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The high yield market has continued to see a boom in activity, with a number of new bond issues continuing through 2010 and into the early part of 2011. UK and US firms have responded by bulking up their practices, resulting in a number of changes to teams.

Latham & Watkins LLP continues to reign supreme in the London market, with a four-partner team ‘head and shoulders above the rest’. It acted for CVC Capital Partners on the offering of senior secured notes and senior notes to help fund the company’s CHF3.3bn acquisition of Sunrise Communications; and also advised a consortium of banks on the €1.2bn senior subordinated notes offered by Netherlands cable operator Ziggo. Acting for both the underwriter and issuer, the group counts Morgan Stanley, Deutsche Bank, MTS and ConvaTec among its clients. Richard Trobman – the ‘godfather of European high yield’ – remains a leading player in the market, and Brett Cassidy and Tracy Edmonson are ‘exceptionally bright and hardworking’. Scott Colwell was recently promoted to partner.

Cahill Gordon & Reindel’s relatively small team, under Jim Robinson, maintains its position as a ‘clear market leader’. Predominantly acting for the banks, the team’s recent work includes acting for Matalan Finance on its £250m offering of senior secured notes to help the company refinance its debt; and for Citi as sole book runner on the offering of €200m senior notes by Ardagh Packaging Finance. Anthony Tama transferred from the US to bulk up the firm’s London practice.

Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP has a team of ‘excellent lawyers with good experience’, and is noted as having had ‘a very strong year’, landing roles on a raft of new bond issues including acting for Deutsche Bank, BNP Paribas, UBS, UniCredit and Société Générale as underwriters on CVC Capital Partners’ takeover of Sunrise Communication. London managing partner Philip Boeckman is a leading figure in the London market.

Despite losing Ward McKimm to Kirkland & Ellis International LLP, Shearman & Sterling LLP is recognised for its ‘amazing track record’ in the market. Jacques McChesney remains a leading figure, and Apostolos Gkoutzinis has been promoted to partner. Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Credit Suisse, Advent International, and Oxea Finance & Cy are among the clients of the team, which recently represented furniture group DFS Furniture Holdings on its £240m offering of senior secured notes.

Nicholas Shaw at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP is ‘one of the best practitioners’ in the London market. He and London managing partner Gregory Conway led a team advising JP Morgan and a consortium of banks as initial purchasers of €170m senior secured notes offered by CET 21. The firm acts for institutions such as Goldman Sachs, KKR and Deutsche Bank, and also for issuers. Alvaro Membrillera was promoted to partner.

White & Case LLP’s team is well regarded in the market, but has seen a spate of recent departures. Practice head Rob Mathews acted for Yüksel Insaat on its offering of $200m in senior notes, reportedly the first-ever high yield bond offering in Turkey.

Allen & Overy LLP continued to beef up its high yield offering with the addition of Jacob Minas from Cahill Gordon & Reindel in New York. He joined the firm’s London office in late 2010, and works with practice head Kevin Muzilla. The firm is pushing into bank-side instructions, and recently advised Goldman Sachs and Citi on the issue of €500m in senior notes by Alcatel Lucent.

Clifford Chance has a predominantly issuer-side practice, and in 2010 advised Spain’s ONO on its offering of €700m in senior secured notes. Michael Dakin has returned to the practice, bringing the number of partners in the team to four.

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP’s team grew with the hire of Gil Strauss and Simone Bono from Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP in London and New York, respectively. Work highlights included advising Deutsche Bank and Goldman Sachs on the €202m high yield bond issue by Kuka.

Mark Hageman joined Linklaters LLP from Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP in September 2010, and now co-leads the practice with Alexander Naidenov. The firm acted for the Hertz Corporation and Hertz Holdings Netherlands on the issuance of €400m senior secured notes to help the rental company refinance its debt.

With a growing presence in the market, Ropes & Gray LLP’s team in London continued to expand with the transfer of Jane Rogers from the firm’s Boston office. The firm landed a plum role advising UPCB Finance Limited in connection with its issuance of €500m senior secured notes, and Liberty Global is a major client.

Weil, Gotshal & Manges has been actively rebuilding its London high yield practice after losing Peter Schwartz to Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP; it hired Rob Ferguson from Shearman & Sterling LLP in March 2011, and David Meredith has transferred from Hong Kong.

Kirkland & Ellis International LLP looks set to become a significant player in the London high yield market; it hired Ward McKimm from Shearman & Sterling LLP in April 2011, and William Burke has transferred from the Chicago office.

Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP recently hired Peter Schwartz from Weil, Gotshal & Manges, who is ‘excellent, with strong high yield capabilities’, and also Tim Peterson from Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson (London) LLP.

Sidley Austin LLP’s team now has three partners, following Stephen Roith’s move from Clifford Chance in 2010. Bart Capeci is also recommended.

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