Liz Sweeney > Shoosmiths LLP > Manchester, England > Lawyer Profile

Liz Sweeney

+443700865790 liz.sweeney@shoosmiths.co.uk View profile View profile

Work Department

Banking and finance.

Position

Liz is a banking and finance partner with over 20 years’ experience. She is head of the Manchester banking team and the wider banking north (which consists of teams in Manchester, Leeds and Edinburgh).

She is a well known and respected banking partner in Manchester and is recognised as one of the leading real estate finance lawyers outside of the City.

Liz works on a wide range of high profile real estate finance matters (often with complex capital structures) as well as advising on acquisition finance, funds finance, social housing finance, sustainable finance, leveraged finance and general corporate lending matters (both domestic and cross border).

She is known for being highly experienced and having a constructive approach to deals. She is experienced in acting both for the lenders and borrowers, bringing a balanced view to transactions.

Clients include most of the major UK clearing banks as well as other financial institutions, alternative lenders, institutional investors, public bodies and corporates.

Sectors that Liz is passionate about include financial services, funds finance, real estate finance, living sector, PRS, PBSA, student accommodation, hotel and leisure, residential development, BTR, sustainable finance, ESG, social housing finance, further education, healthcare, retail and manufacturing.

Recent transactions include:

• acting for a major North West student accommodation developer on senior and mezzanine investment facilities relating to PBSA of over £80,000,000;
• acting for a leading South African retailer (Truworths plc) on £100,000,000 facilities relating to the operation of the Office shoe retail chain;
• acting for a major high street bank on £30,000,000 senior and mezzanine facilities, including a complex intercreditor agreement and hedging, relating to the acquisition of a retail park;
• acting for a leading developer on residential development funding of £75,000,000;
• advising Select Property Group on a £54,000,000 senior funding from Lloyds Bank plc and Wells Fargo Bank, and a £30,000,000 mezzanine funding from Pramerica Real Estate Capital to finance the acquisition and development of two luxury student accommodation schemes;
• acting for Crown Street (Manchester) Limited – a Renaker company on aggregate funding of £128,000,000 loan in relation to two high-rise residential developments in Manchester;
• advising luxury hotel developer and operator Hotel la Tour on £22,000,000 development financing from Coutts & Co of a new landmark hotel in Milton Keynes;
• advising a care home developer and operator on £12,000,000 development facilities for a new care home;
• acting for the GMCA and GMHF on various projects including real estate finance loans and grant funding agreements in the further education sector.

Career

Liz spent 8 years in the City training and working at Wilde Sapte and then Sidley’s London office on big ticket structured real estate finance deals, often with significant cross border elements. Liz returned to her home city of Manchester in 2005 and has continued to specialize in real estate finance. She was a partner at DLA Piper for 3 years before joining Shoosmiths in 2013.

Languages

French (good).

Education

Cardinal Newman RC High School; Hindley Leigh College; University of Liverpool and Universite of Bordeaux, France; Nottingham Law School; LLB Joint Hons with French and French Law (2:I) 1996; Licence en Droit 1995; LPC (Distinction) 1997.

Leisure

Family, skiing, reading, hiking, wine.