The Legal 500

Within Commercial contracts, Latham & Watkins LLP is a third tier firm,

The commercial, outsourcing and technology group at Latham & Watkins LLP provides ‘nothing but exemplary’ service to its client base of financial institutions and blue-chip corporate clients. The four partners and nine associates are ‘experts in their field, always willing to assist, and really concentrate to understand the business principles and requirements prior to engaging’. Andrew Moyle advised on a major IT and BPO agreement for the Commercial Bank of Qatar; and Luke Grubb assisted airline Star Alliance with its digital media and IT procurement matters. Lloyds Banking Group, Sony Music and Yahoo! are other noteworthy clients of the team. Martin Cotterill chairs the global IT practice, and Justin Cornish’s knowledge of IT agreements in the context of South Africa is ‘uncontested’.

Within Corporate tax, Latham & Watkins LLP is a third tier firm,

Latham & Watkins LLP’s four-partner team has strong experience in international matters, with areas of strength including structured finance matters. It acted for The Carlyle Group on the complex acquisition of Brintons Carpets. Daniel Friel is recommended.

Within Equity capital markets: UK capability, tier 4

Latham & Watkins LLP hired the ‘highly experienced’ Richard Brown from Hogan Lovells International LLP, where he advised Coal of Africa on its £66.3m share placement. Newly promoted partner David Boles advised the underwriters on the $2.4bn IPO of ISS on Nasdaq OMX Copenhagen. Scandinavia specialist Lene Malthasen is highly recommended.

Within Equity capital markets: US capability, Latham & Watkins LLP is a third tier firm,

Latham & Watkins LLP’s Olof Clausson ‘owns the market for Scandinavian work’, and has many financial services and technology sector clients. He advised Citigroup on the $4.5bn purchase of shares in Norilsk Nickel, and underwriters on the Transmode Holdings IPO, Stockholm’s first technology IPO since 2007.

Within EU and competition, tier 4

Latham & Watkins LLP’s four-partner team is active in London and Brussels, notably in cartel matters. It also advised Global Crossing on the clearance of its merger with Level 3. Recommended figures include John Colahan, Marc Hansen and Omar Shah.

Within M&A: premium deals, £250m+, tier 4

Latham & Watkins LLP’s global footprint makes it a regular fixture on cross-border deals, and it also maintains an active presence on high-value domestic deals. In 2011, the firm advised on 36 UK deals with a total value of $16.7bn (compared to some 123 European M&A deals totalling $64.1bn), and it benefits from key relationships with private equity firms such as KKR and sovereign wealth funds including Qatar Investment Authority. The 11-partner London team is highlighted for its ‘consistency of expertise, strength in depth and sector knowledge’, and in 2011 acted for The Yucaipa Companies in its acquisition of the Soho House Group, and for The Carlyle Group in its sale of Britax Childcare to Nordic Capital. Nigel Campion-Smith and Graeme Sloan are recommended.

Within Private equity: transactions, tier 4

Latham & Watkins LLP continues to strengthen and build on its existing relationships with sponsors such as Carlyle, KKR and Apollo, as well as gaining new clients including Nordic Capital. With significant input from the firm’s US, European and Chinese offices, Martin Saywell and Rory Negus advised Apollo Global Management on its €1.1bn acquisition of Taminco Group Holdings. Mike Bond heads the team.

Within Fraud: civil, tier 4

John Hull leads the group at Latham & Watkins LLP, and Oliver Browne is now a partner, with considerable experience in acting for entities in the financial services and private equity sectors.

Within Banking litigation: investment and retail, tier 4

John Hull’s team at Latham & Watkins LLP rises a tier. It acts for a number of the largest financial institutions both domestically and in offshore jurisdictions. It particularly impresses with its ‘depth of knowledge, accessibility and appropriateness of advice, especially on cross-border matters’.

Within Commercial litigation, tier 4

Latham & Watkins LLP’s practice is widely praised by peers, and stands out for its geographic platform. The team represented Indorama International Finance in respect of Egypt’s alleged expropriation of its investment. Philip Clifford is a key contact.

Within International arbitration, Latham & Watkins LLP is a third tier firm,

Latham & Watkins LLP is known for oil and gas, energy, construction and investment treaty arbitration. Philip Clifford is experienced in Middle East related arbitrations. Also recommended are Charles Claypoole, who ‘identifies the strong and weak sides of a client’s position’; and the ‘smart and effective’ Oliver Browne, who was promoted to partner.

Within Public international law, Latham & Watkins LLP is a second tier firm,

Latham & Watkins LLP saw the departure of Robert Volterra and Stephen Fietta, but the remaining team boasts practical PIL experience within the commercial and governmental sectors. It recently experienced growth in international sanctions work and expanded the scope of its advisory practice. Mark Beckett, Philip Clifford, Sebastian Seelmann-Eggebert and Rachel Thorn are the key partners.

Within Acquisition finance, Latham & Watkins LLP is a second tier firm,

With ‘top-notch business acumen’, Clifford Chance acts for names such as HSBC, Lloyds, RBS and EQT. Enhanced by the arrival of Fabio Diminich from Latham & Watkins LLP, the firm’s high yield experience is being deployed across a range of new-money financings and refinancings; recent work includes acting for the lenders on the bank and senior secured high yield bond financing of BC Partners’ acquisition of Phones 4u. Charles Cochrane is regularly at the forefront of the team’s most complex mandates, recently acting for the banks on the €2.3bn acquisition of Securitas Direct. James Johnson is ‘a big name in the market’; Jim MacHale ‘shows good awareness of the key commercial issues’; and Caroline Jury is ‘excellent at navigating the best outcome for her clients’. Mark Campbell, Alan Inglis and Michael Bates are also highly regarded.

Within Bank lending: investment grade debt and syndicated loans, Latham & Watkins LLP is a third tier firm,

Latham & Watkins LLP’s team draws on the firm’s extensive global banking capability as well as its capital markets expertise to advise investment banks, other financial institutions, corporate borrowers and private equity firms on complex financings around the globe. It has wide-ranging experience in investment grade and syndicated loans, as well as ABL structures and leveraged and multi-currency financings. Christopher Kandel has been involved in a number of landmark transactions, and is highly rated by peers.

Within Corporate restructuring and insolvency, Latham & Watkins LLP is a second tier firm,

Headed by the ‘excellent’ John Houghton, Latham & Watkins LLP’s ‘strong’ team advises a varied mix of clients including corporates, sponsors, bondholders, senior creditors and mezzanine lenders. It has recently handled a number of standout debtor mandates, such as the $2.8bn restructuring of Preem and the ongoing €2.5bn restructuring of AfriSam. Other highlights included advising the committee of bondholders in the €2.95bn debt restructuring of SEAT Pagine Gialle, led by Houghton and Holly Neavill.

Within Debt capital markets, tier 4

Latham & Watkins LLP ‘won ’t disappoint on emerging markets work’. Lene Malthasen, Jeffrey Lawlis and Antti Ihamuotila advised on $36bn-plus in debt offerings, including the first tender offer in Poland for Crédit Agricole, and Transnet’s $750m inaugural bond for underwriters including Barclays Capital.

Within Emerging markets, Latham & Watkins LLP is a third tier firm,

Latham & Watkins LLP’s impressive finance offering encompasses Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe and the Middle East. Matthew Brown acted for JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley as lead arrangers in a $1bn structured loan financing for Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation. Simon Dickens advises developers, lenders and governmental entities in oil and gas, petrochemical, power generation and other commodity-based projects; and Lene Malthasen’s clients include Naftogas of Ukraine and the state of Qatar. Graeme Ward is also highly rated.

Within High yield, Latham & Watkins LLP is a first tier firm,

Latham & Watkins LLP remains ‘by some distance, the strongest law firm in the high yield space’. Richard Trobman (‘the godfather of European high yield’) is ‘balanced’ and has ‘developed a reputation for being fair that is really effective in the market’. The five-partner team, supported by 21 associates, takes the lion’s share of high-value transactions and was involved in 33 offerings in London alone during 2011. Scott Colwell acted for Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank and JPMorgan in the €2.25bn recapitalisation of German cable operator Kabel BW group through the issuance of high yield notes. Together with Tracy Edmonson, he also acted as lender’s counsel for a financing involving super senior revolving credit facilities, along with senior secured and senior notes, to fund the acquisition of the Priory Group by Advent International. CVC Capital Partners, BC Partners and Afren are other clients. Brett Cassidy and Jocelyn Seitzman are consistently active in the area.

Within Investment funds Investment funds

Within Islamic finance, Latham & Watkins LLP is a third tier firm,

Latham & Watkins LLP’s practice is focused on Saudi Arabia. Craig Nethercott and Brian Conway are the main figures.

Within Overview,

Combined bank/bond financing structures consequently remained to the fore, particularly on larger transactions. Latham & Watkins LLP has the most complete offering in this respect, and is highly rated for acquisition finance, as well as having a top-tier high yield offering. Of the Magic Circle firms, Clifford Chance recently followed Linklaters LLP’s lead in the high yield space and bolstered its offering with a significant hire from Latham & Watkins LLP. Those two firms, along with Allen & Overy LLP, have the most complete finance offerings, with excellent banking relationships and comprehensive international networks.

Within Employment: employers and senior executives, tier 7

Latham & Watkins LLP advises the firm’s outstanding client base on employment issues, for instance acting for Diageo on compromise agreements for senior UK executives. Global head Stephen Brown, Catherine Drinnan and the team are ‘very down to earth and professional, with incredible experience and knowledge’.

Within Pensions, tier 6

Latham & Watkins LLP advised on a number of high-profile corporate transactions where Pensions Regulator issues were involved. Catherine Drinnan has ‘the ability to find a simple solution to complex problems’.

Within Insurance and reinsurance litigation, tier 6

At Latham & Watkins LLP, John Hull recently acted for a bank in relation to the Madoff Ponzi scheme. Oliver Browne was promoted to partner.

Within Professional negligence Professional negligence

Within Mining and minerals, Latham & Watkins LLP is a third tier firm,

Latham & Watkins LLP is very highly regarded in the market, and has advised clients including Vedanta. Glen Ireland is known for his expertise in capital markets listings and M&A deals.

Within Oil and gas, tier 4

Simon Dickens at Latham & Watkins LLP was part of a cross-office team which advised Blackstone on its $2bn equity investment for the Sabine Pass Liquefaction Project. Large-scale project finance and M&A remain the cornerstones of the practice.

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

Craig Nethercott at Latham & Watkins LLP was part of a cross-office team which advised the managers on an Islamic finance bond issuance by a subsidiary of Saudi Electricity Company.

Within Data protection, tier 4

With a team led by Gail Crawford, Latham & Watkins LLP ‘quickly identifies the pertinent issues and provides practical legal advice’ on global data privacy and security issues, data transfer and compliance projects. Clients include Yahoo!, Sony Music, Aon, and US Airways.

Within Intellectual property, tier 5

Latham & Watkins LLP advises on transactional and contentious matters, with clients including Orchid Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals, ConvaTec, Norgine and Orion Publishing. Laurence Cohen leads the team.

Within IT and telecoms, Latham & Watkins LLP is a second tier firm,

Latham & Watkins LLP handles a range of transactional, outsourcing and contractual matters for clients including Telefónica, Commercial Bank of Qatar, and City Telecoms. Luke Grubb is recommended for outsourcing transactions. He and Andrew Moyle advised Mobile Telephone Networks SA on renegotiating an outsourcing agreement with IBM.

Within Media and entertainment, tier 5

Latham & Watkins LLP handles big-ticket music, film and broadcasting matters, and advises on content protection and licensing. Luke Grubb represented Mattel in its $680m acquisition of HiT Entertainment, and privacy specialist Gail Crawford recently advised Trion Worlds and MyLife. New clients include Time Warner.

Within Pharmaceuticals and biotechnology, tier 4

At Latham & Watkins LLP, IP litigator Laurence Cohen has acted for a number of pharmaceutical companies on patent matters, including representing the claimant in ConvaTec v Smith & Nephew.