The Legal 500

Within Banking and finance, tier 4

At Wistrand, practice head Monica Petersson and Ulf Forsman advised the European Investment Bank on the €400m loan to Saab Automobile. Tommy Grönberg assisted Deutsche Genossenschafts-Hypothekenbank with acquisition financing. The firm applied its restructuring expertise to various mandates related to the financial crisis.

Within Capital markets, tier 4

Debt capital markets specialist Monica Petersson at Wistrand advised Swedish issuers, notably Swedbank, Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson, Akademiska Hus and Landshypotek on bonds and notes issuesunder their respective EMTN and GMTN programmes. Niklas Larsson and Erik Hygrell advise on equity capital markets.

Within Construction, tier 4

Wistrand handles disputes for contractors, customers and consultants and represents municipalities and public bodies.

Within Corporate and commercial, Wistrand is a third tier firm,

Wistrand’s clients include Choice Hotels, Schibsted and Atea Sverige. Practice heads Robert Kullgren and Lars Hasp provide ‘prompt business and legal advice’. Christian Bergqvist leads a specialist fraud and forensics department. Magnus Forssman in Stockholm and Mattias Boqvist in Gothenburg were promoted to partner.

Within Dispute resolution, Wistrand is a second tier firm,

Wistrand’s ‘top-class’ litigation group offers ‘excellent value for money’. Led by Mårten Hulterström in Gothenburg and Jesper Grünbaum in Stockholm, who is commended for his ‘excellent legal knowledge and people skills’, it successfully represented Scania in a €4m arbitration. Lars-Olof Svensson and Andreas Rönnheden successfully defended Öhrlings PricewaterhouseCoopers in the long-running €140m Prosolvia dispute after a 101-day trial. Jörgen Eklund successfully represented DB Real Estate STJ 21 KB against Swedish State alcohol monopoly Systembolaget.

Within EU and competition, Wistrand is a third tier firm,

Olof Alffram at Wistrand represented Shell and Peab in cartel cases and Canal Plus in disputes regarding broadcasting rights to the national Swedish Football league. Ola Wiklund joined Gernandt & Danielsson Advokatbyrå.

Within Employment, Wistrand is a third tier firm,

Mats Hilmersson at Wistrand focuses on the electronics, telecoms and software sectors. Gunnar Blomberg in Stockholm and Hans Potila Strömsnes in Gothenburg provide ‘high-speed advice and industry specific expertise’.

Within Energy, Wistrand is a second tier firm,

At Wistrand, Rudolf Laurin represented Göteborg Energi in contract negotiations in relation to the GoBiGas project, while ‘responsive, good listener’ Kristina Forsbacka advised the Swedish Energy Agency. Other key clients include Triventus and Partille Energi.

Within Environment, Wistrand is a second tier firm,

At Wistrand, Gothenburg-based Rudolf Laurin’s team assisted Lunnekullen Vindkraft with permits for an on-shore wind farm, Jönköping Energi for a heat generation plant and Renova for a waste treatment facility. Volvo Cars is a major client.

Within IT and telecoms, tier 4

At Wistrand, Lars Davidsson and his team provide broad IT expertise including dispute resolution and transactional support. Peter Helle and Magnus Moström represent ePhone in Sweden’s first court case concerning the disclosure of user information.

Within Insolvency, Wistrand is a first tier firm,

At Wistrand, the ‘excellent’ Christian Bergqvist in Stockholm, and Margareta Andersson in Gothenburg specialise in corporate restructuring and recovery, handling over 200 liquidations, including Skandinaviska Metmo and Moderna Finance, and advised EIB on its lending to Saab.

Within Insurance, Wistrand is a first tier firm,

Wistrand represents ‘excellent value for money’. ‘Clear communicator’ Jörgen Eklund advised Hiscox on the reorganisation of its Swedish insurance business.

Within Intellectual property and media, Wistrand is a third tier firm,

Wistrand is the Swedish member of the Global Advertising Lawyers’ Alliance. The ‘knowledgeable and responsive’ Michael Plogell and copyright expert Olof Alffram advise Swedish and international clients.

Within Mergers and acquisitions, tier 4

Wistrand provides ‘high partner presence at a reasonable price’. Robert Kullgren advised Schibsted on the divestiture of Metronome Film & Television. Lars Hasp advised Atea on the acquisition of parts of the Office Document Group. Magnus Forssman, ‘who combines excellent negotiating skills with a great legal mind’, and Mattias Boqvist were promoted to partnership.

Within Real estate, Wistrand is a third tier firm,

At Wistrand, Gothenburg-based Per Dalemo assisted longstanding clients Choice Hotels Scandinavia and Home Invest. The five-partner practice, commended for its ‘good response times and negotiating’ was strengthened by Lars Gahnström from Mannheimer Swartling.

Within Shipping, Wistrand is a second tier firm,

Lave Beck-Friis’s Gothenburg-based team at Wistrand handles traditional shipping and finance-related work. It ‘provides a good service and knows the industry’. Clients include Stena Line, Scandlines and the Swedish Shipowners Association.

Within Tax, Wistrand is a third tier firm,

At Wistrand, Conny Otteland in Stockholm, Margareta Andersson in Gothenburg and litigator Börje Leidhammar advise on corporate, private and capital taxation, EC tax law and VAT.