Mr Alan Watts > Herbert Smith Freehills LLP > London, England > Lawyer Profile

Using a multidisciplinary approach to partnership law by incorporating its disputes, corporate, employment, and regulatory practices, the partnerships and LLP group at Herbert Smith Freehills LLP is proficient in handling a range of contentious and non-contentious matters including exits, structures, mergers, and disposals, as well as joint ventures and ESG matters. The team predominantly represents clients from the legal and financial services sectors and with its cross-border capabilities and breadth of expertise, has gathered an impressive and growing client roster. Co-leading the department are Malcolm Lombers and Alan Watts – Lombers is adept in advising global consultancies, law firms, hedge funds, and asset managers on international partnership issues, while Watts is instructed by hedge funds, global law firms, and real estate organisations on disputes. The practice also benefits from the expertise of Tim Leaver who is noted for his prowess in contentious, non-contentious, and advisory matters. He frequently leads on setting up LLPs, team moves, and investigations. Nick Wright stands out for his experience acting before the Employment Tribunal and the High Court in partnership disputes, as well as handling transactions, investigations, and outsourcings.

‘Highly skilled and adaptable’, the commercial and corporate litigation team at Herbert Smith Freehills LLP is renowned for its representation of major entities facing significant financial or reputational risk. The ‘consistently brilliant, incisive‘ group also boasts an established class actions practice. The firm’s stellar roster of clients spans a myriad of sectors, from energy and mining to the private equity and TMT. Alan Watts leads and boasts an active cross-border disputes practice, advising on litigation and injunctions across multiple jurisdictions; he specialises in disputes related to reputation, privacy and the misuse of information. Natasha Johnson is a go-to litigator for multi-party disputes, focusing on fraud and negligence claims and economic torts and corporate governance matters. An expert in the technology, consumer and aviation sectors, Gregg Rowan specialises in class actions, while Rachel Lidgate is regularly called upon for IT disputes. Chris Bushell is active in cross-border disputes, while Neil Blake is experienced in the defence of group claims, particularly in the environmental and human rights spaces. Christopher Cox handles disputes around the misuse of confidential information and breach of contract. Julian Copeman, Andrew Cooke and Catherine Emanuel are further key contacts in the team.

Herbert Smith Freehills LLP‘s defamation and reputation management team is renowned for handling complex and high-profile litigation, drawing on the firm’s strong disputes expertise. The group provides strategic advice on both pre-action issues and during proceedings, frequently representing global corporates in sophisticated reputational matters. Led by ‘formidable reputation lawyer’Alan Watts, the practice is ‘able to understand very well the specific nature and demands of a high-profile client and an extremely sensitive matter’.