Norway > Insolvency and corporate recovery > Law firm and leading lawyer rankings

With ‘one of the top teams in the country’, Advokatfirmaet BAHR AS sits ‘head and shoulders above the rest’ with ‘a pragmatic and commercial team, which excels across the board’. The practice, led by ‘market leader’ Richard Sjøqvist, acts on major insolvencies and international restructurings for bondholders, investment banks and private equity firms; Nordea Bank, Pareto Securities and Nordic Trustee are examples. Other practitioners include Karstein Espelid and Peter Bugge Hjorth.

Bankruptcy work is the cornerstone of Kvale Advokatfirma DA’s ‘remarkable’ group, which is also highly regarded for its debt restructuring advice. Practice head Tom Hugo Ottesen is ‘firm and distinctly pragmatic’ and is recognised for his insolvency expertise. Clients also praise Stine Snertingdalen, who is acting as bankruptcy trustee for Atlantic Offshore and its subsidiaries.

Ro Sommernes Advokatfirma DA ‘provides genuine knowledge across all aspects in the area’ making it ‘a clear leader in the field’. Practice head Håvard Wiker is ‘a walking bankruptcy law book’, who ‘always adds a commercial touch’; Knut Ro acted as bankruptcy trustee for Northland Logistics and Eide Marine; and Erik Sandtrø is bankruptcy trustee for the estate of Thule Drilling.

Advokatfirmaet Schjødt AS’ ‘friendly and helpful’ department includes team leader Erling Ueland, who focuses on the oil and offshore sectors; the ‘experienced and confident’ Johan Henrik Nossum; Siv Sandvik, who has ‘proven herself to be extremely knowledgeable in the restructuring field’; and offshore expert Thomas Dale. Clients include Nordea Bank, Songa Offshore and Danske Bank.

The group at Selmer handles financial restructurings, bankruptcies and corporate recovery projects; highlights included acting for multiple financial institutions on the restructuring of Island Offshore and advising the banks involved with the financial restructuring of Boa Offshore. Tor Herdlevær leads the team, and Thomas Steen Brandi assists financially distressed businesses.

Advokatfirmaet Simonsen Vogt Wiig is considered ‘one of the go-to names for bankruptcy work and restructurings’; the group advised several bank syndicates on the restructuring of Island Offshore, and Egil Horstad was appointed administrator of Reef Subsea’s bankruptcy estate. Peter Aall Simonsen, Bjørn Åge Hamre and Nils Håkon Risberg lead the Oslo, Bergen and Trondheim teams respectively.

Advokatfirmaet Thommessen AS’ ‘top-quality’ department is led by the ‘highly commercial’ Jo Rodin; it handles financial restructurings, bankruptcies and insolvency litigation, and has ‘cornered the market in acting for financiers’. Rodin advised a bank syndicate led by DNB Bank on Havila Shipping’s restructuring. Other clients include Nordic Trustee and Swedbank. Halvor Mansåker is also a name to note.

The ‘commercially minded’ Ståle Gjengset and Leif Moltke-Hansen jointly lead Wiersholm’s ‘absolutely first-rate’ team, which is ‘a go-to provider’ for restructuring advice. The group acted for Archer on the restructuring of its credit facilities, and assisted Viking Supply Ships with its financial restructuring. Kaare Sverdrup also receives praise.

Led by restructuring specialist Kaare Christian Tapper, Wikborg Rein’s department advised on Farstad Shipping’s restructuring and acted for the lenders on the restructuring of Olympic Ship. DNB Bank, Nordea Bank, SpareBank1 and Solstad Offshore are also clients. Leif Petter Madsen is recommended for bankruptcies, and Marius Gisvold focuses on restructurings.

Arntzen de Besche’s ‘professional, thorough and experienced’ department counts practice head Joar Grimsbu and Stein Tonning (both based in Trondheim) as key names for bankruptcy work, and Atle Gabrielsen and Trond Kildal as restructuring practitioners. Clients include Swedbank, KPMG and Reinertsen.

Highlights for DLA Piper’s ‘highly professional, responsive and knowledgeable’ practice include Frode Finnøy advising IK Gruppen on its restructuring and acting as trustee for the bankruptcy estate of Byggkompaniet, and the ‘incredibly analytical’ Johan Ratvik assisting Zurich with bankruptcy-related liability claims. Egil Hatling, who has ‘well-developed business acumen’, leads the team.

‘Excellent negotiator’ Jon Skjørshammer heads SANDS’ ‘brilliant’ practice, which has expanded its focus on insolvency litigation and restructuring mandates alongside bankruptcy work. Skjørshammer advised RXT on Chapter 11 proceedings and Robert Jensen, who joined in 2017 from Selmer, assisted Swedbank with restructuring and insolvency issues.

Advokatfirmaet Grette DA focuses on financially distressed businesses; it recently advised Sparebanken Øst on Arken Eiendom’s bankruptcy and assisted Castor Energy with bankruptcy proceedings. Thomas Fjell is head of the team, which fields Jacob Bjønness-Jacobsen and Børge Grøttjord as key practitioners.

Advokatfirmaet Haavind AS fields ‘a team of dedicated lawyers with a flexible attitude that are easy to work with’. ‘Solution-oriented, hands-on and knowledgeable’ associate partner Ellen Schult Ulriksen leads the group. The team acts for banks, bondholders, creditors and distressed corporations; Santander, SpareBank 1 and Sandvik Norge are examples.

Operating from its Stavanger office, Kluge Advokatfirma AS’ team has expertise acting for financially distressed companies; the group advised Sønnichsen on its bankruptcy and assisted Simex with its restructuring attempts prior to bankruptcy. Per Kristian Ramsland leads the group, which also includes associate partner Hans Ingvald Stensholdt.

At Advokatfirma Ræder DA, insolvency head Anne Christine Wettre has ‘a great commercial approach and always achieves good results’. The group excels in the bankruptcy space with regular instructions from Oslo City Court. Erling Opdal is recommended for bankruptcy and restructuring mandates.