The Legal 500

Within Arbitration Other recommended firms

Within Asset finance and structured finance, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP is a second tier firm,

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer provides ‘great service, 24/7 assistance, and advice that is always to the point’. The practice advised Deutsche Bank on restructuring Dutch RMBS Hermes XII, and also advised the arrangers on a €500m Dutch RMBS under ABN AMRO’s Dolphin Master issuance programme. Thijs Flokstra focuses on structured finance, and is recommended along with senior associate Mandeep Lotay.

Within Banking and finance, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP is a first tier firm,

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer provides ‘a more dedicated, hands-on approach than many others’, and acted for lenders on financings to blue-chip clients, including advising ING and Rabobank on a €405m PIK loan to Van Oord and Morgan Stanley Real Estate relating to a multijurisdictional commercial property portfolio. Practice head Thijs Flokstra and senior associate Wouter Jongen are ‘highly skilled, quality lawyers who are able to think out of the box and come up with pragmatic, appropriate and outstanding legal advice’.

Within Capital markets, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP is a second tier firm,

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s Robert ten Have leads on equity transactions: he advised RBS as lead manager on a $100m rights issue by shipping company Dockwise and advised various Dutch issuers on pending IPOs. Thijs Flokstra leads the team on debt issues, including recently advising ABN AMRO on its $25bn MTN programme targeting the US private placement market.

Within Commercial litigation , Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP is a second tier firm,

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer is highly regarded for its industry knowledge and ability to ‘distil the main issues and provide advice very quickly’ in complex disputes. ‘Impressive in his negotiation skills’, Hub Harmeling represented the Dutch state in a dispute over a cross-border transport joint venture. Jan Willem van der Staay recently acted for Essent in its litigation against Delta regarding the proposed acquisition of Borssele nuclear power plant.

Within Corporate and M&A, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP is a second tier firm,

‘High level and high quality’, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer provides ‘great execution and gets things solved’ on complex corporate transactions. It advised Prysmian on its public bid for Draka to form the world’s biggest cable supplier and EQT Infrastructure on a majority stake in Argos Terminals. Key figures in the team are practice head Dirk-Jan Smit, Jan Willem van der Staay, Richard Norbruis, as well as Alexander Doorman, ‘a young but rising star – good for complex transactions’, and Shawn der Kinderen, who is ‘an all-round lawyer, and customer-oriented. He always finds a solution – good for deadlock situations’.

Within EU and competition , Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP is a first tier firm,

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s ‘strong team displays industry knowledge and offers appropriate advice’. It advises ABN AMRO and ING on state aid matters, acted for Van Drie Holding on clearance for its Alpuro Group acquisition, and represented Shell and ThyssenKrupp in cartel fine appeals. The practice is led by managing partner Winfred Knibbeler and Onno Brouwer, who splits his time between Amsterdam and Brussels. Paul Kreijger joined Linklaters.

Within Employment , Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP is a third tier firm,

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s employment practice is led by Brechje Nollen. It advised on employment aspects of Prysmian’s winning bid for Draka Holding and Sara Lee’s divestment of its shoe care business.

Within Energy , Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP is a first tier firm,

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s energy and natural resources group is led by Winfred Knibbeler, with other key lawyers including Onno Brouwer and Jan Willem van der Staay. It advised Siemens and Vopak on transactions and acted for Essent on post-merger integration. Other clients include Shell, Enexis, Total and Statnett, and the practice also has a focus on renewables, and is representing RWE in certain disputes. Counsel Paul Kreijger joined Linklaters in June 2011.

Within Information technology , Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP is a third tier firm,

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer advised Sara Lee on outsourcing agreements and a cross-office team acted for BE Semiconductors on data protection issues. Counsel Wieke van Angeren heads the practice.

Within Intellectual property , Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP is a second tier firm,

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer is noted for its expertise in co-ordinating cross-border IP disputes. It recently represented Roche and Novartis in patent litigation, and has also advised Brown Forman on trade mark protection of the Jack Daniel’s brand. IP litigator Peter Hendrick has a longstanding reputation, and Rutger Kleemans is ‘always on the ball and does not leave a stone unturned’.

Within Media and entertainment, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP is a second tier firm,

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer advises on transactional and regulatory matters for clients in publishing, TV and radio broadcasting and communications. Richard Norbruis heads the practice, which advised RTL Group on the sale and transfer of radio stations to Talpa Media in exchange for a share interest in RTL Nederland. It also represented Ziggo in proceedings against competitor Tele2 regarding an advertising campaign for its analogue service.

Within Private equity , Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP is a third tier firm,

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s team is led by Shawn der Kinderen and now includes eight partners, following the promotion of Alexander Doorman. It has been representing bidders on various potential acquisitions and advised One Equity Partners on acquiring Smartrac.

Within Project finance and PFI, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP is a third tier firm,

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer applies a ‘no-nonsense, efficient and low-key approach’ to advising lenders and borrowers on project finance mandates. Highlights included advising Vopak on its oil terminal project and the lenders to a consortium on its RegioTram project bid. Practice head Thijs Flokstra and senior associate Wouter Jongen are ‘very experienced and solutions-oriented’.

Within Restructuring and insolvency Other recommended firms

Within Tax, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP is a third tier firm,

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s tax team, led by Machiel Lambooij, advises on high-value, cross-border transactions, including Prysmian’s public bid for Draka. Eelco van der Stok focuses on financial restructuring for clients including Rabobank and Providence Equity Partners.

Within Telecoms, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP is a third tier firm,

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s Winfred Knibbeler is recommended for regulatory advice. The practice represented Ziggo in appeals against OPTA regarding market analysis decisions and the obligation to resell analogue television signals. Dutch association of cable operators NLKabel is another key client.