Kester K. So

A member of the Firm resident in the Lansing office, Kester So focuses his practice on public finance and utility law.  Kester serves as bond counsel and underwriter’s counsel on a variety of bond issues involving State of Michigan level issuers, including  State offices and university and community college facilities, city, county, village, and township financings, including local building authorities, general obligation, tax increment, and utility revenue bonds, as well as health care financings.  He has been involved in state trunk line bonds, the renovation of the State Capitol, and the construction of Heritage Hall, county jails and justice centers, airports, new hospitals and medical centers, and power plants located throughout the State and in Ohio.

• Bond counsel to the State of Michigan for various general obligation bonds and cash flow borrowings.
• Bond counsel to the Michigan Finance Authority financing tobacco securitizations, unemployment compensation, state revolving fund, school bond loan fund and local government loan program, among others.
• Bond counsel to the Michigan State Building Authority financing state office and university and community college facilities; developed the first commercial paper program in the State.
• Bond counsel to Michigan Public Power Agency, various municipal electric utilities and independent power producers; financing large electric generating stations, transmission and associated facilities.
• General counsel to Michigan Public Power Agency and Michigan Municipal Electric Association; negotiation of wind, solar and landfill gas PPAs and EEI agreements.
• Bond counsel to McLaren Obligated Group and bond counsel or underwriter’s counsel to other health care organizations; health care facility financings and refundings.
• Bond counsel to Michigan Strategic Fund involving cogeneration and solid waste financings.
• Bond counsel to the MFA for a number of financings involving the Detroit bankruptcy and served, together with other firm attorneys, as special assistant attorneys general working with the Office of Attorney General, the State Treasurer and the Governor representing the State of Michigan in the Detroit bankruptcy.
• Underwriter’s counsel to Citi, Goldman Sachs & Co., J.P. Morgan Securities Inc., BofA Securities, and Siebert Williams Shank & Co., LLC and other national and regional underwriters.
• Argued before the Supreme Court in favor of the constitutionality of new TIFA legislation.
• Amicus curiae briefs in appellate courts on financing issues.
• Counsel to cogeneration clients in one of the largest consolidated cases before the Michigan Public Service Commission.