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  • January 30, 2014 |

    How Simpson Thacher and Paul Hastings brought home the bacon on $7.1bn Smithfield takeover

    The acquisition of American pork producer Smithfield Foods by Hong Kong-based meat manufacturer Shuanghui International Holdings came at a good time for Hong Kong's corporate lawyers. Last year's $7.1bn (£4.2bn) deal was the largest ever takeover of a US business by a Chinese company and was announced just as a host of law firms were focusing their energies on Chinese outbound investment. When it came to choosing their advisers, it was no surprise that both Shuanghui and Smithfield picked US firms with which they had long-term relationships. Wall Street firm Simpson Thacher & Bartlett was appointed lead counsel on the US side, having advised Smithfield since the turn of the century, while Paul Hastings was selected by Shuanghui, having assisted it on restructuring, offshore activities and other transactions since 2003.

    1 minute read

  • January 24, 2014 |

    Lateral thinking - why Slaughters has finally hired a partner after 125 years

    Two remarkable things happened this morning: England beat Australia in a game of cricket and Slaughter and May hired a partner from another firm. Given such seismic events, it would be little surprise to see a pig in a bowler hat take to the skies over the Royal Exchange this afternoon.

    1 minute read

  • January 24, 2014 |

    Slaughters makes first ever lateral partner hire to add US capability in Hong Kong

    Slaughter and May has made its first ever lateral partner hire in Asia with the addition of Morrison & Foerster US capital markets partner John Moore in Hong Kong. The magic circle firm, which rarely makes lateral hires, has brought in Moore as part of a strategy to provide US law counsel in the region.

    1 minute read

  • January 22, 2014 |

    Freshfields and Simpson Thacher take headline role as Guardian sells stake in Trader Media

    Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett have won roles on Guardian Media Group's (GMG's) sale of its 50.1% stake in Auto Trader owner Trader Media Group. The Guardian publisher has offloaded its remaining stake, worth around £600m, to private equity firm Apax. The disposal is subject to regulatory approval and final completion.

    1 minute read

  • January 20, 2014 |

    Sullivan and Simpson reprise roles on £3.5bn Anheuser-Busch reacquisition

    Sullivan & Cromwell (S&C) and Simpson Thacher have taken the lead roles on Anheuser-Busch InBev's $5.8bn (£3.5bn) reacquisition of Korea's Oriental Brewery from KKR and Affinity Equity Partners.

    1 minute read

  • January 14, 2014 |

    Vodafone-Verizon mega-deal fuels M&A hopes as Macfarlanes' international plans come good

    It was the moment when Macfarlanes' idiosyncratic international strategy paid off – and when Linklaters surprisingly lost out on a role on one of the biggest M&A deals of the decade. Vodafone's $130bn (£79bn) sale of its stake in Verizon – not only by far the biggest deal of the year but also the largest US-based corporate transaction since 2001 – was always likely to be a feeding frenzy for law firms. Accordingly, a number of the usual suspects landed roles on both sides of the Atlantic. Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz and Debevoise & Plimpton acted for Verizon in the US, while Simpson Thacher & Bartlett took the Vodafone mandate.

    1 minute read

  • January 13, 2014 |

    Cleary, Sidley act on Suntory's $16bn acquisition of Beam

    Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton is acting opposite Sidley Austin to advise Japanese drinks giant Suntory on its $16bn (£9.7bn) acquisition of US spirits maker Beam. Suntory announced this week it would acquire all of Beam's shares for $83.50 per share in cash, and assume all of the company's outstanding net debt.

    1 minute read

  • January 9, 2014 |

    Recovery in question as 2013 sees lowest UK M&A deal value for 12 years

    Despite the rise in mega-deals towards the tail end of 2013, last year yielded the lowest overall value for UK M&A activity since 2001.

    1 minute read

  • December 11, 2013 |

    A&O partners vote through hire of ex-Ashurst corporate head Lloyd

    Partners at Allen & Overy (A&O) have approved the hire of former Ashurst corporate head Stephen Lloyd. The vote, news of which was first revealed last week, was largely seen as a formality after the magic circle firm successfully courted the private equity star, despite interest from US outfits including Simpson Thacher & Bartlett.

    1 minute read

  • December 3, 2013 |

    A&O vote due on hire of ex-Ashurst corporate head Lloyd

    Former Ashurst global corporate head Stephen Lloyd is set to join Allen & Overy (A&O), in a major coup for the magic circle's transactional practice. Legal Week understands A&O partners are expected to vote later this week on Lloyd joining the partnership, with partners confident he will be elected.

    1 minute read