Nicholas A. Concilio

Nicholas A. Concilio practices in the areas of Public Finance, Tax and Securities Law.

Prior to joining the firm, he served as Assistant General Counsel for the Public Finance group of Ambac Assurance Corporation, a monoline financial guaranty insurance company with more than $1 billion in annual revenues. Nicholas was responsible for the legal aspects of deal structuring and documentation in connection with credit enhancement of bond and bank financings for a variety of public purpose projects. He was also actively engaged in portfolio surveillance, preparing and negotiating financing documents and swap agreements for Ambac-insured transactions and collaborating with outside counsel on troubled credits in litigation. As the credit markets deteriorated, he spent a significant amount of time assessing transaction risks (along with implementing related mitigation measures), especially those relating to bankruptcy, hedging arrangements, intercreditor relationships, validity of debt obligations and lien creation and perfection.

Prior to joining Ambac, Nicholas was a partner with two New Jersey law firms, where he negotiated and completed revenue and general obligation tax-exempt financings totaling more than $6 billion for state, county and local governmental entities as bond and underwriter counsel and represented trustee banks and letter of credit providers in secured lending transactions, including loan restructurings and real estate-backed financings. Nicholas served as first-chair counsel for a complex refunding/restructuring municipal bond issue on behalf of the New Jersey Turnpike Authority to alleviate burdensome debt service requirements and avoid near-term toll increases. The transaction included unique “Cinderella Bonds,” which were initially placed as taxable securities directly with the underwriter and remained taxable until a current refunding was effectuated at which time the bonds converted to pre-determined tax-exempt interest rates. This municipal bond issue was the first of its kind undertaken and closed without the use of swap or other derivative products.

Nicholas also served in another in-house capacity as Assistant General Counsel for Berlex Laboratories, Inc., where he advised on business and operational issues for the therapeutics business unit of this multinational pharmaceutical company with $750 million in annual revenues. His project work included negotiating the licensing and acquisition of pharmaceutical products from German and Japanese companies and rendering guidance on aspects of trade regulation and antitrust law related to new business development.

Prior to moving in-house with Berlex, Nicholas was a senior associate at another New Jersey law firm, where he represented issuers and underwriters in variable/auction rate, advance refunding and derivative transactions. His work included automating the loan documentation and closing process for public and private borrowers utilizing the New Jersey revolving fund clean water and wastewater programs, thereby streamlining the application process to make access to the capital markets more efficient and user-friendly. He also helped to minimize borrowing costs and maximize market access for municipalities and school districts in Essex County by developing and implementing a competitive leasing program.

Nicholas received his J.D. from Seton Hall University Law School, where he was a member of the Seton Hall Legislative Journal and he was graduated cum laude from Georgetown University with a B.S. in Business Administration. He is a member of the Bar of the State of New Jersey (1988), the District of Columbia (1995) and the United States Supreme Court and a member of the National Association of Bond Lawyers.