The Legal 500

Within Corporate tax, tier 5

Sidley Austin LLP provides a ‘top-class’ and ‘proactive’ service to a client list featuring many of the world’s leading financial institutions. It acted for Discover Financial Services in relation to the UK tax aspects of the £35m sale of its UK credit card business to Barclays. Drew Scott is praised for his ‘knowledge, experience and thoroughness’.

Within EU and competition

Within Financial services, tier 6

Sidley Austin LLP is regulatory counsel to some of the world’s largest payment businesses, including MasterCard and Western Union. The practice advised a significant number of hedge funds on their exposures to Lehman Brothers. John Casanova and Leonard Ng ‘offer pragmatic advice’.

Within M&A - upper mid-market and premium deals, £250m+, tier 8

Though best known for its London finance practice, Sidley Austin LLP has a growing reputation for M&A and top-tier clients who have used the firm for both declare they are ‘impressed’ with its transactional abilities, especially in the range up to £500m. Finance sector clients provide much of the work, and the firm completed 30 deals, totalling over £6bn, last year. Out of four UK-qualified partners, Struan Oliver is singled out as a ‘very effective performer’.

Within Corporate restructuring and insolvency, tier 5

Able to draw on the expertise of over 70 lawyers in the firm’s US offices, Sidley Austin LLP’s two-partner London practice excels in complex debtor mandates. The team remains involved in the Federal-Mogul insolvency, and is also advising Kroll as administrators of the Laurel Group of Companies. On the creditor side, aided by a significant capital markets presence, the firm advised noteholders in the landmark decision relating to priority concerning the Orion SIV. Patrick Corr and Robin Parsons co-head the team.

Within Debt capital markets, tier 4

Liability management, US corporate bonds, central bank liquidity deals, and US MTN programmes for European banks have kept Sidley Austin LLP busy. The firm is notable for its experience in convertibles, and recently handled a renminbi-based deal for Country Gardens Holdings. Craig Chapman has a strong practice for Australian issuers, while Mark Walsh, David Howe, John Russell and Hugh Frame stand out for European work.

Within Derivatives and structured products, Sidley Austin LLP is a third tier firm,

Derivatives are a key focal point for Sidley Austin LLP’s restructured international finance group. Elizabeth Uwaifo, Matthew Dening, Paul Matthews and Howard Waterman are noted for their high levels of service, and have been busy in areas such as unravelling complex structured finance transactions; enforcement of rights; restructuring derivatives contracts; and emerging areas such as structured longevity products.

Within Hedge funds, Sidley Austin LLP is a third tier firm,

Bruce Gardner and David Hinds are the key partners in Sidley Austin LLP’s burgeoning practice. The firm handles a range of matters for an impressive list of clients including Triple A Partners, James Caird Asset Management, and Thames River Capital.

Within Investment funds, tier 5

Sidley Austin LLP’s key focus is on hedge funds, where partners Bruce Gardner and David Hinds have very strong track records. Clients include Triple A Partners and M2M Management.

Within Securitisation, Sidley Austin LLP is a third tier firm,

The team at Sidley Austin LLP - featuring Graham Penn and John Woodhall - delivers ‘superior advice’, with the practice spanning restructured deals, trade receivables securitisation and SIV litigation. In 2008, Rob Torch advised Citigroup Global Markets on a £20bn residential mortgage-backed note programme, and Barclays Capital on a new covered bond programme by Clydesdale Bank. Matthew Duncan, who advised Bradford & Bingley on an asset-backed programme, garners much praise from clients.

Within Insurance - insolvency and restructuring, Sidley Austin LLP is a third tier firm,

Nigel Montgomery at Sidley Austin LLP is ‘doing well and knows his stuff’’. The London team combined with colleagues in Germany to advise Deutsche Rück AG on the transfer of two portfolios of run-off business from Germany to the UK. This team has considerable expertise in pools schemes.

Within Insurance and reinsurance litigation, tier 6

Sidley Austin LLP’s practice has made ‘great strides’. Dorothy Cory-Wright heads the department and is noted as ‘very client focused’ with ‘excellent technical skills’. The group has been involved in some interesting multi-jurisdictional disputes, and works closely with colleagues in Chicago and New York City.

Within Commercial property

Within Property finance, Sidley Austin LLP is a second tier firm,

Graham Penn’s team at Sidley Austin LLP regularly acts for a number of RREEF property funds on transactions that have an international element. The group is also rated for its historic CMBS expertise, recently acting for Citi as arranger on Morrigan 1 CMBS, a £1.8bn issue underpinned by commercial mortgage loans. The practice also advised Europe Arab Bank in the financing of a hotel development in Dubai.