King & Spalding LLP > London, England > Firm Profile

King & Spalding LLP > The Legal 500 Rankings

Dispute resolution > International arbitration Tier 1

King & Spalding LLP 'deservedly has a leading reputation'. Instructed for both investment treaty and commercial arbitration cases, the London practice acts for large energy and natural resources corporations, as well as clients from the industrial, infrastructure and construction industries. The team also acts for governments on a repeat basis. The practice showcases four silks, being: 'great strategist' Thomas Sprange KC, who routinely acts for corporations, sovereign states, financial institutions and individuals in complex disputes; John Savage KC, whose track record includes approximately 200 arbitrations around the world; Ben Emmerson CBE KC, a public international law specialist; and international commercial and investment disputes expert Ruth Byrne KC. Other key practitioners are international arbitration and trade expert, Sajid Ahmed; construction arbitration specialist Shareena Edmonds; and Vincent Rowan, who focuses on the resolution of construction and engineering disputes. In January 2023, international commercial and investment treaty arbitration practitioner Simon Maynard was elevated to counsel.

Projects, energy and natural resources > Oil and gas Tier 2

King & Spalding LLP advises across all aspects of the oil and gas sector including upstream, midstream, LNG, downstream and petrochemicals, and is well-experienced advising through the entire life cycle of major projects. Nikhil Markanday is a key name for major oil & gas projects including refinery, LNG, and cross-border pipelines. Martin Hunt is highly experienced on M&A, acquisitions and joint venture transactions in the sector. On the contentious side, Thomas Sprange KC and John Savage KC are go-to names for international arbitration and litigation arising in the oil & gas space.

Real estate > Construction: contentious Tier 2

King & Spalding LLP specialises in handling complex domestic and international disputes, with significant emphasis on the energy and infrastructure sectors. The department’s expertise spans the key areas of construction, tackling problems such as involving disruption, cost overruns, defects, warranties and performance guarantees. The practice helmed by Shareena Edmonds and Vincent Rowan. Edmonds concentrates on international arbitration and the resolution of disputes stemming from major international energy and infrastructure projects, particularly oil, gas, power, offshore and shipbuilding projects, while Rowan focuses on the management and resolution of complex construction and engineering disputes. Andrea Stauber primarily deals with complex international commercial disputes, especially those in the construction, engineering, infrastructure, and energy sectors.

Corporate and commercial > M&A: Lower Mid-Market Deals, £100m-£750m Tier 3

Instructed by global corporations and private equity firms, the corporate, finance and investments team at King & Spalding LLP offer extensive experience in technology, financial services, real estate and energy M&A. The team is headed up by the veteran corporate practitioner William Charnley, who steers the team across public and private M&A, securities matters, flotations and private equity transactions. 'Very good and commercially minded', Marcus Young is recommended for his experience in the structuring and negotiating of M&A, joint ventures and regulatory and compliance issues across the oil and gas, pharmaceuticals, transport and payments sectors. The team has recently been bolstered by the arrivals of Amit Kataria, former corporate practice head at Morrison Foerster. Kataria - who works between London and New York - is sought out by financial sponsors and corporations for assistance in cross-border transactions and corporate advisory work. Paul Barron, who also serves as a member of the firm’s private equity team, joined from Dickson Minto WS in October 2022.

Crime, fraud and licensing > Fraud: civil Tier 3

King & Spalding LLP is distinguished for representing well-known corporations, sovereign wealth funds and high-net-worth clients. Working across a diversity of sectors, the team deals with complex fraud cases often involving freezing orders, disclosure orders, asset recovery and enforcement. The team is co-led by Thomas Sprange KC, a noted specialist in complex disputes of a cross-border nature, and Sarah Walker, an expert in large-scale project disputes with extensive experience in the financial services, aviation and IT sectors. Ruth Byrne KC focuses on commercial and investment disputes in the energy and life sciences and industry, while Egishe Dzhazoyan  leverages his multi-faceted legal background to advise on disputes containing cross-border dimensions and political risk related matters.

Dispute resolution > Public international law Tier 3

King & Spalding LLP‘s London office is routinely involved in high-profile inter-state disputes involving territorial issues, along with investment treaty arbitrations and state immunities. The practice also houses experts in international criminal justice and international human rights law. Practice leader Ben Emmerson KC is 'an exceptionally good advocate'; Thomas Sprange KC is an expert in cases concerning sovereign immunity, acts of state, and conflicts of law; and John Savage KC specialises in international arbitration. Also highly regarded, Sajid Ahmed assists with international arbitration and trade issues; Giorgio Mandelli acts in investment arbitrations; and counsel Peter Hood is a PIL specialist.

Projects, energy and natural resources > Power (including electricity, nuclear and renewables) Tier 3

King & Spalding LLP‘s team has capabilities handling large-scale mandates in the power sector, both at domestic and international level. Its renewables and alternative energy practice has been growing alongside its established conventional energy oil and gas practice. Alongside the team’s abilities in advising its roster of clients on M&A, project finance and project development and construction, it also has significant experience handing related disputes. The offering is headed up by Thomas K. Sprange KC, John Savage KC and Kelly Malone, who specialises in project finance. Nikhil Markanday also has expertise in this area, having worked on complex power generation and cross-border pipeline projects.

Risk advisory > Regulatory investigations and corporate crime (advice to corporates) Tier 4

Acting for clients across the retail, energy, and property sectors, King & Spalding LLP is highly experienced in financial crime cases for top-end companies and financial institutions. The practice demonstrates considerable strength in the sanctions and export control sphere, along with using its bench strength on both sides of the Atlantic to its advantage in US-UK mandates. Aaron Stephens heads the team, consistently assisting clients facing financial crime investigations and compliance challenges, while Margaret Nettesheim focuses on cross-border regulatory proceedings. Former co-head Robert Dedman left the firm in December 2022.

Corporate and commercial > Financial services: contentious Tier 5

King & Spalding LLP‘s bench strength on both sides of the Atlantic gives the firm a distinct advantage when handling US-UK mandates, and the team is consequently highly regarded for such contentious regulatory work. Practice head Aaron Stephens‘ dual qualification in the US and the UK is further emblematic of the group’s focus.

Dispute resolution > Commercial litigation: premium Tier 5

King & Spalding LLP's London litigation practice is widely lauded for its track record of high-value and complex work, advising clients across sectors including real estate, energy, aviation, financial services, tech and commodities. The in-house advocacy abilities of the team are demonstrated by presence of four KCs, including Thomas K. Sprange KC, who leads the team alongside 'smart, charming, and responsive' Sarah Walker.

Finance > Acquisition finance Tier 6

Enhanced by a spate of recent hires, King & Spalding LLP's London offering is an increasingly credible proposition for lenders and borrowers engaged in cross-border leveraged finance mandates, particularly those involving a combination of US and UK debt products (where it can call on the firm’s long-established US platform). Richard Kitchen, who joined alongside the ‘brilliant’ Amin Doulai  from Paul Hastings LLP in August 2022, was one of the most notable of these in light of his private credit expertise. Kitchen now co-heads the team alongside Benoit Lavigne , who himself has considerable leveraged and private credit expertise on both lender and borrower fronts.

Crime, fraud and licensing > Fraud: white-collar crime (advice to individuals)

India > Foreign firms Tier 2

King & Spalding LLP’s India group is regularly instructed to advise on disputes and transactional mandates for a wide variety of clients, both domestic companies and international corporates. The energy sector is a notable area of expertise for the team, which assists India-based companies on oil and gas as well as renewable energy matters; aviation and tech are other key focus sectors. The team is jointly led by Atlanta-based M&A expert Rahul Patel and London’s Amit Kataria, who joined from Morrison Foerster in September 2022 alongside counsel Sunandini Das, significantly strengthening the group’s transactional offering. In Singapore, Parveet Singh Gandoak is another key name for transactional work.

Singapore > Projects: foreign firms Tier 2

With a solid track record in handling upstream and downstream projects, King & Spalding LLP’s corporate, finance and investments team is well known for representing export credit agencies and financial institutions in oil and gas, LNG and petrochemical mandates. High-value financings, project-specific acquisitions, joint ventures and divestments are key areas of instruction for the group, which is also adept at assisting with renewable energy, water and transport sector matters. Simon Cowled focuses on cross-border energy and infrastructure, M&A, and project finance transactions, and is a key practitioner in the Singapore office; he co-heads the practice with Tokyo-based lawyers Mark Davies and John McClenahan. Kelly Malone is now based in the firm's London office. In May 2023 Richard Nelson left the firm.

United Arab Emirates > Dispute resolution: arbitration and international litigation

King & Spalding LLP leverages its considerable international network to handle multi-jurisdictional disputes, with a specialism in financial services, energy and construction cases. Professional negligence and fraud issues are other key components of the firm's work, and its strong bench of practitioners have a wealth of experience across domestic and international court systems. Ben Williams handles a range of cases for international energy companies and financial institutions. Associate Kateryna Frolova is also highly active, and has considerable experience acting in disputes involving governments and public bodies. Adam Gray relocated to Dubai from the firm's Austin office.