Thomas Cook

• General counsel: Craig Stoehr.
• Team headcount: 25 lawyers.

Before former Latham & Watkins partner Craig Stoehr joined Thomas Cook as its first-ever GC in April 2013 from Eastgate Capital Group, the travel company had no centralised legal function and had issued three profit warnings after suffering the impact of the Icelandic ash cloud and unrest in the Arab world.

Having restructured the team and hired three more lawyers to look after plc-specific legal issues, Stoehr has helped to orchestrate a refinancing in excess of £1.6bn, including a £525m bridging loan; a high-yield bond placement; a £425m equity rights issue and a £691m bank refinancing.

Stoehr comments: ‘It was the first time Thomas Cook had done a high-yield bond issue and might be the largest ever done in the UK.’

Other corporate activity includes a major rebranding exercise and 15 disposals over the past 15 months, which will generate £150m by the end of this financial year, 15 months ahead of schedule.

Thomas Cook’s corporate governance has been similarly overhauled and streamlined, with clearer decision-making lines put in place for the business and legal team itself.

Members of Stoehr’s team singled out for praise include UK and Ireland head of legal Alice Marsden, who joined from Latham & Watkins at the start of 2014, and head of legal, airlines, Emma Langford.

Stoehr says: ‘We operate as one legal team versus separate teams in separate silos and the group centralisation affords us visibility in everything legal.’

Stoehr operates an informal panel but makes good use of secondees, with three sitting in the team at the time of going to press. Firms that have long worked with Thomas Cook include Shoosmiths for UK litigation and employment; Fieldfisher for travel regulation and health and safety mandates.

New relationships since Stoehr joined include Herbert Smith Freehills; Latham & Watkins; and Allen & Overy.