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Revolving doors: Four in three out for Squire as Ropes brings in private equity trio

Ropes & Gray London office

Ropes & Gray has taken further steps towards its goal of becoming the go-to private equity practice in the city with the addition of partners Dan Oates, Simon Saitowitz and Angela Becker in the London office.

The trio, all of whom have joined from Fried Frank, are the latest in a string of London recruits by the Boston-headquartered firm, which has seen a 25% increase in fee earners in the capital since last year. All three bring expertise in cross-border M&A and private equity transactions. Continue reading “Revolving doors: Four in three out for Squire as Ropes brings in private equity trio”

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Eversheds and Clifford Chance Moscow teams launch independent firms following Russia exodus

Moscow, Russia, Kremlin, Bolshoy Kamenny Bridge

Following on from the spate of Moscow office closures in March as a response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, international firms have started to set out their future plans for practices and teams.

Clifford Chance outlined plans for its Moscow team, having announced that it would begin an ‘orderly wind down’ of its business in Russia in March. Continue reading “Eversheds and Clifford Chance Moscow teams launch independent firms following Russia exodus”

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Sponsored foreword: What’s next for M&A?

The key question at the present time is ‘what’s next for M&A’? Ever since the financial crisis, the M&A market has been strong, driven by a favourable economic backdrop, a large pool of liquidity and fundamental structural dynamics being driven by digitalisation and more recently by the move towards net zero. This strength in activity has only ever been seriously held back by the pandemic, which was – at least for M&A – a relatively short lived affair. At no time in the last decade have we faced as many headwinds as we do now, but how will the M&A market adapt? Continue reading “Sponsored foreword: What’s next for M&A?”

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Sponsored briefing: The impact of ESG on M&A transactions

In recent years, environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues have become increasingly important to shareholders and boards, as the regulatory landscape has developed quickly in multiple jurisdictions, and the financial and reputational risks of non-compliance with ESG regulation and best practice have increased. Listed companies, large corporates, private equity funds and financial institutions are all now subject to increased ESG-related reporting and disclosure obligations, and are demanding greater transparency and standards from investee companies in ESG matters. ESG factors are also increasingly relevant to acquisition finance, with the growth of the sustainable finance market.
Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: The impact of ESG on M&A transactions”

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Clifford Chance makes up 17 City partners in largest promotion round since 2007

Jeroen Ouwehand

Clifford Chance (CC) has promoted 37 lawyers to the partnership including 17 in the City, making it the latest Magic Circle firm to announce increased partner rounds in 2022.

All of the Magic Circle firms saw a jump in partner promotions this year, including the typically conservative Slaughter and May, which made up eight lawyers, an increase from five in 2021. Meanwhile, Allen & Overy’s 39-strong promotion round globally – including 13 in London – marks a step up from 30 last year. Linklaters promoted 41, up from 35 in 2021 and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer minted 27 compared with 22 last year.

Continue reading “Clifford Chance makes up 17 City partners in largest promotion round since 2007”

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Marching on

‘People typically underestimate the innovative powers that are out there,’ reflects Rick van Aerssen, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s global managing partner. ‘The adaptability of society has been significant. The way that the different economies have weathered the storm from the pandemic has been north of what we would have anticipated two years ago. I personally think the same will hold true for any crisis.’ Continue reading “Marching on”

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Shining a light on the next generation of dealmakers

It’s no secret that the M&A markets have been busier than ever of the last 18 months. Here, UK Legal 500 editor Georgina Stanley asked some of those set to dominate the City deal market over the next ten years to take a short break from their negotiations to share their tips for success. All ten of the lawyers featured over the coming pages have demonstrated the client relationship and transactional skills required to secure their spots as Next Generation M&A partners in the UK Legal 500 2022. From the deals that have defined their careers, through to the importance of staying calm in a crisis and the growing significance of ESG considerations and legal tech, they offer their insight into the profession and its future.

Continue reading “Shining a light on the next generation of dealmakers”

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Deals Yearbook 2022: Sally Wokes, Slaughter and May – partner since 2015

Why did you decide to become an M&A lawyer? Was there anyone in particular who inspired you early on in your career?
I unexpectedly fell in love with it in my first seat at the firm. It was the boom before the bust of 2005, and I found the pace and energy of what was happening in the group a huge draw. Ancillary to that, I have to say Melissa Fogarty, who was my first supervisor, and who has now gone on to be the co-head of London corporate at Clifford Chance. Continue reading “Deals Yearbook 2022: Sally Wokes, Slaughter and May – partner since 2015”

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Deals Yearbook 2022: Murray Cox, Weil – partner since 2016

Why did you decide to become an M&A lawyer? Was there anyone in particular who inspired you early on in your career?
I did my training contract at a firm in South Africa where I had a lot of exposure early on in my career to different kinds of work. I saw then that doing M&A would involve meeting lots of interesting people and learning about different kinds of businesses. William Underhill at Slaughter and May is still a huge inspiration. Continue reading “Deals Yearbook 2022: Murray Cox, Weil – partner since 2016”

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Deals Yearbook 2022: Hyder Jumabhoy, White & Case – partner since 2019

What has been your deal highlight over the last 12 months and why?
2021 was a monumental year for White & Case’s EMEA financial services M&A practice, and for me personally. In 2021, our London M&A team advised on > $25bn of financial services M&A deals and I advised on my 65th financial services M&A matter. My highlights included representing The Co-operative Bank on its £3.2bn bank balance sheet re-calibration exercise and representing Nordic open banking platform provider Tink, on its €1.7bn sale to Visa. Continue reading “Deals Yearbook 2022: Hyder Jumabhoy, White & Case – partner since 2019”

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Deals Yearbook 2022: Claire Coppel, Allen & Overy – partner since 2020

Why did you decide to become an M&A lawyer? Was there anyone in particular who inspired you early on in your career?
I loved the buzz and fast pace of corporate finance and M&A on my vacation scheme and during my training contract. I was particularly inspired as a trainee and junior associate by the managing partners of the London M&A team at the time – Andrew Ballheimer and Richard Browne – and my supervisor in corporate – Richard Hough: they had a tangible sense of ambition to grow the profile of the A&O corporate team so that we would be mentioned in the same breath as our UK-based rivals and I wanted to be a part of that. Continue reading “Deals Yearbook 2022: Claire Coppel, Allen & Overy – partner since 2020”