The Legal 500

Within Commercial contracts, Bird & Bird is a first tier firm,

The 18-partner team at Bird & Bird impresses with ‘expert knowledge based on hands-on commercial experience’, and delivers a level of service ‘second to none’. It remains at the forefront of ITO and BPO projects, but commercial contracts spanning the health, communications, energy and defence sectors also account for a significant proportion of mandates. The Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC) instructed the firm in relation to the roll-out of 53 million smart meters across the UK. Recent highlights also include advising the Ministry of Justice on large-scale multiple-contract technology procurements, and advising seven NHS trusts on the renegotiation of complex IT hosting and support contracts. Practice head Mark Leach is ‘a very safe pair of hands’: ‘calm, measured and pragmatic’. Peter Elliott heads the public procurement group; and Christian Bartsch has outsourcing expertise in the financial services sector, and ‘looks at the big picture, maintains strong relationships and prioritises the interests of his clients’.

Within Corporate tax Corporate tax

Within Customs and Excise Customs and Excise

Within EU and competition, tier 6

Bird & Bird has a broad practice and expertise in sectors including electronic communications and sport. Recent work includes a range of matters for BT, including a pending appeal in the Court of Appeal. Richard Eccles is recommended. Highly regarded associate Jeremy Robinson left for Gates and Partners, while Nina Cummins joined from Matheson Ormsby Prentice.

Within Flotations: small and mid-cap, tier 4

Bird & Bird is ‘very strong, providing good legal advice alongside a commercial view of the IPO process’; the team includes Simon Allport, Richard Eaton and Matt Bonass, who is ‘very commercial and good value’. Allport advised Cairn Financial on the £20.8m AIM listing of China New Energy Ltd.

Within M&A: mid-market, £50m-£250m, Bird & Bird is a third tier firm,

Bird & Bird provides ‘extremely swift, timely, spot-on assistance’ to a strong roster of TMT clients including Blinkx plc and Just Eat Group. 2011 highlights included advising Evolution Group plc on its £233m acquisition by Investec plc. Practice head Neil Blundell is a ‘calm, commercial and pragmatic negotiator’.

Within Venture capital, Bird & Bird is a second tier firm,

‘One of the “go-to” firms for VC work in London’, Bird & Bird provides an ‘excellent level of service’ to investors and investees active in the technology, life sciences and cleantech sectors. The team has advised Index Ventures on a range of investments, including a £2.5m Series A financing of Funding Circle and a £11.4m Series B funding of Farfetch.com. ‘As sharp as he is smooth’, team head Angus Miln ‘exhibits a rare combination of business acumen and a meticulous eye for detail’. Struan Penwarden has an excellent reputation in the venture debt market, and is a key figure in a team that welcomed cleantech and renewables specialist Matt Bonass from SNR Denton and Geraint Lloyd from Berwin Leighton Paisner LLP.

Within Fraud: civil, tier 4

Bird & Bird is acting for the claimants in proceedings in Gibraltar against an international bank, involving issues such as the knowing receipt of stolen funds. Newly promoted partner Sophie Eyre and Ludovic de Walden are ‘very effective fraud litigators’.

Within Banking litigation: investment and retail, tier 5

Jeremy Sharman’s banking litigation team at Bird & Bird advised Forsta AP-fonden in its $35.5m claim against the Bank of New York Mellon and others in relation to losses arising out of a securities lending programme. Sarah Walker left the firm to join King & Spalding International LLP, while Steven Baker joined from Olswang.

Within Commercial litigation, tier 5

Bird & Bird saw the departure of Jane Player and Sarah Walker to King & Spalding International LLP, but was joined by the ‘excellent’ Steven Baker, Olswang’s former commercial dispute resolution head. The practice targets disputes in technology, communications and life sciences. It recently advised in Commercial Court proceedings concerning losses arising from a securities lending programme. A ‘shrewd and popular client pleaser’, Ludovic de Walden heads the London group, and Jeremy Sharman is also recommended.

Within Defamation and privacy Defamation and privacy

Within International arbitration, tier 7

In addition to servicing the firm’s core TMT clients, the ‘always available’ team at Olswang has seen an increase in non-TMT instructions. It defended a gold mining and exploration company in proceedings concerning a structured commodity trade financing dispute. Andrew Aglionby is international arbitration head, with Richard Bamforth leading on the litigation side. Steven Baker joined Bird & Bird.

Within Mediators Mediators

Within Asset finance and leasing, tier 5

The ‘responsive and highly commercial’ team at Bird & Bird has ‘great aviation industry knowledge’, and is instructed by an expanding array of airlines including Air Atlanta Icelandic, Etihad and Flybe. The ‘incredibly commercial’ Paul Briggs provides ‘business-focused advice’, and recently advised Virgin Atlantic on the sub-lease of five ECA-financed A330 aircraft to a US operator. The ‘very commercial’ Simon Chamberlain regularly handles financing work as part of his broad aviation practice.

Within Bank lending: investment grade debt and syndicated loans, tier 5

Trystan Tether heads a ‘very responsive and reliable’ group at Bird & Bird, which shows ‘great capacity to be creative’ in the face of particularly challenging financial instruments.

Within Islamic finance Islamic finance

Within Employee share schemes, tier 5

Colin Kendon at Bird & Bird gives ‘commercially focused advice’.

Within Employment: employers and senior executives, tier 5

An ‘exceptionally commercial team which delivers results’, Bird & Bird acts for Monarch Airlines, Yahoo!, BAE Systems, and Amey, advising the latter on all employment matters affecting its 12,000-strong, largely unionised workforce. Clients highlight the flexibility and relationship management skills of the team, which includes the ‘first-class’ Ian Hunter and Warren Wayne, who is ‘very bright, with sound commercial judgement’.

Within Immigration, tier 4

Bird & Bird advises international corporates on the full spectrum of business immigration issues, and has an ‘excellent breadth of experience’ in cross-border human resources projects. Jonathan Goldsworthy provides a ‘clear perspective on timing and chances of success’.

Within Insurance and reinsurance litigation, tier 6

Bird & Bird acts for insurers and policyholders, and has particular strength in aviation, aerospace, defence, energy and utilities. Head of the group Peter Knight – a ‘noted performer with strong abilities’ – is advising a large power company in Chile in an arbitration relating to a $125m loss.

Within Professional negligence, tier 5

The team at Bird & Bird, led by Ludovic de Walden, is recommended for its ‘technical’ approach. The ‘tenacious’ Jonathan Speed is ‘very thorough and user friendly’. The firm represented Forsta AP-fonden in Commercial Court proceedings against one of the world’s largest securities lending agents. Jane Player recently joined King & Spalding International LLP.

Within PFI and PPP, tier 6

Richard Lucas at Bird & Bird works exclusively on defence projects, primarily for multinationals and with an emphasis on shipping and aviation. Lucas and associate Elizabeth Belsey both attract praise from clients.

Within Power (including electricity, nuclear and renewables), tier 4

Bird & Bird’s renewables practice was buoyed by the arrival of Matt Bonass and Michael Rudd from SNR Denton in 2011. A major force in the domestic solar and CHP markets, the firm has also been very active on the disputes side, and is acting for RWE nPower at the Commercial Court in a complex multi-party dispute relating to damage to a power station. Andrew Renton, former head of energy at Dundas & Wilson LLP, joined in December 2011.

Within Healthcare, tier 4

Bird & Bird acts for various NHS foundation trusts, Kings College Hospital Management and GSTS Pathology. The team has expertise in telephone and IT enabled healthcare, and also advises on joint ventures. Dominic Cook heads the practice.

Within Commercial property, tier 6

Bird & Bird ‘displays great knowledge of this area’. Recent work includes advising Imperial London Hotels on the £83m acquisition of the Bloomsbury Holiday Inn. Jonathan Baker and Andrew Stobbart are recommended.

Within Construction,

With Andrew Renton having moved to Bird & Bird, the ‘incredibly pragmatic’ Siobhan McCloskey-Oudahar now heads the group at Dundas & Wilson LLP, which is well regarded for its commercial property expertise and has ‘excellent’ knowledge of building contracts.

Within Property finance, Bird & Bird is a third tier firm,

Bird & Bird is regularly instructed by German banks active in larger, more complex transactions, and advised Deutsche Hypothekenbank AG on a £59m loan facility for office premises. The team includes Jonathan Baker, who ‘works well with other lawyers while at the same time always protecting the client’s interest’.

Within Brand management, Bird & Bird is a first tier firm,

Bird & Bird combines capabilities in IP, advertising, marketing and sponsorship matters to advise clients such as Allianz, British Cycling, FIBA and HSBC. Felicity Reeve continues to assist Whitbread with marketing activities for the Costa brand, including regulatory advice regarding its gift card product launch. Phil Sherrell acted for creative agency Exposure on clearing advertising campaigns for the Casio G-Shock and Kingfisher brands. Peter Brownlow now manages the European and Asian trade mark portfolio of Monster Energy, and also advised Nordic Spirit on appealing a community trade mark (CTM) cancellation action regarding cylindrical bottle packaging for its new product.

Within Data protection, Bird & Bird is a first tier firm,

Bird & Bird handles UK and pan-European matters, and recently advised on a number of well-publicised data privacy breaches in the online and mobile advertising sectors. Regulatory instructions included advising on the use of children’s data as well as online marketing. Ruth Boardman, who co-heads the international data protection group, has ‘impressive pan-European data privacy knowledge’. Consultant Francis Aldhouse was formerly the UK Deputy Information Commissioner.

Within Intellectual property, Bird & Bird is a first tier firm,

‘First-rate’ IP firm Bird & Bird handles the full range of contentious and transactional matters, and is particularly strong in litigation. Highlights included advising the UK Media Monitoring Association regarding a Copyright Tribunal dispute, and Associated Newspapers on contentious trade mark issues. It also represents Nokia in patent infringement actions across the EU. Other clients include Teva, Air Canada and LG Electronics. Litigators Morag Macdonald and Katharine Stephens co-head the practice. Trevor Cook’s ‘unparalleled understanding of IP matters allows him to provide uniquely clear advice on technically and legally challenging issues’; Mark Heaney is ‘a master of the issues, facts, evidence and strategy in complex bet-the-company patent litigation’; and Lorna Brazell gives ‘pragmatic, no-holds-barred advice’.

Within IT and telecoms, Bird & Bird is a first tier firm,

Bird & Bird is ‘at the forefront of the technology and telecoms industries’, and provides ‘hands-on commercial experience’ and ‘a co-ordinated international approach’. Highlights included advising Everything Everywhere on upgrading its 2G infrastructure, and advising the government on a national roll-out of smart energy meters. Communications head Graeme Maguire is appreciated for his ‘depth of knowledge and commercial understanding’ of the IT sector. For mobile telecoms, Dominic Cook is ‘extremely knowledgeable about the law, operationally savvy and unusually energetic in the pursuit of client goals’. Colin Long joined as of counsel from Olswang.

Within Media and entertainment, Bird & Bird is a second tier firm,

Bird & Bird’s international media team, led by Matt Dennis, impresses with its ‘customer-driven service and IP expertise’. Corporate mandates included advising blinkx on its $30m acquisition of Burst Media, and Holler Digital on its sale to Publicis. The broadcasting team advises BT Vision and BSkyB. Justin Walkey and Ian Williamson advised Yahoo! on its three-season exclusive deal with the FA Premier League. Felicity Reeves recently advised the European Broadcasting Union. Howard Rubin runs a ‘pre-eminent’ computer games practice, which represents Zynga and Codemasters. ‘Sound, experienced and commercial’ litigator Phil Sherrell joined from Eversheds LLP, and Patrick Charnley arrived from IFPI to strengthen the team, which represented the UK Media Monitoring Association in the Meltwater Copyright Tribunal dispute.

Within Pharmaceuticals and biotechnology, Bird & Bird is a first tier firm,

Bird & Bird has ‘an excellent practice in intellectual property for the life sciences sector’. It recently represented a number of clients in High Court patent disputes, and also advises on transactional, commercial licensing and regulatory matters. UK group head Trevor Cook provides ‘practical, sensible advice’ on the regulatory side; Mark Hilton is ‘a very strategic and lateral thinker’; and Struan Penwarden has ‘many years ’ knowledge of the industry, and a detailed knowledge of the relevant law’ on corporate transactions. Sally Shorthose advises on commercial IP matters.

Within Sport, Bird & Bird is a first tier firm,

‘Exceptional and versatile’, Bird & Bird is ‘extremely strong, covering both commercial and regulatory aspects of sport’, be it contentious or non-contentious work. Its clients include governing bodies and event organisers across football, rugby union, cricket, tennis, golf, basketball, motor sport and equestrianism, and it also represents sponsors and broadcasters. The team advised The FA on tenders for its domestic, European and international media rights, and successfully prosecuted the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) spot-fixing cases against Pakistan cricketers. It also advised the RFU on commercial matters and events. Felicity Reeve shows ‘commercial acumen’; Jonathan Taylor is ‘an outstanding lawyer and effective litigator’; and practice head Justin Walkey has ‘a strong mix of commercial and legal experience’. Max Duthie is also recommended.

Within Aviation, Bird & Bird is a second tier firm,

Having recently transferred from Barlow Lyde & Gilbert LLP, the ‘excellent’ team at Holman Fenwick Willan LLP is ‘very highly regarded in the market’. Its expertise spans aviation liability; regulatory and competition law; transactional and commercial matters; and dispute resolution. Headline work included advising Rolls-Royce in relation to the uncontained engine failure on Qantas flight QF32 over Indonesia. It is also acting for BAE and its insurers in litigation arising from alleged cabin air contamination affecting cabin crew. Other clients include Allianz, Aspen, QBE, Cathay Pacific and British Airways. Richard Gimblett and Sue Barham have ‘deep expertise in and understanding of aviation issues’ and head the regulatory team, with Barham noted for her ‘ability to relate practically with her clients to address any problems’. Department head Giles Kavanagh is experienced in insurance-related matters.