Encouraging Generational Entrepreneurship
Join Nate Imfeld, Litigation Senior Counsel, and Nate Christensen, Business Law Counsel at Foley Lardner; and David Shaw, Publishing Director at Family Business Magazine, as they discuss ways to foster philanthropic and for-profit entrepreneurship in the next generation.
THURSDAY, MAY 11, 2023
2 PM ET | 11 AM PT
What is the best approach to allow NextGens to get engaged in creating opportunities outside of the core business that they can be passionate about? Entrepreneurship is essential for family enterprises, but encouraging it as new generations grow is uniquely challenging and can present unexpected risks. In this webinar, we’ll discuss strategies for encouraging entrepreneurial thinking and engagement across generations.
This webinar will explore:
- Maintaining an entrepreneurial culture in a family enterprise
- Incentivizing entrepreneurship in the rising generation
- Managing associated risks and pitfalls
Speakers

Nate Imfeld
Litigation Senior Counsel, Foley & Lardner, LLP
Nate Imfeld advises and represents clients, especially family-owned or controlled businesses, in solving complex generational succession and family office planning problems such as shareholder disputes, securities and trust litigation, and other fiduciary issues. Nate’s passion is helping his clients assess, manage, and navigate difficult situations to find creative solutions, both in and out of court, educating and guiding them through their legal concerns so they can make informed business decisions.
Representative Experience
- Represented the majority shareholder group of a $250 million multigenerational family business in litigating a dispute over control of the company
- Advised a multigenerational business-owning family with $400 million dollars in assets, assessing and building out its family office
- Represented the beneficiaries of a significant family trust in litigation with a trustee who was also a family member
- Negotiated a favorable settlement for a privately owned professional services firm in a valuation dispute with a former shareholder
- Represented a special board committee investigating shareholder claims of wrongdoing against the company’s senior management
Education
Nate earned his law degree from Marquette University Law School (J.D., cum laude, 2013), and his bachelor’s degree in philosophy from The American University (B.A., cum laude, 2008).
Community Engagement
Nate has donated hundreds of hours of pro bono representation to indigent community members in litigation, and actively serves on the boards of several local nonprofits.
Admissions
Nate is admitted to practice law in Wisconsin.

Nate Christensen
Business Law Counsel, Foley & Lardner LLP
Nate Christensen is a business attorney and former general counsel who understands his client’s needs from both legal and business perspectives. Nate is based in the Dallas office, where he is a member of the firm’s Transactions Practice Group and Family Offices Team, with a focus on private equity and mergers and acquisitions.
Nate’s wide-ranging practice focuses on business transactions and general corporate representations for public companies, private equity sponsors and their portfolio companies, private/family-owned companies, private investors, and founders. Nate has deep experience in acquisitions and divestitures, structuring partnerships and joint ventures, equity and debt financings, direct investing, and complex commercial transactions. Nate’s broad industry experience includes energy/power, infrastructure, real estate, media, professional sports, transportation, and financial services.
Nate also serves as outside general counsel for private equity sponsors and their portfolio companies, private companies, and family offices. He guides clients on a full range of strategic, transactional, and operational matters. By partnering with his colleagues, Nate “quarterbacks” a variety of engagements, including litigation, tax, labor and employment, intellectual property, trusts and estates, insurance, and regulatory.
Nate joined the firm after a decade of private company and family office experience and eight years practicing at top-tier law firms. Most recently, he led transactions and managed legal affairs for HN Capital Partners LLC, an opportunistic private investment manager and real estate sponsor, as its managing director and general counsel. Nate continues to support HN Capital in an outside general counsel capacity. Prior to HN Capital, he served as senior vice president and general counsel at Hunt Consolidated, Inc., with enterprise-wide responsibilities, including mergers and acquisitions, direct investing, strategic initiatives, corporate governance, and community engagement programs. Before going in-house, Nate practiced at international law firms, focusing on private equity, mergers and acquisitions, and capital markets.

David Shaw
Publishing Director, Family Business Magazine
David Shaw is the publishing director of Family Business Magazine and its sister publication, Directors & Boards. With more than 30 years of experience in business-to-business and consumer media markets, he has served as an editor, publisher, publishing director, group publisher and group vice president of a variety of publications, trade shows, conferences and websites.
Prior to founding GRID Media, David served as senior vice president for Phillips Business Information Inc., where he oversaw nearly 100 discrete media properties, and helped build the business from $35 million to more than $100 million in annual revenues. He is a frequent author and speaker on issues related to business-to-business media, multi-generational family businesses and private and public company governance. He is married, with two grown children, one serving in the Navy and the other in law school.
Benefits
• No cost to attend
• Opportunity for questions and feedback
• Unbiased third-party family business education
• All participants can receive a copy of the webinar materials after the event, upon request
• All participants receive Family Business Magazine weekly newsletter, with news, tips and trends that impact your family business. You may, of course, opt out at any time.
• 60 minutes -- maximum value for time