Evan M. Sauda

Alan Pope primarily counsels financial institutions in corporate workouts and bankruptcies and in structuring intercreditor arrangements. Alan applies substantial experience to representing administrative agents and collateral agents in syndicated credit facilities and other financial institutions in secured lending transactions.

Matt Kain is a trusted advisor to families seeking advice on complex estate planning, trust and estate administration, and charitable planning matters. Matt also leads the firm’s efforts representing nonprofit organizations with respect to formation, tax compliance, and governance. As a North Carolina Board Certified Specialist in Estate Planning and Probate Law, Matt has substantial experience helping high-net-worth families and closely-held business owners achieve their estate, tax, b...

Ben Pleune is a partner in Alston & Bird’s Intellectual Property Litigation Group, with extensive experience litigating patents in U.S. district courts, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and before the International Trade Commission. Ben has also been involved with numerous patent validity challenges before the Patent Trial & Appeal Board. Ben’s practice has focused on a variety of industries, including bar code scanners, image sensors, pharmaceuticals, telecomm...

Margaret Santen is a lawyer recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area of Litigation - Labor and Employment. Margaret practices law in Charlotte, North Carolina Best Lawyers has recognized Margaret Santen since 2025. The Best Lawyers recognition is based on a peer-review survey of lawyers in the same geographic region and legal practice area. The recognition reflects the professional regard in which Margaret Santen is held by other lawyers.

Kristen Finlon is a lawyer recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice areas of Employment Law - Individuals and Litigation - Labor and Employment. Kristen practices law in Charlotte, North Carolina Best Lawyers has recognized Kristen Finlon since 2024. The Best Lawyers recognition is based on a peer-review survey of lawyers in the same geographic region and legal practice area. The recognition reflects the professional regard in which Kristen Finlon is held by other lawyers.

John Baron is the lead partner of the Charlotte office’s Federal and International Tax Group, partner-in-charge of the Charlotte office and chair of the partners committee. His practice is principally transactional in nature, and his clients include both domestic and foreign companies and financial institutions, as well as private equity firms, CDOs and hedge funds. He regularly provides tax structuring advice and renders tax opinions with respect to mergers and acquisitions, structured...

John McIntosh has extensive experience in advising business clients across various industries on a wide range of corporate and transactional matters. John’s practice focuses on structuring and negotiating merger and acquisition, recapitalization, and joint venture transactions for both domestic and international companies. He has advised private equity sponsors in connection with leveraged buyout and related transactions. In addition, John represents publicly held international companie...

Matt Plyler works with lending institutions to achieve practical, business-oriented solutions in secured and unsecured financing transactions across a broad range of industries, including transportation, consumer retail, manufacturing, automotive, utilities, chemicals, agriculture and technology. Matt regularly represents lead arrangers, lenders and agent banks in syndicated credit facilities, club deals and single-bank financings used to finance strategic acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, rec...

Christopher M. Kelly is the partner in charge of Gallivan White & Boyd's Charlotte, North Carolina office where he is also a member of the firm’s Executive Committee as well as the Commercial Transportation Team Leader. He has over 20 years of experience handling complex legal matters that have equipped him to effectively and economically represent clients throughout the Carolinas. He has been recognized since 2016. Chris focuses his practice on complex litigation which includes com...

Patrick Hayden is a partner in the Global Finance & Debt Products Group. His practice focuses on mortgage-backed and asset-backed securitization, and he has represented global financial institutions as indenture trustee in negotiating and closing hundreds of CDO transactions, including CLOs, commercial real estate CDOs and synthetic CDOs. He currently represents indenture trustees in connection with the administration of CDO transactions and has extensive experience with questions and dis...