An Alvarez Arrieta & Diaz-Silveira team closed an $875 million deal — the biggest transaction in dollar value this year for the Miami law firm, according to one of the attorneys who worked on the deal.

Alvarez Arrieta attorneys represented Dometic Group AB, a Solna, Sweden-based maker and seller of products for mobile living, such as vehicle parts, food and hygiene items, in its purchase of Litchfield, Illinois-based recreational boat parts supplier SeaStar Solutions from an affiliate of New York-based private equity company American Securities LLC.

Alvarez Arrieta partners Colleen Grady and Albert Diaz-Silveira negotiated the purchase, and partner Lauren Hunt and associate Paula Buzzi worked on the real estate aspect.

Washington-based law firm Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer represented the seller in the deal that closed Dec. 15.

“Any other transaction of this type is only going to be big (law) firms,” said Grady, who managed the transaction. But “we were able to accomplish this transaction perfectly for our client even though we are a boutique firm.”

Alvarez Arrieta represented Dometic in the past on smaller transactions, she said. When Dometic asked the law firm to work on this deal, Grady said she had to explain that counsel with different specialties from other law firms would have to be hired to complement the Miami firm's work.

Dometic still wanted to hire the boutique firm, she said.

“They truly buy into the idea that they hire lawyers and not law firms,” Grady said.

The specialized counsel she included in the team was Danziger & Markhoff partner Mark Hamilton, Seward & Kissel partner Nick Katsanos and Lawson Lundell associate Andrew Robertson.

“I assembled this team much like you would in a big law firm,” Grady said.

But instead of working with partners down the hall, she assembled the more far-flung legal team.

SeaStar Solutions was sold in an auction but, unlike a typical auction where one bidder is picked and gets exclusivity after the first round, several bidders continued into a second round, Grady said.

This increases competition, a beneficial process for the seller but an intense one for the buyer, she added.

“Finally in November … our client was chosen as the potential bidder,” Grady said.

Dometic paid in cash and committed bank facilities.

For Dometic, this was an important acquisition because it allows the company to grow its footprint in the U.S. and diversify into the marine industry, she said.

Dometic has U.S. offices and sells its products globally. It makes and sells products for RVs and trucks and for marine and camping recreation. Products include air conditioners, patio rooms and tents, water heaters and portable refrigerators, according to its website.

SeaStar Solutions has offices throughout the U.S. and Canada, according to Grady.

Its products include electronic and hydraulic power steering, engine and drive parts, controls and cables, according to its website.

Aside from the high dollar value of the deal, working for Dometic was hectic on a different front. It required creative coordination because the companies are in vastly different time zones.

Alvarez Arrieta is in Miami, Dometic is in Sweden, and some SeaStar Solutions representatives are in British Columbia.

“You have the time difference, and we are doing late-night calls between Sweden and Vancouver. It was a very exciting process.”