McGuireWoods London LLP > London, England > Firm Profile

McGuireWoods London LLP Offices

McGuireWoods London LLP
5 New Street Square
LONDON
EC4A 3BF
England
Visit website 020 7632 1600 020 7632 1638

McGuireWoods London LLP > The Legal 500 Rankings

Corporate and commercial > M&A: Smaller Deals, £10m-£100m Tier 2

Drawing considerable praise from clients for its ability to grasp ‘commercial objectives’ in great depth, as well as for its cross-border capabilities, the corporate team at McGuireWoods London LLP is regularly engaged by clients in the hotel and leisure, food and beverage and retail sectors. The practice is jointly led by Mehboob Dossa, who is routinely instructed by multinationals, capital providers and independent spenders on a range of transactions, and Patrick De Ridder, whose recent highlights include acquisitions in the US and Europe as well as joint ventures in Asia and Africa.

Practice head(s):

Mehboob Dossa; Patrick De Ridder

Other key lawyers:

Karl Hemingway

Testimonials

‘Access to and responsiveness of partners.’

‘As well as accessibility and responsiveness, demeanor and knowledge is particularly strong.’

‘McGuireWoods LLP has a diverse team of lawyers who make the effort to understand the commercial objectives of their clients in depth. The team is nimble and is able to adapt in dealing with challenging personalities that come along with M&A deals of this size.’

‘Mehboob Dossa has been a veteran at McGuireWoods since before the establishment of its London office in 2009. We have worked with him for over 15 years; he has a very personable approach to clients and understands the value of compounded relationships.’

Key clients

Carpenter Co.

RGK Group, Inc /dba Angstrom Technology

Thrive Parent Holdings, LLC

Origo hf

Work highlights

  • Advised Carpenter Co., a global, diversified and world class manufacturing company, on its €656 million acquisition of the Engineered Foams Business of Recticel.
  • Advised on the cross-border (US/UK) acquisition of Connect 2 Cleanrooms Ltd. by a US private equity firm.
  • Advised Thrive, a cybersecurity and digital transformation managed services provider, in its acquisition, by way of share acquisition, of UK company Custard Technical Services Limited.

Dispute resolution > Commercial litigation: mid-market Tier 4

Delivering 'an unflappable service', McGuireWoods London LLP is best known for international, high-stakes litigation; and the disputes team is experienced in a range of industries, including energy, banking, life sciences and technology. In addition to general commercial disputes, Simon Hems specialises in the offshore oil and gas, renewable energy and maritime sectors, as well as insurance recovery work; and William Boddy routinely acts in complex, multi-jurisdictional disputes that involve allegations of fraud. Recently-raised partner Chloe Steele is 'a trusted advisor'.

Practice head(s):

William Boddy; Simon Hems

Other key lawyers:

Chloe Steele

Testimonials

‘Reliable, responsive and very professional.’

‘Chloe Steele is a trusted advisor to clients.’

‘Great and efficient service.’

‘Impressive ability to cope with and manage turnaround times that are difficult to meet – an unflappable service.’

‘Very efficient and able to handle quick turnaround timescales, without any loss of intellectual input.’

‘All instructions are carefully prepared, even when times are tight, and fully thought through.’

‘What is most helpful is the fact that they offer reasoned solutions and outcomes to the issues in dispute, and the questions posed by the client and the foreign court in question.’

Key clients

Genesis Aviation Services

Tanner Pharma UK

TannerGAP

14th Street Capital

Work highlights

  • Representing Genesis Aviation Services in multiple claims concerning aircraft losses, further to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
  • Defending complex multi-jurisdictional proceedings against Tanner Pharma UK, TannerGAP and others (pursued by FS Medical Services in relation to the sale of coronavirus testing kits that were sourced from China for the DHSC).
  • Successfully led an international team that acted for 14th Street Capital in a cross-border insolvency matter, including appointing administrators over defaulting debtor Afin Technologies.

Real estate > Commercial property: corporate occupiers Tier 4

McGuireWoods London LLP boasts a well-established client roster of FT100 and FT250 companies, including AstraZeneca. Callum Hassall is active in the senior care and accommodation arena, while Hannah Irish acts for developers, investors, and tenants across the financial, life sciences, and hospitality sectors. Former practice head Martin Barrett retired in June 2023.

Other key lawyers:

Callum Hassall; Martin Barrett

Testimonials

‘Very efficient and highly knowledgeable team with seamless cover provided at crucial times.’

‘They are very efficient and able to handle quick turnaround time scales, without any loss of intellectual input.’

‘All instructions are carefully prepared, even when times are tight, and fully thought through.’

‘All those we deal with within McGuire Woods are totally approachable, while maintaining a professional approach at all times. They are all a pleasure to deal with.’

‘They stand out for their responsiveness and detail.’

‘A great team. They are sensible, responsive, commercial, and easy to get along with.’ 

‘Very knowledgeable, responsive and friendly.’ 

‘McGuire Woods and Callum Hassall really help you navigate through the legal hurdles needed including turning technical terminology into a language any business leader could understand.’

Key clients

AstraZeneca UK Limited

MedImmune Limited

Energizer Holdings Inc

Revera Inc

Signature Senior Lifestyle Care Homes

Highgate Hotels International Limited

Mitsubishi Corporation International (Europe) plc and Mitsubishi Corporation

Thrive Parent Holdings, LLC

Relativity ODA, LLC

Bank of America Merrill Lynch International Limited

Work highlights

  • Advised Thrive Parent Holdings, LLC on the shared acquisition of UK company, Custard Technical Services Limited.
  • Advised AstraZeneca UK Limited and MedImmune Limited in connection with their UK property portfolio.
  • Advised Energizer Holdings Inc on the grant of a new 15-year lease of 103,000 square feet industrial unit at Tafarnaubach Industrial Estate, Tredegar.

Finance > Bank lending: investment grade debt and syndicated loans Tier 5

At McGuireWoods London LLP, Alan Holliday  is a key contact for financial institutions and corporates on corporate transactions, commercial law, and debt financing. Former EMEA finance team head Lee Cullinane  left in September 2022 to pursue an in-house counsel role.  

Practice head(s):

Alan Holliday

Key clients

Investec Bank Plc

Bank of America

Wells Fargo Bank

African Development Bank

Barings Finance

Bank of Montreal

Instituto de Crédito Oficial

Drake & Morgan

PNC Bank

Allied Irish Bank

Svenska Handelsbanken

Enstar Group Limited

Work highlights

Employment > Employers Tier 6

McGuireWoods London LLP offers a small and compact team with high quality employment litigation expertise. Regulated industries employment specialist Dan Peyton, a practising barrister before entering private practice, leads the team. He is supported by associate Adam Penman, who has experience in employee benefits, incentives work and data protection as well as defending tribunal claims. The firm is particularly recommended for advising US clients operating across the UK, with the firm having experience defending claims for such clients before Northern Irish Industrial tribunals as well as in England and Wales.

Practice head(s):

Dan Peyton

Other key lawyers:

Adam Penman

United States > M&A/corporate and commercial > M&A: middle-market (sub-$500m)

McGuireWoods LLP handles strategically significant deals for both publicly-traded and private companies present in all core economic sectors, demonstrating particular strength in the energy and technology spaces. Though increasingly engaged in billion-dollar and transformative deals, the middle-market remains a sweet spot for the firm, where it handles M&A, joint ventures, asset and stock purchases, as well as corporate governance matters. Michael Woodard in Richmond leads the M&A and energy transactions group, while Thomas Zahn in Pittsburgh chairs the corporate and private equity department. Sitting in the Richmond office, Joanne Katsantonis is counsel of choice for energy companies of all sizes, Patrick De Ridder is particularly skilled in cross-border transactions, and Brian Hager is a trusted advisor to public and private companies in Virginia.

Practice head(s):

Michael Woodard; Thomas Zahn

Other key lawyers:

Joanne Katsantonis; Patrick De Ridder; Brian Hager

Testimonials

‘The transaction was of moderate size, but the McGuireWoods team, primarily Patrick De Ridder, gave it his highest priority in negotiating a very favorable outcome for our shareholders. MW gave counsel on the real value of the deal points and strategic interests in the offers to best represent shareholder expectations.’

‘De Ridder, the primary attorney, greatly assisted our management team and shareholders in successfully executing and closing the transaction through his extensive experience and M&A knowledge. He listened to shareholder concerns thereby understanding our business and personal objectives giving us a high level of service. He is an adept negotiator who brought value added in making the purchase agreement significantly beneficial to the shareholders.’

Key clients

Altria Group Inc

Origo hf

Markel Ventures

3D Systems Corporation

AvidXchange, Inc.

Alfa Laval Inc

Dominion Energy Services, Inc.

Hooker Furnishings Corp.

AvePoint

Jefferson Home Builders

Work highlights

  • Advised Dominion Energy, Inc. on the sale of Questar Pipelines to Southwest Gas Holdings Inc. in a transaction valued at $1.975bn.
  • Acted for Dominion Energy, Inc in the $690m sale of Hope Gas, Inc. to an infrastructure fund launched by Ullico Inc.

McGuireWoods London LLP > Firm Profile

THE FIRM:
McGuireWoods is an international law firm known for quality, innovation, responsiveness and diversity. It has 1,100 lawyers in 21 locations including London, New York, Washington, DC, Los Angeles and Chicago. The firm has a reputation among clients and peers as one of the most client service centric law firms in the world. McGuireWoods London LLP distinguishes itself by offering partner-led service as well as strong cross-border relationships.

PRINCIPAL AREAS OF WORK
Banking & Finance:
The firm acts for financial institutions and borrowers on a broad range of debt finance transactions with particular expertise in syndicated and bilateral credit facilities, real estate finance (both investment and development), leveraged and acquisition finance, asset finance and infrastructure and project finance. The team advises on all aspects of structuring and documenting credit facilities. The team also advises agents, lenders, hedge counterparties, borrowers and debt funds on leveraged finance transactions in Europe and the United States, including unitranche, super senior, term loan B, second lien and mezzanine finance.

Corporate:
The firm is known for providing high-quality counsel on complex domestic and cross-border transactions as a result of its cross-functional, client-focused and collaborative approach to providing legal services. Clients praise the team for its ability to staff transactions appropriately, ensuring timely and swift completions that benefit its clients’ budgets and business needs. The firm has a cross-border corporate practice that supports a range of clients in multiple jurisdictions, including emerging startup companies, industry-leading enterprises and financial institutions. The areas in which the corporate team practices are M&A (public and private), private equity, joint ventures, commercial contracts, general corporate, supply chain and corporate reorganisations. It has a thriving private equity practice assisting private equity firms, management teams, sponsors and portfolio companies alike. The sectors in which the corporate team is particularly active include healthcare, regulated senior living facilities, hospitality, retail and technology.

Data Privacy & Security:
The team advises and assists with data protection compliance (in particular GDPR and e-privacy requirements); information governance, determining extraterritorial applicability; data mapping; drafting policies and notices; information management systems; determining the optimal method for cross-border data transfers; drafting and negotiating data processing agreements; data subject access requests; and managing data incidents and reporting.

Employment:
The London office advises UK and global corporate clients on contentious and non-contentious complex and strategic employment legal issues. UK advice covers most aspects of employment law – contractual, statutory and regulatory – with particular emphasis on sensitive restrictive covenant and confidential information disputes, whistle blowing and discrimination cases, corporate reorganisations and restructures and boardroom terminations. The practice has a growing reputation internationally advising on complex, cross-border employment issues.

Equity Capital Markets:
The firm’s equity capital markets practice represents sponsors, nominated advisers (NOMADS), brokers and issuers and they represent these clients on a variety of work including IPOs (main market and AIM), secondary placings, reverse takeovers, general advice on Listing Rules and AIM Rules compliance, corporate governance, disclosure and transparency requirements, market abuse regulations, prospectus rules and financial promotions.

Litigation & Dispute Resolution:
The firm has extensive experience handling a broad range of complex, big-ticket, commercial disputes, especially in the High Court and international arbitration forums. The team is particularly adept at handling large-scale high-profile cases, including those involving allegations of fraud and those requiring urgent interim relief. McGuireWoods also has notable experience in contractual, joint-venture disputes, banking, swaps and derivatives, energy, insolvency, intellectual property and trade secrets, and shareholder disputes.

Real Estate:
Working on both contentious and non-contentious matters, the team provides full legal service to a range of clients encompassing institutional investors, large multinationals, growing corporates, developers and financial institutions. Areas of expertise include corporate real estate, investment, funds, development and regeneration, finance and hotels and leisure. The team advises clients on all aspects of acquisition, development, management, assets and disposal.

EU & UK Competition Law:
The team handles all aspects of EU and UK competition law including merger control, state aid, cartels, licensing, distribution, IP aspects, abuse of dominance and compliance (including providing compliance programmes/training and undertaking audits). The firm also deals with all litigation aspects of competition law before the EU and UK courts and regulators.

Financial Crime:
The London office represents corporates and executives in the full range of financial criminal investigations, compliance and enforcement matters, both nationally and internationally. The firm represents clients in complex, high-value, multijurisdictional white collar crime litigation. The firm assists clients in enforcement action led by the Serious Fraud Office, Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, the Financial Conduct Authority, City of London Police and the National Crime Agency and in US DOJ and SEC investigations. The firm guides clients through the entire investigative process and, where necessary, represents them at trial. McGuireWoods is known for its meticulous internal investigations work covering bribery, corruption, money laundering, insider dealing and the full spectrum of financial criminal conduct. The London team has undertaken work for leading financial institutions, pharmaceutical companies and manufacturers.

Main Contacts

Department Name Email Telephone
Corporate & M&A Mehboob Dossa
Corporate & M&A Karl Hemingway
Capital Markets: Equity Mehboob Dossa
Banking and Finance Alan Holliday
Corporate Investigations Matthew Hall
Corporate Investigations William Boddy
Corporate Investigations Francesca Titus
Data Privacy Mehboob Dossa
Employment Dan Peyton
EU and UK Competition Law and Procurement Matthew Hall
Litigation and Dispute resolution William Boddy
Litigation and Dispute resolution Simon Hems
Litigation and Dispute resolution Chloe Steele
International Arbitration William Boddy
International Arbitration Simon Hems
Real Estate Callum Hassall
Financial Crime: Corporates & Individuals Francesca Titus

Staff Figures

Number of UK partners : 11
Number of attorneys worldwide : 1,100

Diversity


Our Inclusive Community

McGuireWoods has a history of hiring, developing, promoting and retaining lawyers of color, women and LGBTQ lawyers, and veterans. Continually establishing new initiatives and enhancing existing efforts, we focus on meaningful support for our diverse lawyers in their careers. The firm’s lawyer networks are an example of how we support our attorneys in building communities within the firm.

Leading the Way

Two very active groups are charged with focusing on diversity and inclusion: the Diversity & Inclusion Committee and the Diversity Action Council.

Established in 2006, the Diversity & Inclusion Committee — chaired by Baltimore partner and accomplished trial lawyer Ava Lias-Booker — focuses on identifying, attracting, and retaining diverse talent. The D&I Committee also helps incorporate inclusiveness in our professional development, supports retention through lawyer networks, strengthens our marketing and business development opportunities, mentors diverse lawyers, and ensures the firm is well represented at elite events and conferences.

Our Diversity Action Council, led by Managing Partner J. Tracy Walker IV, is the second leadership committee dedicated to advancing the firm’s strategic D&I goals. Formed in 2013, the DAC holds firm leadership accountable for promotion and development of our diverse attorneys by ensuring all firm resources are effectively deployed to further their careers. Every month, DAC members get together for a rigorous assessment of each department’s progress in advancing the firm’s diversity goals.

Such engagement and accountability, buttressed by tailored programs and training, has resulted in steady progress.

D&I Advances

A key focus of the firm’s strategic plan, diversity and inclusion are essential to how we do business, informing how we recruit, retain, and promote lawyers to serve our clients. Our efforts are also supported by partnerships with clients and community members committed to advancing diversity in the legal profession. Working together, we can build a synergistic whole greater than the sum of its parts. That’s diversity in action.