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  • March 8, 2013 |

    Simpson Thacher names long-serving corporate partner as new leader

    Simpson Thacher & Bartlett has appointed veteran corporate partner William Dougherty its new leader, replacing Philip Ruegger as chair of the firm's executive committee. New York-based Dougherty, who made partner at the firm in 1995, was first elected to the executive committee in 2008, and acted as co-administrative partner between 2009 and 2012. He also spent five years on the new partners committee, subsequently serving as chair.

    1 minute read

  • March 7, 2013 |

    DLA and SJ Berwin lead on British Land's Ealing shopping centre purchase

    DLA Piper and SJ Berwin have played lead roles on a deal that has seen British Land acquire a portfolio of London properties from Dutch property investment company Wereldhave for £177.5m. The sale included the £142.5m purchase of the 300,000 sq ft Ealing Broadway Shopping Centre, which houses high street retail brands such as Boots, Marks & Spencer and River Island.

    1 minute read

  • February 21, 2013 |

    As a wave of US mega-mergers boosts M&A hopes, will they inspire confidence in Europe?

    Three weeks into February, a spate of mega-mergers in the US – capped by Warren Buffett's $28bn (£18bn) acquisition of food giant Heinz – has bolstered hopes of resurgence in the regional M&A markets. Figures from mergermarket for the 2012 calendar year show that with a total value of $825.4bn (£535bn), 2012 was the best-performing year for US M&A activity since 2007. And February has raised aspirations for similar performance in 2013, with the month seeing more than $103bn (£66.7bn) in activity across five deals alone.

    1 minute read

  • February 14, 2013 |

    Nabarro and Eversheds take UK roles on $4bn care home acquisition

    UK pair act as US Health Care REIT purchases Sunrise Senior Living

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  • February 12, 2013 |

    CC, DLA and Skadden take roles on biggest IPO since Facebook

    Clifford Chance (CC), Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom and DLA Piper are among a number of law firms to have advised on the initial public offering (IPO) of Pfizer's former animal health business Zoetis, in the largest IPO by a US company since Facebook. The listing, which went ahead on the New York Stock Exchange at the start of February, is said to have raised $2.2bn (£1.4bn), valuing the company at around $13bn (£8.3bn). Pfizer will retain an 80% ownership of Zoetis.

    1 minute read

  • February 5, 2013 |

    Hogan Lovells, Weil and Debevoise among legal line-up on $24.4bn Dell LBO

    Debevoise & Plimpton, Hogan Lovells and Weil Gotshal & Manges are among a line-up of top law firms to have advised on the $24.4bn (£15.5bn) buyout of computer manufacturer Dell, in the largest leveraged buyout (LBO) since the financial crisis. Founder Michael Dell is buying back the PC group, together with private equity group Silver Lake, offering stockholders $13.65 (£8.69) in cash per share.

    1 minute read

  • February 4, 2013 |

    Slaughters, Simpson Thacher among firms on $398m Chinalco HK listing

    Slaughter and May, Paul Hastings and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett are among a raft of firms to have advised on the $398m (£253m) Hong Kong initial public offering of Chinalco Mining Corporation International. The company, a subsidiary of Chinalco, China's biggest producer of aluminium, is raising cash to help fund a copper mining project in Peru.

    1 minute read

  • January 31, 2013 |

    Down but not out – global firms still eye Japan success despite a tidal wave of economic strife

    When the Japanese Government allowed foreign law firms to open offices in the country in 1987 to provide international advice, UK and US advisers started piling onto the bustling streets of Tokyo, then lured by the presence of the world's biggest banks and insurance companies as well as its booming technology and automobile industries.

    1 minute read

  • January 23, 2013 |

    Reed Smith enters coveted Houston market with local office launch

    Reed Smith has opened an office in Houston, handing it direct access to the highly prized Texan energy market. The firm said no formal appointments had so far been made, and declined to offer an official projection for growth in the coming year, but a spokesperson said it was expecting to "expand aggressively".

    1 minute read

  • January 17, 2013 |

    Libor's long tail – lawyers jostle as bank scandals spread through the market

    The new year may be a time to start afresh, but the Libor scandal that dominated business headlines in the second half of 2012 is – for advisers – showing no signs of abating. At Clifford Chance (CC), the news that its client Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is in the final stages of a settlement with US and UK regulators over its alleged Libor role means the firm's regulatory lawyers will have had a busy start to 2013.

    1 minute read