Nick O'Grady > Baker McKenzie > London, England > Lawyer Profile

Instructed by a fairly balanced mix of sponsors, corporates and lenders, Baker McKenzie has developed excellent awareness of the commercial drivers and what is “market” on both the creditor and debtor sides. As well as being skilled at advising on big-ticket bank and bond financings, the team is also very well-versed at advising on private credit funded deals where it is adept at handling a myriad of products including super senior, unitranche and first out/last out. Nick O’Grady has a versatile lender-side practice that includes work for banking syndicates as well as direct lenders, while for borrower instructions Matthew Cox is a popular choice among private equity sponsors on cross-border mid-market deals. Ben Wilkinson co-heads the team alongside O’Grady and Cox.

Baker McKenzie LLP provides a versatile offering to lenders and a growing roster of corporates across the full scope of debt finance products, including those governed under New York and UK law, which ensures it is well positioned to handle big-ticket syndicated corporate lending work and event-driven financings. Nick O’Grady regularly advises large banking syndicates on cross-border acquisition finance and corporate lending transactions and excels in structuring deals in a manner which melds both English and New York law style covenants and documentation. The team also handles emerging markets work, including within Africa, with Luka Lightfoot particularly skilled at advising banks and export credit agencies on providing financing to corporate borrowers and sovereigns across an array of trade and project finance mandates. Former team head Nick Tostivin departed for Pinsent Masons LLP in March 2024.