restructurings.
How long does an M&A transaction take?
An M&A transaction takes as long as its due diligence, negotiation and closing conditions require, so the timeline depends on the deal's complexity. Factors affecting timeline include due diligence scope, financing arrangements, and negotiation complexity.
Should I structure my acquisition as a stock purchase or asset purchase?
Use an asset purchase when you want to choose which assets and liabilities you take on, and a stock purchase when you want to buy the company as it stands. We analyze your specific situation and recommend a structure.
What is due diligence in an M&A transaction?
Due diligence is the comprehensive investigation of a target company's legal, financial, operational, and commercial affairs. It helps identify risks, validate assumptions, inform purchase price, and shape deal terms.
How are M&A deals valued and priced?
Valuation methods include comparable company analysis, precedent transactions, discounted cash flow analysis, and asset-based valuation. Purchase price is negotiated based on valuation, market conditions, strategic value, and competitive dynamics. We work with your financial advisors on pricing.
How do Minnesota non-compete laws affect mergers & acquisitions law transactions?
Minnesota Statutes Section 181.988 voids covenants not to compete between employers and employees entered into on or after July 1, 2023, with exceptions the statute states, including a covenant agreed to during the sale of a business and one agreed to in anticipation of the dissolution of a business. (Minn. Stat. 181.988) Non-solicitation and confidentiality agreements fall outside the statute's definition of a covenant not to compete. (Minn. Stat. 181.988)
What are the Minnesota tax considerations for a business acquisition or sale?
Minnesota imposes a 9.8% corporate franchise tax (Minn. Stat. 290.06, subd. 1). (Minn. Stat. 290.06) The state requires combined reporting for unitary groups (Minn. Stat. 290.17, subd. 4), apportions income by the sales factor alone, and sources receipts from services to where the services are received (Minn. Stat. 290.191). (Minn. Stat. 290.17)
Does Minnesota have a bulk sales law that affects business acquisitions?
Under Minn. Stat. 270C.57, if the Department of Revenue has filed a tax lien against the seller, the buyer must notify the Department of the transfer at least 20 days before taking possession of the assets or paying the purchase price. (Minn. Stat. 270C.57) The Department then has 20 days to state any other tax due. (Minn. Stat. 270C.57) A buyer who does not give that notice is liable, up to the purchase price, for the seller's unpaid sales tax, withholding tax and any tax imposed by chapter 296A, with interest and penalties. (Minn. Stat. 270C.57)
What can I expect during an initial consultation?
During a confidential initial consultation, we discuss your transaction, review your current situation, assess challenges specific to Minnesota, and outline a path forward. We explain our process, answer your questions, and determine whether we are the right fit.
Do you work with companies outside of Minnetonka?
Yes. Acquisition Stars represents clients nationwide and coordinates with local counsel where state-specific requirements apply.
Need Specific Guidance?
Submit your transaction details for a preliminary assessment.
Minneapolis-St. Paul is home to the headquarters of large companies such as UnitedHealth Group, Target and 3M. The Twin Cities' strength in medical devices (Medtronic corridor), retail, and agribusiness drives consistent deal flow. The region's strong cooperative and employee-owned business tradition means many sellers are transitioning unique ownership structures.
Top M&A Sectors Near Minnetonka
Medical Devices
Agribusiness & Food
Retail & Consumer
Financial Services
Industrial Technology
Deal Environment
Many Twin Cities targets are suppliers and service providers to the region's large corporate headquarters.
Why Acquire in the Minneapolis Area
Buyers in the Twin Cities often value a target's local workforce and customer base.
Minnetonka M&A Market Insight
The Minneapolis-St. Paul metro has a large base of corporate headquarters, with medical devices and healthcare, food and agribusiness, and financial services and insurance as its leading deal sectors. UnitedHealth Group, Medtronic, 3M, Cargill, General Mills and Target are among its anchors. Minnetonka businesses often sit inside those supply chains: healthcare services and technology vendors, software and IT providers, financial and insurance service firms, and specialty manufacturers. That shapes who buys them. A corporate buyer from one of those sectors usually wants the customer relationships, the product and the people, and it will run diligence the way its own legal and compliance teams require. A private equity buyer usually wants the owner to keep a stake and stay for a period after closing. In both cases, two terms get the most attention after price. The second is how the buyer keeps the key employees who hold the customer relationships or the technical knowledge. Retention bonuses, rollover equity, employment agreements and confidentiality and non-solicitation terms each fit different cases, and each should be drafted with counsel who knows Minnesota employment law. A seller who decides early how far the covenant can go, and who has a plan for the key people, negotiates those terms from a stronger position.
Common Deal Scenarios
1
Sale of a Healthcare Technology Vendor to a Strategic Buyer
A Minnetonka software company sells to a larger healthcare services or technology company in the Twin Cities. The purchase agreement ties the founders' covenant to the sale, and the parties use retention bonuses and rollover equity to keep the team.
2
Private Equity Recapitalization of a Specialty Manufacturer
A private equity group buys a majority stake in a Minnetonka manufacturer and the owners keep a minority interest. The attorney negotiates the purchase agreement, the rollover terms and the governing documents of the new company.
3
Owner Retirement Sale of a Financial Services Firm
The owner of a Minnetonka insurance or financial services firm plans to sell and retire. Diligence focuses on client contracts, carrier or custodian agreements and licensing. The seller's covenant is limited to an area and a time the parties can defend, and any transition period is set out in a separate consulting or employment agreement.
Why Minnetonka for M&A
Many Minnetonka companies sell to corporate buyers. Sellers who plan those terms before the letter of intent keep control of the negotiation.
Local Market Context
Minnetonka M&A Market
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI MSA · MSA population 3.7M
MSA Population (2024)
3.7M
U.S. Census Bureau
Top Industry Concentration
1food and agribusiness
2medical devices and healthcare
3financial services and insurance
Minneapolis-St. Paul is a diversified Midwest business hub with particular strength in food and agriculture processing, retail, medical devices, and financial services. Medical device M&A tied to Medtronic and the broader Twin Cities medtech ecosystem is a consistent deal driver, alongside food industry consolidation through companies like General Mills and Cargill.
Major Minnetonka Employers and Deal Anchors
UnitedHealth Group
Target
3M
General Mills
Cargill
Medtronic
Transit and Logistics
Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport is a Delta Air Lines hub with strong domestic and international connectivity.
Recent Minnetonka Deal Signal (2024-2025)
UnitedHealth Group continued its acquisitions of physician groups and healthcare services businesses through 2024, extending its vertically integrated healthcare model. 3M completed its spinoff of its healthcare segment (Solventum) in 2024, generating follow-on M&A activity as Solventum established its independent acquisition strategy.
Minnesota Legal Considerations for Mergers & Acquisitions Law
Non-Compete Laws
Employee non-competes entered into on or after July 1, 2023 are void, with exceptions such as a covenant agreed to during the sale of a business. (Minn. Stat. 181.988)
Filing Requirements
Entity mergers and conversions are filed with the Minnesota Secretary of State. (Minn. Stat. 302A.615) Each Minnesota corporation must file an annual renewal with the Secretary of State. (Minn. Stat. 302A.821) If the Department of Revenue has filed a tax lien against the seller, the buyer must notify the Department of the transfer. (Minn. Stat. 270C.57)
Key Minnesota Considerations
Minnesota's ban on most employee non-competes (Minn. Stat. 181.988, effective July 2023) means target companies generally cannot rely on employee non-compete covenants entered into on or after July 1, 2023, although covenants agreed to in the sale of a business are an exception, which can change workforce retention strategies (Minn. Stat. 181.988)
Minnesota's 9.8% corporate franchise tax (Minn. Stat. 290.06, subd. 1) can affect deal structure and the amount of income sourced to Minnesota (Minn. Stat. 290.06)
Minnesota requires combined reporting for unitary groups (Minn. Stat. 290.17, subd. 4), which can bring the income of affiliates that do not operate in Minnesota into the apportioned total, with exceptions such as most foreign corporations (Minn. Stat. 290.17)
Minnesota M&A Market Context
Minnesota M&A is driven by Minneapolis-Saint Paul's concentration of Fortune 500 companies across food, medical devices, financial services, and retail.
Recent Minnesota Legislative Changes (2024-2025)
Minnesota Non-Compete Ban (Minn. Stat. sec. 181.988). Effective July 1, 2023, Minnesota bans most new employee non-compete agreements, with exceptions such as covenants agreed to during the sale of a business. (Minn. Laws 2023, ch. 53) Agreements signed before that date are not covered by the ban. (Minn. Laws 2023, ch. 53)
Watchpoints
Common Mergers & Acquisitions Law Pitfalls
These legal points can derail a transaction in the Minnetonka market. Each one links to its official source.
Attorney perspective on ma attorney matters in Minnetonka
"I've seen people win the negotiation and lose the deal too many times. Both parties have to concede something to gain something. You don't win every battle and then win the war. That's not how it works. The buyer who insists on every protection in the contract often ends up without a counterparty willing to sign. The seller who refuses any indemnification often ends up without a buyer who'll fund. Concession isn't weakness in M&A. It's a structural requirement. The art is knowing which concessions cost nothing and which ones cost the deal. Most negotiators don't do that work. They negotiate every line as if it carries equal weight. The lines that carry the deal are usually three or four out of fifty. Those are the ones to fight on. Everything else is friction."
Alex Lubyansky, Managing Partner On negotiation (principle) (Leo Landaverde M&A Podcast)
M&A counsel·Buy-side and sell-side representation·Admitted in Michigan, practicing nationwide
