The Legal 500

Within Banking and finance (including shipping finance), Arntzen de Besche is a second tier firm,

Arntzen de Besche provides ‘impeccable’ advice to banks such as Sparebanken Hedmark, Glitnir Banki and SpareBank 1 SR-Bank. The practice also handles a significant amount of capital markets matters including representing the Norwegian Energy Company on its NOK700m high-yield offering. Rune Haglund is a finance expert, and Atle Gabrielsen shows ‘very strong commercial sense’.

Within Corporate and M&A, Arntzen de Besche is a second tier firm,

Arntzen de Besche has built ‘a group of young, talented lawyers – so the bigger law firms shouldn’t get too comfortable’. Department head Trond Vernegg represented Panalpina Group on its acquisition of Grieg Logistic, and Per Dagslet advised Cooper Industries on buying Hernis Scan System from Vislink. Geir Evenshaug and Erlend Bakken are also recommended. Other clients include Veolia Transport, Rasmussengruppen and Opera Software.

Within Dispute resolution, Arntzen de Besche is a second tier firm,

Arntzen de Besche’s ‘very skilled litigator’ Lars Holo recently successfully represented Gjensidige Forsikring before the Supreme Court in an age discrimination dispute. Team head Kåre Moljord regularly handles accounting-related litigation including representing auditor Kjelstrup & Wiggen in a NOK50m malpractice action.

Within EU and competition, Arntzen de Besche is a first tier firm,

Arntzen de Besche adopts a ‘practical approach’ to merger control, state aid, public procurement and general EU law matters. The team continues to advise Nortura in a high-profile leniency case regarding its poultry joint venture with Jaerkylling. Practice head Stein Ove Solberg and senior associate Espen Bakken both ‘display a very high professional standard and provide a high degree of service’, and managing partner Thomas Nordby is also recommended.

Within Electricity, nuclear and renewable, Arntzen de Besche is a third tier firm,

Arntzen de Besche’s strong team handles transactional, regulatory and litigation matters in the electricity and renewables sectors for clients such as Enova, Gassnova and Statnett. Recent highlights include advising TrønderEnergi on the NOK750m sale of a 35% stake in grid company TrønderEnergi Nett to KLP. Dag Erlend Henriksen heads the team.

Within Employment, Arntzen de Besche is a first tier firm,

Headed by Tron Dalheim, Arntzen de Besche’s six-partner team ‘always delivers on time and has solid industry knowledge’. Key clients include Statoil, University of Oslo and SAS Group. Lars Holo has ‘excellent litigation skills’ and recently secured a favourable result for Gjensidige Forsikring before the Court of Appeal in a case regarding retirement age. Ingeborg Moen Borgerud is ‘particularly good at finding solutions’.

Within Intellectual property and TMT, Arntzen de Besche is a third tier firm,

Espen Sandvik is the new head of Arntzen de Besche’s technology and innovation group following his arrival from Petroleum Geo-Services. The firm excels at M&A in the TMT sector, as well as licensing and commercialisation of technology. Clients include Google and Research in Motion. Trondheim-based Tommy Dahlen is recommended.

Within Legal market overview,

Firms such as Arntzen de Besche, Advokatfirmaet Haavind AS, Simonsen Advokatfirma DA, Kluge Advokatfirma DA and Advokatfirmaet Steenstrup Stordrange DA are smaller, but provide services comparable to the larger firms in certain fields. Additionally, a number of boutique firms have developed leading reputations.

Within Oil and gas, Arntzen de Besche is a first tier firm,

‘One of the deepest and broadest practices in the country’, Arntzen de Besche handles the full spectrum of oil and gas transactional, regulatory and litigation work. It has deep private sector relationships, and is also regularly instructed by sovereign governments in Asia, Africa and Latin America. The ‘very sharp’ Christian Michelet has ‘excellent knowledge of the industry’, and Erlend Bakken has ‘excellent sector knowledge on E&P and seismic matters’. Thomas Nordby and Dag Erlend Henriksen are ‘very able and knowledgeable’.

Within Real estate and construction, Arntzen de Besche is a second tier firm,

The ‘outstanding and highly commercial’ Hans Henrik Kvaerne heads the practice at Arntzen de Besche, which is excellent for high-end real estate transactions. The team acts for many real estate funds, and advised NRP Asset Management on establishing a NOK250m property fund, and acted for Aberdeen Asset Management on the purchase of a major property. Talented litigator Fred Gade ‘radiates authority’. Thomas Øslebø has ‘in-depth real estate knowledge’, and the growing construction practice has been enhanced by Mathys Truyen’s arrival from the city solicitor’s office in Drammen.

Within Tax, tier 4

Arntzen de Besche is increasingly handling international tax mandates, particularly within the oil and gas sector.