Kimberly Smith, co-chair of Katten's Private Equity practice, has been named a Mergers & Acquisitions and Antitrust Trailblazer by The National Law Journal for her work on health care services transactions. The profile notes that while she began her career working on public securities offerings, the bursting of the Internet bubble created new opportunities in M&A and private equity deals. Kim stated, "I started working for a couple of funds that do health care deals. I really enjoyed that, and now it's a significant focus for me."

Looking at where the industry is heading, she noted that valuations for health care services companies will likely remain high, stating, "Private equity funds [that are] focused on health care investments remain so, and they remain active investors. But now private equity firms that have not focused on this space want to come in as well. Attorneys and others who put these deals together will look for more creative ways to get these deals done." Kim added that health care regulatory issues "will continue to be a significant area of focus." ("Mergers & Acquisitions and Antitrust Trailblazers," September 26, 2016)