Tom Nicholls > Stephenson Harwood > London, England > Lawyer Profile
Stephenson Harwood Offices
1 FINSBURY CIRCUS
LONDON
EC2M 7SH
England
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Tom Nicholls
Work Department
Corporate.
Position
His practice includes advising on IPOs and secondary issues (Main Market and AIM) both in London and internationally, public company takeovers, investment funds, domestic and cross border private M&A and advising quoted companies on their obligations to the FCA and the London Stock Exchange. Tom acts both for listed issuers as well as for investment banks and financial advisers in their capacity as sponsors, nomads and brokers.
Reflecting the varied constituents of the London markets, he has advised clients across a number of sectors but has a particular focus on both the technology and natural resources (oil and gas, mining and minerals and energy) sectors.
With regards to M&A, Tom regularly advises on acquisitions and disposals involving both private and listed companies. He also advises clients on general company law issues including corporate governance for public and private companies as well as private fundraisings, joint ventures, investment agreements and a range of commercial contracts.
Tom is consultant editor of “A Practitioner’s Guide to the AIM Rules” published by Sweet & Maxwell and is ranked as a key individual for Capital Markets (mid-cap) by both The Legal 500 and Chambers UK directories.
Lawyer Rankings
London > Corporate and commercial > M&A: Lower Mid-Market Deals, £100m-£750m
Stephenson Harwood‘s corporate offering covers M&A and complex transactions on both the buy and sell-side, particularly for clients in the insurance, financial services, transportation and trade and technology industries. Led by equity capital markets and M&A practitioner Tom Nicholls, the practice’s client roster features listed and private companies and private equity firms. Sam Gray, head of the firm’s corporate finance department, is well-positioned to advise on M&A transactions in the financial services sector, particularly relating to insurance broking clients. The ‘exceptional’ Duncan Stiles assists US and European clients in the manufacturing and technology spaces, while Ben Mercer handles public and private M&A, restructurings and joint ventures across the consumer goods, transportation and energy sectors, to name a few. Other names to note include private M&A specialist Jonathan Bridcut. Kristian Shearsby, who is well-versed in corporate matters relating to the life sciences and technology sectors, joined the team in June 2022 from Mills & Reeve LLP, where he previously headed the corporate team.
London > Corporate and commercial > Equity capital markets – small-mid cap
(Hall of Fame)Stephenson Harwood‘s ‘excellent sector and market knowledge’ makes it a key port of call for equity fundraisings and stock exchange transactions, combining the expertise of the UK-based team with the firm’s presence in Singapore, Hong Kong and Dubai to act on the full spectrum of cross-border work in the space. IPO expertise is another core feature of the team, while the group’s recent deal flow also includes private acquisitions of AIM-listed companies and public M&A transactions. AIM market expert Tom Nicholls leads a team which notably includes David Dowding, who is experienced at advising corporates, investment banks and brokers on main market and AIM IPOs and secondary fundraisings.
Lawyer Rankings
- Equity capital markets – small-mid cap London > Corporate and commercial
- Hall of Fame London > Corporate and commercial > Equity capital markets – small-mid cap
- M&A: Lower Mid-Market Deals, £100m-£750m London > Corporate and commercial
Top Tier Firm Rankings
- Private client > Art and cultural property
- Dispute resolution > Commodities disputes
- Corporate and commercial > Equity capital markets – small-mid cap
- Crime, fraud and licensing > Fraud: civil
- Investment fund formation and management > Listed funds
- Dispute resolution > Tax litigation and investigations
- Employment > Pensions: dispute resolution
- Private client > Personal tax, trusts and probate
- Transport > Rail
Firm Rankings
- Transport > Aviation
- Dispute resolution > Commercial litigation: premium
- Private client > Contentious trusts and probate
- Corporate and commercial > Financial services: contentious
- Dispute resolution > Group litigation: Claimant
- Employment > Pensions (non-contentious)
- Insurance > Professional negligence
- Transport > Shipping
- Finance > Trade finance
- Finance > Transport finance and leasing
- Dispute resolution > Banking litigation: investment and retail
- Corporate and commercial > Commercial contracts
- Employment > Employers
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Intellectual property: patents (contentious and non-contentious)
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Intellectual property: trade marks, copyright and design
- Industry focus > Life sciences and healthcare
- Corporate and commercial > M&A: Lower Mid-Market Deals, £100m-£750m
- Corporate and commercial > Private equity: transactions - mid-market deals (up to £250m)
- Real estate > Property litigation
- Dispute resolution > Public international law
- Risk advisory > Regulatory investigations and corporate crime (advice to corporates)
- Employment > Senior executives
- Corporate and commercial > VAT and indirect tax
- Real estate > Commercial property: investment
- Real estate > Construction: contentious
- Corporate and commercial > Corporate tax
- Risk advisory > Data protection, privacy and cybersecurity
- Employment > Employee share schemes
- Crime, fraud and licensing > Fraud: white-collar crime (advice to individuals)
- Projects, energy and natural resources > Infrastructure: Project finance and development
- Insurance > Insurance and reinsurance litigation
- Dispute resolution > International arbitration
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > IT and telecoms
- Projects, energy and natural resources > Oil and gas
- Projects, energy and natural resources > Power (including electricity, nuclear and renewables)
- Real estate > Property finance
- Investment fund formation and management > Real estate funds
- Public sector > Administrative and public law
- Real estate > Commercial property: development
- Real estate > Construction: non-contentious
- Finance > Corporate restructuring & insolvency
- Insurance > Insurance: corporate and regulatory
- Investment fund formation and management > Private funds
- Finance > Bank lending: investment grade debt and syndicated loans
- Corporate and commercial > EU and competition
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Sport
- Dispute resolution > Tax litigation and investigations
- Real estate > Commercial property: corporate occupiers