The Legal 500 > United Kingdom - Solicitors > Wales > Corporate and commercial

Headed on the corporate front by Stephen Berry  and Paul Lowe, and for commercial work by Craig Griffiths,  Acuity Law's 11-partner team has the strength-in-depth to handle a wide range of transactional and ongoing commercial work within targeted industry sectors, including healthcare, education and renewable energy. The opening of a new office in London during 2018 (following the merger with two boutique firms) is testament to the firm's growing ambitions and need to service a client base that often extends way beyond its Welsh base of operations. Other noted partners include Christian Farrow, who excels at handling corporate deals in the renewables sector, and Phillip Pugh, whose focus on early stage work has led to his involvement on behalf of a number of university spin-out companies. Clients also continue to benefit from the firm’s in-house legal support subscription-based service - Acuity Counsel.

Led on the corporate front by the ‘very experienced and accomplished’ Robert Cherry, Blake Morgan LLP has strong ties in the local market and beyond for a varied mix of corporates, private equity sponsors and SMEs. Although the firm is active across the spectrum of industry sectors, it has a particular niche acting for owner-managers in the health and social care sectors. James Williams has an excellent reputation in the local market and, alongside senior associate Richard Jones ,  has recently handled numerous mandates for management teams on investments by UK and US private equity firms. Penri Desscan leads the firm’s commercial offering and is particularly well-known for her procurement work.

The ‘entrepreneurial and pragmatic’ team at Capital Law Limited provides 'very commercial advice' across public company M&A and private equity work, both locally and outside of Wales. Formerly in-house at 3i, ‘responsive and accessible’ senior partner Duncan Macintosh has superb insight into work for sponsors and investee companies, and is a key member of the team that also includes Alys Carlton and Tom Kelleher, both of whom handle most of the day-to-day mandates and co-lead the corporate department. Associate Laura Spendiff has a flourishing reputation in the SME space, and has a focus on early-stage investment work and spin-out and venture capital investments.

With three partners focused on handling corporate work from the firm's Cardiff office, and also able to leverage a significant national and international presence, Eversheds Sutherland (International) LLP is particularly strong at handling upper/mid-market transactional work, often without a connection to the Welsh market. The firm is particularly strong at handling investments by private equity sponsors in the financial services and renewable energy sectors. Team head Paul Pugh has an excellent reputation for handling fintech M&A, while Michelle Davies and Charles Reynard  regularly lead on the firm's energy-related M&A matters.

Geldards LLP has a particularly strong reputation handling transactional work within the public sector, where key clients include the Welsh government and the Development Bank of Wales. In the private sector, the firm has a strong and growing reputation handling corporate and commercial work within heavily regulated sectors, including gaming and healthcare. Team head Andrew Morris has an excellent reputation among local corporates, as does Geraint Tilsley, who is also noted for his growing reputation for private equity and venture capital matters. Chris Williams leads on the commercial front.

Headed by the 'experienced' Gerallt Jones,  Hugh James' six-partner team has the strength in depth to enable a significant degree of specialisation to both domestic and international clients across an array of corporate and commercial matters. Greg Williams has developed a significant niche in relation to healthcare M&A work, and is a key member of the team that also includes Aled Walters , who is able to parlay his vast media (he was formerly in-house counsel at S4C) and gaming sector knowledge to good effect on corporate and commercial matters.

Leveraging its strong ties with the local business community and beyond, Swansea headquartered firm Morgan LaRoche provides a ‘first-rate service’ across the spectrum of corporate and commercial work for SMEs and owner-managed businesses. Team head William Barletta has vast transactional experience in the waste recycling and healthcare sectors, and also regularly handles work for professional services businesses on matters including partnership reorganisations and restructurings. Christopher Evans splits his time between the Swansea and Carmarthen offices, and has successfully cultivated a strong west Wales-based client base which are appreciative of his Welsh language skills.

Ince's Wales corporate team is led by Theresa Grech, who joined the firm in early 2018 after previous stints as a partner at two other prominent firms in the South West. The recent merger of Gordon Dadds and Ince means the Cardiff-based team is able to draw on expertise from a large corporate group in London, as well as lawyers in the wider firm's international network. The practice focuses on work for small to medium-sized private companies, including family-owned businesses and start-ups. Grech works in tandem with Melanie Kincaid, who heads up the firm's corporate support service, which handles company secretarial, corporate law and governance issues.