Morrison Foerster > London, England > Firm Profile

‘Attentive, thorough and commercially minded.’

‘Their legal knowledge is exceptional and is always delivered in a commercial way which is practical to implement. Associates are incredibly responsive, personable and easy to deal with. They genuinely care about their client.’

‘In depth knowledge and experience of legal aspects of IT contracting and data protection. Excellent client relations and always available. Also great to brainstorm ideas.’

‘Mercedes Samavi is incredibly responsive and a dream to work with. Nothing is ever too much trouble, she will always go the extra mile to ensure the client’s needs are met, and her legal expertise is exceptional and her advice always delivered in a practical, realistic way for the client.’

‘Alistair Maughan and associate Sana Ashcroft are pragmatic, thorough, timely and thoughtful!’

‘Alistair Maughan is friendly, down to earth, and a great client relationship manager.’

‘I was once told by a market participant:”if Morrison Foerster is not busy, then the US private placement market is not busy!”. They by far have the largest market share of cross-border private placement issuers in Europe, and therefore see a significant part of the deal flow which gives them a very competitive edge in advising clients.’

‘Scott Ashton is one of the best lawyers on the street for US private placements. He always exceeds expectations. He is available when needed and extremely detail oriented. He will not hesitate to go the extra mile for clients and will ensure the legal work is delivered on time. Scott is also very technical and his expertise a greatly sought after by the market.

‘Brian Bates is fantastic with clients and has been instrumental in building out the Morrison Foerster Private placement practice. He is incredibly knowledgeable on the market, and is therefore able to provide the best advice to clients. Brian has decades of experience in the PP market and that is quite evident on every transaction I have worked on with him. He is also very reliable and will go over and beyond to meet the needs of issuers.’

‘Morrison Foerster have advised us on repeat US private placement issuances over many years. The team have deep knowledge of the market and we greatly appreciate their support.’

‘We appreciate the support we receive at all levels on the team and value the continuity within the team.’

‘I think the MoFo team is at the forefront of innovation.’

‘Vlad Maly has been our lead partner at MoFo since the beginning. What I highly value in Vlad, is his commercial approach. What I mean by that is focusing on a feasible solution as opposed to a focus on the legal theory.’

‘The Derivatives and Structured Products practice at Morrison & Foerster provides first class legal advice and drafting in relation to large complex derivative transactions requiring an in-depth understanding of any aspect of the transaction, including hedging strategies and trading requirements.’

‘True partners to their clients committed to achieve the best outcomes. Outstanding work ethics, ability to deliver under time-pressure and excellent client management skills.’

‘Very strong team of product specialists focused in the corporate equity derivatives business. Available at short notice and helpful in deal structuring for new product innovation.’

‘Vlad Maly has excellent interpersonal skills and regularly maintains business dialogue with us, supporting the growth ambitions of the business. Vlad is very commercial and understands the current themes of the market well.’

‘We worked with MoFo on two very large deals this year involving cross-border issues. MoFo team was impressive at gathering valuable knowledge on the key points to manage and understand.’

‘Vlad Maly and Polly Ehrman are both really easy to work with, command good technical knowledge and negotiate fluidly on our transactions. They deliver to budget and at the level we require.’

‘Annabel Gillham always responds very promptly and provides excellent and practical advice at a very short notice. Gilham is always quick to recognise the bigger picture and provides advice that is clear and concise.’

‘Annabel Gillham has a great client manner.’

‘Hayley Ichilcik- She’s a very able lawyer whose commercial practice covers a wide range of areas, and she’s adept at each of them; she’s clever, tough, charming and a delight to work with. Clients love her, as does her legal team: she provides encouragement, reassurance and adept handling of the most difficult case. First-rate.’

‘Gareth Rees- With immense regulatory experience, he’s simply statesman-like; and quietly gains the respect of all around him. He has a calm, confident and reassuring manner that only comes through years of experience in fighting at the coal-face. You want him on your team; and you certainly don’t want him on the other side. He’s terrific.’

‘Hayley Ichilcik draws upon a broad range of experience to deliver an A1 service to her clients. Clever and considered advisor who sees the big picture and the important detail.

‘Gareth Rees KC draws upon his experience as an advocate to be able to provide top drawer legal representation to clients.’

‘Hayley Ichilcik is extremely bright and strategically astute. She is adept at advising in the contentious fraud area, whether civil, regulatory or criminal. A calm and confident presence even in the most hostile of environments.’

‘Truly cross-border coverage with consistent quality across each of the jurisdictions is an impressive thing to boast as a firm.’

‘Chris Kandel has knowledge of both the market standard and the latest innovative solutions in the market.’

‘The team is particularly strong in complex structuring and execution of transactions that may need to shift mid deal to accommodate their super demanding clientelle.’

‘They are responsive and go the extra mile.’

‘Chris Kandel is a standout.’

‘Understanding your client is a phrase that is bandied around the legal industry very loosely, but the Morrison Foerster team fundamentally live that ethos.’

‘An outstanding capability to put themselves in the shoes of the client: propose way forwards, solutions, are on track and remain always innovative in legal solutions. Perfect firm to work with.’

‘Gary Brown has all the qualities we look for in a partner. Amazing ability to stay on track on all topics and to be always available. Legal skills are beyond outstanding and relationship with client is the best we can imagine. Has set the perfect standard we’d love to find in all the external counsels we look for. Gary’s spirit and excellence can be seen in all its team members.’

‘Andrew Boyd is fantastic; pragmatic, tons of expertise, and a joy to work with.’

‘Great team, well organised for large multi-jurisdictional matters, and possess a seamless ability to involve the right partners as needed.’

‘Gary Brown displays exceptional matter leadership. Very much an in the detail senior partner. Even at this level responsiveness was incredible.

‘Simon Arlington is knowledgable and responsive.’ 

‘Chloe Kearns is absolutely superb! She’s extremely clever; she’s an excellent lawyer, with a particularly deep knowledge of the financial services regulatory sphere; she’s immensely hard-working; she produces outstanding documents; and is utterly delightful to work with. She would be my first choice for a commercial associate on a tough case.

‘Hayley Ichilcik is a very able lawyer whose commercial practice covers a wide range of areas, and she’s adept at each of them; she’s clever, tough, charming and a delight to work with. Clients love her, as does her legal team: she provides encouragement, reassurance and adept handling of the most difficult cases. First-rate.’

‘MoFo have shown themselves, without exception, to be trustworthy, reliable, committed, and diligent with great attention to detail. They are an absolute pleasure to work with.’

‘Gemma Anderson – dedicated; clever; hard working; a pleasure to work with.’

‘MoFo is a relatively small but very effective team, the partners are very visible and easily accessible to clients, which doesn’t happen at every firm.’

‘The standout partner is Jonathan Wheeler, he’s extremely bright, a great team player and tenacious in pursuit of the client’s objectives.’

‘Morrison & Foerster is an outstanding top-level firm operating in the international arbitration sector. It provides a phenomenal level of service to its clients.’

‘The team works with clients very assertively while maintaining a relaxed environment. The lawyers really knows how to keep the pressure down and focus on the points at issue.‘

‘Whether clients are working with a partner or associate, they know from the start that they know their brief, the procedure and the law. There is no messing around at all; and clients always know where they stand as far as fees are concerned.’

‘Real value for money. I find their responses to any query to be very prompt, and the lawyers are never late or delay the work. In short, from the outset clients know they are in good hands.’

‘Chiraag Shah is supremely hardworking, giving his all for his clients. He is also extremely experienced, and seems to have encountered every problem before – he is therefore a very safe pair of hands for any dispute, no matter how complicated.’

‘Chiraag Shah is an exceptionally bright lawyer – very efficient and highly professional, but at the same time very friendly.‘

‘‘Chiraag Shah’s combination of humility and excellence are very unique.’

‘Chiraag Shah – very focused and intelligent. Shows strong analytical skills and rapidly gains an understanding of clients’ industry sectors and their particular demands.‘

‘Mofo is top for employment law globally.’

‘Extremely happy with the service and could not speak more highly.’

‘The advice is always spot-on, from the mundane to the most highly technical and sensitive cases.’

‘Strong alignment and consistency of individuals to clients which means there is deep understanding of the business and client needs as well as the specific legal implications.’

‘Individuals look to engage beyond the specific legal ask to ensure there is continuity and strong relationships.’

‘Always responded promptly, provided proper legal advice, assisted in settling matter with rapidity.’