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Dickson Minto WS fields a ‘top-notch’ team of corporate finance experts, and remains pre-eminent in the transactional market. In 2010, it advised F&C Commercial Property Trust on its £1.6bn merger with UK Commercial Property Trust. The group is ‘thorough, practical, and therefore able to successfully navigate any snags that arise over the course of a deal’. Bruce Minto heads the team, which includes Douglas Armstrong, Andrew Todd, Kevan McDonald and commercial property specialist Ewan Gilchrist.

Dundas & Wilson CS LLP’s broad corporate and commercial team provides ‘good, sound commercial advice’, and is a significant presence in the market. It advised RBS on all aspects of the unwinding of its joint ventures with Aviva, including the sale by RBS of its 50% stake in a life insurance joint venture, and attracted new clients including AEGON and Caird Capital. Practice head Douglas Crawford, Graeme Bruce, Michael Polson and David Hardie are recommended. Graham Sibbald retired in 2010.

Kenneth Shand was appointed to head Maclay Murray & Spens LLP’s corporate practice following former practice head Alastair Wyper’s departure to establish his own Aberdeen-based practice (Blackwood Partners LLP). The practice remains well respected for its ‘deep understanding of business and industry’. In 2010, it acted on standout transactions such as Aberdeen Asset Management’s acquisition of RBS Asset Management’s fund management assets and contracts. Brian Moore ‘never complicates things and provides outstanding industry knowledge’.

McGrigors LLP’s strong oil and gas capability ensures that it attracts upper-end deal mandates, and in 2010 the team acted on 35 transactions with a combined value exceeding £2.1bn, including acting for the vendors on the £600m disposal of Production Services Network (PSN) Limited to John Wood Group plc. Practice head and renewable energy expert Barry McCaig and Alan Diamond are recommended.

Shepherd and Wedderburn’s corporate practice worked on £7.9bn-worth of completed transactions in 2010, in line with the firm’s reputation as being ‘up there with the best’. Highlights included acting as principal adviser to FTSE 100 company Cairn Energy on the £5.65bn sale of 51% of its Indian subsidiary to Vedanta Resources. It also has a growing funds capability, and recently advised Aberdeen Latin American Income Fund Limited on its LSE listing. Danny Lee is ‘energetic and bright’, and Stephen Trombala is ‘dedicated and responsive’.

Julian Voge heads Brodies LLP’s corporate/commercial practice, which expanded significantly in 2010, adding Catherine Feechan and former corporate head David Allan from Biggart Baillie LLP to its Glasgow team, and also hiring Will McIntosh, who joined the Edinburgh office from Lindsays. Demonstrating its cross-border capability, it advised Hong Kong-based Shanghai Huanuan Boiler Vessel Corporation on the purchase of Cochran Group. New clients include Maven Capital Partners and GKN plc.

Burness LLP’s clients recommend practice head Peter Lawson for his ‘clarity of advice, commercial acumen and first-class service to clients’. Recent highlights include advising BlueGem LP on its £42m public takeover of Liberty plc. Jonathan Heaney, Mark Ellis and Grant Stevenson are also recommended. The firm recruited Tony Byrne from Dickson Minto WS, and promoted the ‘always well-prepared’ Walter Clark to partner.

DLA Piper Scotland LLP’s corporate clients consider there to be ‘no better firm for the UK market’. The Scottish corporate group completed some 50 transactions in 2010, with an aggregate value over $10bn, including advising Capita Group on its acquisition of NB Real Estate Group. Managing partner Simon Rae heads the practice, and is supported by Paul Pignatelli and Neil Burgess. Keith Dinsmore recently left to join local legal services company Vialex.

MacRoberts LLP’s corporate team is ‘very professional, responds in a quick and pointed manner, and always asks the right questions’. It is a frequent presence on high-value transactions, increasingly on those with a cross-border element; recent work includes advising the shareholders of BCW Group on its sale to Norway-based Gothia Financial Group. The ‘very bright, experienced’ Alan Kelly heads the team, which ‘makes others of a similar size or larger look expensive and incompetent’. Robert Burns is ‘fantastic at putting complex legal jargon into layman’s terms’.

The team at Tods Murray LLP provides a level of service that clients consider ‘exceptional’, and has ‘an ability to meet deadlines with an unexpectedly cheerful attitude, and a level of expertise that is respected by its counterparts in the negotiation process’. It completed 35 transactions in 2010, including restructuring a financial services LLP. Malcolm Holmes leads the team, and is supported by Granger Brash and the ‘detail-oriented and focused’ Stephen Chan. Glasgow-based Jack Gardiner has ‘a clear view on legal matters’.

Anderson Strathern’s corporate team ‘consistently delivers good response times, and exhibits a good understanding of broad commercial issues’. Bruce Farquhar is recommended along with practice head Simon Brown.

Biggart Baillie LLP advised ScottishPower on selling its industrial and commercial gas business to Total Gas & Power. Wayne Lawrence heads the practice.

Andrew Ley’s corporate team at HBJ Gateley has developed a strong practice in the high-growth start-up and entrepreneurs market, with 2010 seeing it gain new instructions from Scottish Resources and Sunseeker International.

The ‘highly professional’ Donald Munro heads Harper Macleod LLP’s team, which continues to grow in stature in the family-owned business sector, and is valued for its ‘strong understanding of co-operative and employee ownership models’, with Christopher Kerr ‘one of a small handful of lawyers with deep expertise in this area’.

Lindsays enters the rankings this year. David Wood heads the team, which was strengthened by the addition of former Brodies LLP corporate partner Jamie Millar in the Glasgow office, and is noted for its ‘fast response times and good, appropriate and useable advice’.

McClure Naismith LLP’s corporate team is ‘excellent value for money’. Practice head George Frier and his team advise clients such as Scottish Sea Farms and Babcock Rail.

Morton Fraser’s ‘professional yet approachable’ corporate team advised Begbies Traynor, as administrators of video game company Realtime Worlds, on the sale of assets arising from its insolvency. Adrian Bell heads the team, and Austin Flynn exhibits ‘great knowledge and professionalism’.

Semple Fraser LLP’s ‘major strengths are its coherent strategic thinking and fantastic response times’. Corporate head Bill Fowler has a particular focus on renewable energy, and Scott Kerr is an ‘all-round great performer’.

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Legal Developments in the UK

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  • Immigration update May 2012

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Press Releases in the UK

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