Deals And Transactions Legal News Coverage

International Edition

Kirkland lines up alongside Dewey and CC for top roles on €550m LBO

By a:1:{i:0;s:1:" ";} | January 21, 2009

Kirkland & Ellis has joined a raft of firms advising on the leveraged buyout (LBO) of Italian business information company Cerved by Bain Capital and Clessidra Capital worth around €550m (£509m). The deal, thought to be one of the largest LBOs agreed since Lehman Brothers' collapse, saw US outfit Kirkland taking the lead financing role for the acquirers, with London finance partner Neel Sachdev heading the team for Bain Capital and Clessidra. London corporate partners Jim Learner and Matthew Hurlock also advised.

2 minute read

International Edition

Linklaters and Slaughters lead on RBS' £1.6bn Bank of China shares sell-off

By a:1:{i:0;s:1:" ";} | January 21, 2009

Linklaters and Slaughter and May have won lead roles on Royal Bank of Scotland's (RBS's) £1.6bn sale of its stake in Bank of China. Linklaters has picked up the main role for regular client RBS, with London corporate partner Anne Drummond and Hong Kong corporate partner Betty Yap leading the team.Slaughters advised ABN Amro and Morgan Stanley on the transaction, fielding a team from its Asian practice led by Hong Kong partner Benita Yu. The transaction saw RBS launching an institutional placing of its shares, with ABN and Morgan Stanley acting as placing agents.

2 minute read

International Edition

Commentary: Looking back to 2008 says deal year will feel like 2003

By a:1:{i:0;s:1:" ";} | January 21, 2009

There is scant evidence of new year cheer for deal lawyers surveying the year ahead, even though figures from Legal Week's exclusive data provider Mergermarket illustrate that deal activity has fallen less than the business headlines of late would suggest.The broad picture for M&A in 2008 was clear: despite the credit squeeze paralysing activity from private equity bidders, overall M&A held up well in the first half of the year. This picture of resilience, however, did not survive the chaos unleashed by the collapse of Lehman Brothers. So while the total number of announced bids in Europe exceeded 1,500 in both the first and second quarter of 2008, by the fourth quarter, that number had dwindled to 786, according to Mergermarket. Overall that leaves 2008 roughly on par with a solid year like 2005. But expectations that the conditions we have seen in the fourth quarter will be repeated through the coming year suggests that M&A activity in 2009 in major regions will be in line with the deal drought of 2002 and 2003.

3 minute read

International Edition

Sullivan leads on Fiat-Chrysler tie-up talks

By a:1:{i:0;s:1:" ";} | January 21, 2009

Sullivan & Cromwell has taken a lead role on Fiat's merger talks with Chrysler, as the ailing auto industry continues to feel the effects of the economic downturn. The Sullivan team acting for Italian automaker Fiat is being led by Palo Alto-based partner Scott Miller. Miller has represented Fiat since Sergio Marchionne took over as Fiat's chief executive in 2004.Marchionne has a long-term relationship with Miller and Sullivan dating to previous ventures, including a series of mergers involving Swiss aluminium business Algroup, where Marchionne once served as CEO. Miller also advised Fiat when the company terminated its alliance with GM in 2005.

2 minute read

International Edition

A&O replaces Freshfields on new-look L&G panel

By a:1:{i:0;s:1:" ";} | January 19, 2009

Legal & General (L&G) has completed a review of its external legal advisers, with Allen & Overy replacing Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer on the new-look panel. The 19-firm roster, which will advise the insurer over the next three years, includes Berwin Leighton Paisner, which retained its place on the panel despite relationship partner Vinay Veneik's resignation from the firm in January 2008 after questions were raised over mistakes made on property transactions.

2 minute read

International Edition

Links, Slaughters lead on £1.6bn RBS sell-off

By a:1:{i:0;s:1:" ";} | January 15, 2009

Linklaters and Slaughter and May have won lead roles on Royal Bank of Scotland's (RBS's) £1.6bn sale of its stake in Bank of China.Linklaters has picked up the main role for regular client RBS on the transaction, with London corporate partner Anne Drummond and Hong Kong corporate partner Betty Yap leading the team for the firm.Slaughters advised ABN Amro and Morgan Stanley on the transaction, fielding a team from its Asian practice led by Hong Kong corporate partner Benita Yu.

2 minute read

International Edition

Dealmaker: Helen Burton

By a:1:{i:0;s:1:" ";} | January 14, 2009

Ashurst finance partner Helen Burton on role models, almost marrying colleagues and the honour of being asked to 'action' Dealmaker

4 minute read

International Edition

Commentary: Freshfields, Links ahead in race for restructuring roles

By Georgina Stanley | January 14, 2009

Perhaps it is unfair to say that anyone is enjoying the doom in the UK economy, but the City's restructuring partners are certainly putting a braver face on it than most as the high street casualties mount. As one partner says: "I'm at the absolute peak of my career - this is exciting." But despite the recent string of retail failures - brought to a head by quarterly rent bills and poor Christmas sales - much of the attention-grabbing work to date has been secured by a highly select handful of firms.

3 minute read

Legal Week

Commentary: Freshfields, Links ahead in race for restructuring roles

By a:1:{i:0;s:1:" ";} | January 14, 2009

Perhaps it is unfair to say that anyone is enjoying the doom in the UK economy, but the City's restructuring partners are certainly putting a braver face on it than most as the high street casualties mount. As one partner says: "I'm at the absolute peak of my career - this is exciting." But despite the recent string of retail failures - brought to a head by quarterly rent bills and poor Christmas sales - much of the attention-grabbing work to date has been secured by a highly select handful of firms.

9 minute read

International Edition

Herbert Smith joins insolvency rush with oil company mandate

By a:1:{i:0;s:1:" ";} | January 14, 2009

Herbert Smith has become the latest firm to benefit from the run of UK restructuring and insolvency mandates, winning a role on the collapse of London and Toronto-listed Oilexco. Finance head Jason Fox and restructuring partner Kevin Pullen are leading a five-partner team advising administrator Ernst & Young on the collapse, which sees Oilexco become the oil industry's first casualty of the crunch. McCarthy Tetrault is advising Oilexco, with Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer advising the banks involved in the deal. The administration is the latest in a stream of instructions for City firms in recent weeks, as well-known names ranging from Waterford Wedgwood to Zavvi have gone under.

3 minute read

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