The Legal 500

Within Financial services, tier 6

PricewaterhouseCoopers Legal LLP advised Jersey Finance in relation to AIFMD’s impact for fund management businesses based on the island. Laura Cox heads the team. James Greig advises on funds’ regulatory issues.

Within M&A: smaller deals up to £50m, PricewaterhouseCoopers Legal LLP is a third tier firm,

Alistair Hogarth’s team at PricewaterhouseCoopers Legal LLP noted an uptick in mandates relating to CGT planning. It acts for a good number of management teams on transactions in the sub-£50m category.

Within Tax litigation, PricewaterhouseCoopers Legal LLP is a second tier firm,

The team at PricewaterhouseCoopers Legal LLP has grown substantially in recent years, and benefits from the firm’s close relationship with its sister accounting firm. It has strong capabilities in GLOs and contentious indirect tax matters, and recently acted for a group of claimants in an SDRT GLO brought to recover funds allegedly paid in breach of EU law. It also acted for Prudential in a significant case over the issue of adviser privilege. Mark Whitehouse and Nick Skerrett are names to note.

Within Employment, tier 7

PriceWaterhouseCoopers Legal LLP has strength in employee rewards and pensions, and has advised a major global bank on international incentive regulation.

Within Immigration, PricewaterhouseCoopers Legal LLP is a first tier firm,

PricewaterhouseCoopers Legal LLP is an immigration powerhouse; it added some 22 members to its team in 2010, and is now 55 strong, and won major clients to add to an already bursting roster of global names in the oil and gas, finance and corporate sectors. The ‘outstanding’ team ‘always strives for the right answer’, and attracts praise for its international connections and commercial and political understanding; clients are particularly impressed by ‘wholly respected expert’ Julia Onslow-Cole, who is ‘extremely well networked in the industry’; Anjali Greenwell; and Lindsey Barras, who is ‘extremely knowledgeable and provides excellent client service’.

Within Overview,

The coalition government’s policy towards immigration led to a bewildering number of rapid changes to Tier 1 and Tier 2 immigration categories, throwing firms such as Bates Wells & Braithwaite London LLP, CMS Cameron McKenna LLP, PricewaterhouseCoopers Legal LLP and Fragomen LLP into frantic lobbying and a whirlwind of updating and appeals.

Within Commercial property, tier 6

PricewaterhouseCoopers Legal LLP’s property team works with investment fund and tax colleagues to advise on acquisitions and disposals by real estate funds, and to structure investments. It advised Wainbridge Global Opportunity Fund on a £31m purchase. Simon Hardwick is ‘pragmatic, but hard as nails if the need arises’, and Tim Hart provides ‘excellent all-round service’.

Within Intellectual property, tier 5

PriceWaterhouseCoopers Legal LLP’s Latika Sharma is ‘adept at boiling down complex situations to the fundamental issues’. Clients include Northern & Shell, and Taylor Wimpey.