Thomas Laughlin, P.C.

Since joining Kirkland, Thomas has been involved in the following matters:

• Lux Vending LLC dba Bitcoin Depot® in its definitive business combination with GSR II Meteora Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ: GSRM), a special purpose acquisition company
• RedStorm Energy Partners, an affiliate of Redbird Capital Partners, in its initial equity financing of RedElephant Resources, an upstream oil and gas exploration and production company, and simultaneous acquisition of Elephant Resources 
• Allied Industrial Partners LLC in its strategic investment in Waste Eliminator, LLC, a leading regional provider of solid waste hauling, disposal and recycling services for commercial and industrial waste 
• Executive Network Partnering Corp. (NYSE: ENPC), a special purpose acquisition entity, in its $1.3 billion business combination with Grey Rock Investment Partners, a Dallas-based investment firm, resulting in the formation of publicly traded Granite Ridge Resources, Inc. 
• Fullscript, a portfolio company of HGGC and Snapdragon Capital Partners, in its acquisition of Emerson Ecologics 
• Braemont Capital in its investment into RedTeam Software and in connection with RedTeam’s acquisition of PASKR 
• Cureton Front Range, a midstream oil and gas company, in its acquisition of a portfolio of midstream assets from Aka Energy Group
• Blue Owl Capital (NYSE: OWL) in its acquisition of Hong Kong-based Ascentium Group Limited
• Freestone HoldCo in its partnership with Tailwater Capital to pursue energy transition investments
• Freestone HoldCo, a portfolio company of Tailwater Capital, in its growth equity investment in Momentum Technologies, a battery and rare earth magnet recycling company
• Maverick Ventures in SoftBank Vision Fund 2’s $300 million investment in LTK, a global influencer marketing platform
• HGGC in its majority investment in Grand Fitness Partners, a franchisee within the Planet Fitness health club system
• HGGC in its $240 million joint investment in Fullscript with Snapdragon Capital Partners
• Trive Capital and its portfolio company, NxEdge, Inc., an advanced manufacturing, cleaning, coating, and refurbishment business, in its $850 million sale to EnPro Industries, Inc. (NYSE: NPO), an industrial technology company
• The Blackstone Group and its portfolio companies, Swallowtail Royalties and Swallowtail Royalties II, on the definitive purchase and sale agreement with Viper Energy Partners LP, a subsidiary of Diamondback Energy, Inc., to acquire certain mineral and royalty interests from Swallowtail
• Primexx Energy Partners on the $788 million acquisition of its leasehold interests and related oil, gas and infrastructure assets by Callon Petroleum Company
• Allied Industrial Partners on its purchase of CAT Entertainment Services, a market leading provider of specialty mobile power generation, power distribution, and temperature control services 
• Vortus Investments on its partnership with Flat Creek Resources LLC to develop existing oil-rich assets in Eddy County, New Mexico in the Delaware Basin through Stateline Operating LLC 
• Owl Rock Capital Group in its business combination agreement with Dyal Capital Partners and Altimar Acquisition Corporation, a special purpose acquisition company, to form Blue Owl Capital Inc., an alternative asset management firm
• Santa Fe Midstream, a portfolio company of Energy Spectrum, on its sale of Permian Basin gas gathering and processing assets to Stakeholder Midstream
• Denbury Inc. (NYSE: DEN) on the restructuring of its long-standing CO2 pipeline arrangements with Genesis Energy, L.P. (NYSE: GEL)
• Trive Capital Partners in the formation of NuBridge Commercial Lending, a real estate platform focused on making first-lien, short-term bridge loans for commercial and multifamily properties across the United States
• Sentinel Midstream, a portfolio company of Cresta Fund Management, on its agreements with Freepoint Commodities in furtherance of Sentinel Midstream’s construction, operation and utilization of Texas GulfLink, a Deepwater Crude Oil Export Terminal located near Freeport, Texas
• Wing Resources LLC and Wing Resources II LLC, portfolio companies of Natural Gas Partners, in the sale of Midland Basin oil and gas mineral interests to Alliance Resource Partners L.P.
• Sentinel Midstream on Texas GulfLink, its proposed Deepwater Crude Oil Export Terminal located near Freeport, Texas and related midstream infrastructure project, which is being financed in partnership with Cresta Fund Management
• Red Wolf Natural Resources, a portfolio company of Pearl Energy Investments, in its acquisition of 56,000 net acres and associated production in Oklahoma’s SCOOP, STACK and Merge plays and in the broader Anadarko Basin

Prior to joining Kirkland, Thomas was involved in the following matters:

Energy – Upstream Oil & Gas

• Double Eagle Energy Holdings III LLC in the formation of a new pure-play Midland Basin joint venture with FourPoint Energy named DoublePoint Energy, LLC, with over 70,000 acres in Midland, Glassock, Martin, Howard, Upton and Reagan Counties, Texas
• Charger Shale Oil Company, LLC, a portfolio company of funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management, in its formation of Culberson Midstream LLC, a joint venture with Producers Midstream, LP providing midstream solutions for gas, oil and water in the Delaware Basin
• Verdad Oil & Gas Corporation in its formation of Verdad Resources Holdings LLC in partnership with funds managed by Ares Management, L.P.
• Canada Pension Plan Investment Board in its $1 billion equity commitment to form Encino Acquisition Partners, which will focus on U.S. oil and gas acquisition opportunities
• Jonah Energy in its $580 million acquisition of natural gas and oil producing properties in the Jonah and Pinedale fields and surrounding area from LINN Energy
• Double Eagle Energy Permian, a portfolio company of Apollo Natural Resources Partners Funds I and II, in a $450 million investment in the company of equity and delayed draw unsecured debt capital by Magnetar Capital
• Double Eagle Energy Holdings, a portfolio company of Apollo Natural Resources Partners Funds I and II, in its merger with Veritas Energy Partners Holdings LLC, creating one of the largest pure play exploration and production companies focused on the Permian’s Midland Basin
• Oaktree Capital Management in the $600 million line of equity commitment to Charger Shale Oil Company, an oil and gas company focused in the Permian Basin
• Riverstone Holdings in the $3.75 billion acquisition by its portfolio company, Fieldwood Energy LLC, of Apache Corporations’s assets in the Outer Continental Shelf of the Gulf of Mexico
• Riverstone Holdings in the $600 million line of equity commitment to Fieldwood Energy LLC, an oil and gas company focused on the acquisition and development of conventional oil and gas assets
• TPG Capital in its $1.8 billion acquisition of natural gas properties in Wyoming’s Jonah field from Encana Corporation
• Denbury Resources in the $1.05 billion acquisition of assets in the Cedar Creek Anticline of Montana from a wholly owned subsidiary of ConocoPhillips Company
• Quantum Energy Partners in its $300 million line of equity commitment/joint venture partnership with Tug Hill Operative, Inc. to engage in the acquisition, development, and exploitation of conventional and unconventional oil and gas assets
• Riverstone Holdings in its $200 million equity commitment to Castex Energy, an oil and gas company focused on Louisiana and the Gulf of Mexico Shelf
• Denbury Resources in its $1.6 billion sale of Bakken assets to ExxonMobil and its wholly owned subsidiary XTO Energy

Energy – Oilfield Services

• Apollo Global Management in the acquisition of a majority interest in Tidewater Logistics, a leading provider of  hydraulic fracturing sand supply chain solutions
• Abaco Energy Technologies Holdings, a portfolio company of Riverstone Holdings, in its acquisition of Basintek LLC, a manufacturer and distributor of power section rotors and stators
• Riverstone Holdings in a $200 million line of equity commitment to Abaco Energy Technologies Holdings, a newly formed company targeting oil services investments
• Gravity Oilfield Services Inc. in its acquisition of McKenzie Energy Partners, LLC
• Gravity Oilfield Services Inc. in the acquisition of its well servicing division to Brigade Energy Services, LLC, a portfolio company of Turnbridge Capital Partners, LLC and affiliates
• Gravity Oilfield Services Inc. in its acquisition of West Texas H20, LLC, an established Permian Basin-based fresh and produced solutions provider
• Clearlake Capital Group, L.P., in the formation of Gravity Oilfield Services Inc., f/k/a GlobeLTR Energy Inc., with the merger of two established oilfield services providers in the Permian Basin, Globe Energy Services, LLC and Light Tower Rentals, Inc.
• Globe Energy Services in its recapitalization led by Clearlake Capital in partnership with Globe’s management team and other existing stakeholders
• Riverstone Holdings in a $200 million line of equity commitment to Abaco Energy Technologies Holdings, a newly formed company targeting oil services investments
• Riverstone Holdings in the acquisition of Utex Industries, a designer and manufacturer of sealing products for a wide range of applications in the energy sector, from the Rhone Group
• Riverstone Holdings in the $775 million sale of Titan Specialties Ltd., a provider of engineered hardware used in the drilling, completion, and maintenance of oil and gas wells, to Hunting PLC
• Globe Energy Services in the acquisition of Paul Musslewhite Trucking Co., and its affiliated subsidiaries, provider of fluids management services in the Permian Basin
• Altpoint Capital Partners in the $50 million investment in Globe Energy Services, a Texas-based oilfield services company focused on new well completions, and the production and maintenance of existing well bores

Mergers & Acquisitions

• MORSCO in its acquisition of Fortiline Waterworks, a portfolio company of CHS Capital and one of the largest U.S. waterworks distributors
• Daseke in the acquisition of Lone Star Transportation and its affiliates, a flatbed, heavy-haul, and specialized carrier trucking services business
• Daseke in its acquisition of Boyd Bros Transportation, creating one of the largest North American open-deck/specialty fleets
• Dart Container Corporation in the $1 billion acquisition of Solo Cup Company
• Selling owner in its sale of Muti-Chem Group to Halliburton Company

Senior Associate, Vinson & Elkins LLP