The Legal 500

The energy team at CMS Cameron McKenna LLP have successfully advised RWE Dea on the purchase of a 70% stake in the Breagh gas field, a major Southern North Sea gas development, from six companies. On completion of the transaction, RWE Dea will take over the majority of the Breagh field, the largest gas discovery in the North Sea for 10 years.

CMS has advised the Indian company Apollo Tyres Ltd. with the acquisition of Vredestein Banden B.V. from parent company Amtel-Vredestein N.V. The CMS team was headed from the Dutch office of CMS Derks Star Busmann by Mark Ziekman and Cars-Jan van Gool (Corporate Finance), as well as Marcel Groenewegen (Bankruptcy). The British team of CMS Cameron Mckenna was headed by Vivek Gambhir.

CMS Cameron McKenna LLP has advised RWE on its successful bids for land at Wylfa, Anglesey, and Oldbury, South Gloucestershire, in the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s (NDA) site auction which concluded today (29 April).

CMS Cameron McKenna LLP was named Pensions Law Firm of the Year at the prestigious Pension & Investment Provider Awards held in London last night (6 May).

CMS firms have appointed four new competition partners: Kai Neuhaus specialises in European and German competition and merger control law at CMS Hasche Sigle (CMS EU Law Office), Nathalie Pétrignet specialises in competition law, unfair competition issues and customs law in France and the European Union at CMS Bureau Francis Lefebvre (Paris office), and Maxim Boulba and Elena Zhigaeva specialise in competition law and corporate law matters, both at CMS in Russia (Moscow office).

CMS announces the appointment of a new competition partner in the Warsaw, Poland office. Ms. Malgorzata Urbanska, who joined CMS Cameron McKenna in 1999 and specializes in European and Polish competition and merger control law, was named partner, effective 4 May 2009, along with three other new partners in the Polish office of CMS.

CMS Cameron McKenna LLP has advised Clinicenta Limited on its second major clinical services scheme.

CMS Cameron McKenna LLP has advised Lloyds Banking Group and Allied Irish Banks p.l.c. on the management buyout (MBO) of Robert Dyas, which was agreed last week (8 April).

CMS Cameron McKenna LLP has announced today (6 April), that it is appointing 17 new partners, with effect from 1 May 2009. In addition, five previous Office Partners have also been promoted, with effect from 1 May 2009, to the firm’s equity Gateway partnership tier.

CMS Cameron McKenna LLP has acted for Nuffield Heath on the sale of its Vanguard Healthcare Solutions business to Vanguard’s management team, backed by MML Capital Partners, for approximately £31 million. HSBC provided the senior debt facilities.

The Legal Awards honours excellence, continuity and innovation in the legal sphere.

23/01/2009 - CMS, one of the leading international law firms in Russia, is pleased to announce the appointment of three partners: Ivan Gritsenko (real estate), Karen Young (banking and finance) and Elena Zhigaeva (corporate).

CMS Cameron McKenna's Hotel Group is delighted to be nominated as Advisor of the Year in the Hotel Report Awards 2009 for the second year running.
Feb/ 2009 -

CMS Cameron McKenna LLP has appeared for the fourth time in the Sunday Times 100 Best Companies to Work For list. CMS Cameron McKenna was ranked number 74 in the listing, published yesterday (8 March).

CMS Cameron McKenna LLP has been appointed by VT Group plc to advise on its bid to Gloucestershire County Council for a £646m waste PFI contract.

CMS Cameron McKenna LLP is pleased to announce that the firm has exchanged contracts for Sainsbury's Supermarkets Ltd in connection with its £83 million pound acquisition of 24 stores from the Co-Operative Group.

The CMS Hotel Group ranks number one in Europe and will once again, for the eighth year in a row, be the proud sponsor of the International Hotel Investment Forum 2009 (IHIF) on 9th – 11th March in Berlin.

CMS Cameron McKenna LLP has been appointed to advise Vantis plc (Vantis), receivers to two Antiguan companies in Sir Allen Stanford’s group of businesses.

Acquisition Finance magazine has announced its first annual awards recognising law firms by country and CMS has done exceptionally well.

CMS Cameron McKenna LLP has been named Central and Eastern European (CEE) law firm of the year for 2009 by PLC Which Lawyer?

RWE AG and E.ON AG have today (14 January) announced the creation of a joint venture to develop new nuclear power stations in the UK.

Already recognised for its corporate practice in the field of corporate governance (issues linked to shareholding, directors and management liability, etc.) and restructuring, CMS DeBacker has appointed two, leading corporate finance partners to further strengthen its practice. Vincent Dirckx and Carl Dotremont join CMS DeBacker as partners based in the firm’s Brussels office.

The merger announced today (28 November) between the Moscow offices of the three CMS firms that have operated in Russia, will create one of the most experienced and largest international law firms in Russia with over 130 lawyers, including 22 partners.

CMS Cameron McKenna LLP has united its litigators globally in a new Dispute Resolution Group (DRG). The DRG practice covers all of CMS Cameron McKenna’s offices, and will comprise 39 partners and over 270 associates internationally. DRG will bring together lawyers involved in all forms of dispute resolution, including litigation, arbitration, mediation, expert determination and adjudication, and specialist strategic advice on avoiding disputes.

From 1 December 2008 the Banking & Finance practice group of CMS Derks Star Busmann will be based at its Amsterdam office. At present the practice group is still partly located in Utrecht. By concentrating our Banking & Finance expertise in a single location, we will be able to serve our clients  better and more efficiently, while at the same time meeting market demands.

The Banking & Finance practice group of CMS Derks Star Busmann welcomes a new lawyer and partner as well as an experienced lawyer.

CMS Cameron McKenna LLP has advised National Australia Group Europe, on its wealth management division’s recently announced long-term strategic alliance with AXA Life.

CMS Cameron McKenna LLP has advised Bridgend Custodial Services Limited on its project to extend HM Parc Prison, Bridgend, Wales. The deal was closed on Friday 7 November. The shareholders in Bridgend Custodial Services Limited are G4S and Innisfree.

CMS Cameron McKenna LLP has acted for Talisman Energy in a lease arrangement for the Beatrice oil field and the Nigg Oil Terminal from Talisman Energy to Ithaca Energy.

The Banking & Finance practice group of CMS Derks Star Busmann welcomes >a new lawyer and partner as well as an experienced lawyer.

CMS Cameron McKenna LLP has acted for Talisman Energy in a lease arrangement for the Beatrice oil field and the Nigg Oil Terminal from Talisman Energy to Ithaca Energy.

CMS Bureau Francis Lefebvre hires a new partner as a tax adviser: Rémi Gouyet, partner, specialized in electronic taxation.

This report on “The risk of Rising Protectionism in Europe” is the first in a series which CMS will be publishing in conjunction with Oxford Analytica on topics which should be of interest and significance to all commercial enterprises operating in the important European market. The report has two sections; first, a commentary from the CMS team involved in the initiative and then the main body of the Oxford Analytica study. As lawyers we will naturally be looking at the issues concerned from a legal perspective but not exclusively so; our intention is also to examine and, we hope, throw some light on the broader commercial, regulatory, fiscal and political aspects of our chosen topics.

CMS Cameron McKenna LLP has acted for Eureko B.V. in its agreement to acquire 100% of the shares in Oranta, a Russian insurance company, from private equity "PromSvyazCapital" Group. The total transaction value is confidential but this is one of the most significant deals in the Russian insurance sector this year.

CMS proudly sponsors the Indian Mergers & Acquisitions Corporate Summit in Mumbai - India from 29 September till 1 October 2008. CMS has over 600 lawyers specializing in M&A transactions across Europe and beyond. We have been working in India and with Indian law firms for over 30 years.

CMS, the leading European organisation of law firms, has announced today, Monday 1 September, its appointment to the legal panel for all non-claims work for ACE European Group, one of the world’s truly global insurance/reinsurance organisations.

CMS in the UK has advised the Holdfast Consortium in their Royal School of Military Engineering (RSME) public private partnership (PPP) deal with the Ministry of Defence, which closed this weekend. The Holdfast Consortium comprises Babcock, Carillion, Mid-Kent College, TQ Education and Training, and ESS.

CMS, the organisation of leading international law firms, has acted for Talisman Energy in the sale of the entire issued share capital of its Dutch subsidiary, Goal Petroleum (Netherlands) B.V. (“Goal”), for $480 million (excluding working capital) to Total.

CMS Cameron McKenna LLP has acted for Northern Ireland Electricty plc in its sale of SONI, the Transmission System Operator (TSO) in Northern Ireland, its wholly-owned subsidiary. SONI was sold to EirGrid plc for an undisclosed sum.

CMS Cameron McKenna LLP has advised one of its longest-standing clients, Hunting PLC, on its proposed disposal, announced today (6 August), of Gibson Energy to a company ultimately owned by the Riverstone / Carlyle Global Energy and Power Funds, a group of energy focused private equity funds managed by Riverstone Holdings LLC.

A team of transaction specialists from CMS Reich-Rohrwig Hainz offices in Ljubljana and Vienna advised The Vienna Stock Exchange on their acquisition of the Ljubljana Stock Exchange.

CMS Bureau Francis Lefebvre are pleased to announce the election of seven new partners

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CMS Bureau Francis Lefebvre adviser to Unilever Plc and Unilever Côte d'Ivoire within the scope of the transfer by Unilever Côte d'Ivoire of its palm oil business and the acquisition of new soap activities.

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On 6th June 2008, the Supervisory Board of CMS Bureau Francis Lefebvre chaired by Jean-Claude Anisten, partner, appointed the following members of the Management Board, with effect from 1 July : Didier Gingembre, Philippe Rosenpick,Pierre-Sébastien Thill.

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The Japanese Otsuka group has acquired a 49% stake in Alma SA, a French leading manufacturer and distributor of bottled mineral and spring water. This transaction amounted to €750m.

Otsuka was advised by CMS Bureau Francis Lefebvre Law Firm as to:

- Corporate: Jacques Isnard, partner, Sahar Saboori and Bruno Brochet, lawyers
- Tax law: Edouard Milhac, partner
- Competition law: Olivier Benoît, partner.

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CMS Reich-Rohrwig Hainz, one of the leading law firms in Austria and Southeast Europe, will merge with the prominent corporate boutique law firm Dallmann & Juranek.

Pierre-Axel Chabot (33), who joined CMS DeBacker in 1998, has become a Partner. This appointment will reinforce the Corporate Real Estate department of CMS DeBacker which has grown constantly during the last few years. At present, CMS DeBacker comprises 15 lawyers specialised in Real Estate Law.

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