Lewis Silkin maintains a strong position in the London market with a well-experienced corporate practice that covers an array of transactions. The group is adept at handling high-profile, high-value, multi-jurisdictional deals including public and private M&A on the buy- and sell-side, divestments, and management buy-outs, as well as restructurings, share capital transfers, and investments for an impressive and expanding client roster comprised of notable names from the technology, financial services, and advertising and marketing sectors. Media and entertainment expert Paul Rajput heads up the department and is recognised for his M&A prowess, regularly advising on complex transactions involving foreign jurisdictions, earn-out and retention arrangements, and regulatory elements. Jo Evans is another key member of the team and concentrates on M&A, growth plans, and exit strategies, while Gavin McNaughton stands out for his breadth of expertise which spans M&A, joint ventures, and debt financing. Other core practitioners include Sadiq Tajbhai, Karish Andrews, and Joe Lythgoe.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
‘Stand out individuals are Sadiq Tajbhai, Matthew Rowbotham, and Joe Lythgoe. They are knowledgeable, conscientious, diligent, dependable and fun!’
‘Karish Andrews is very pragmatic, fun to work with, and good across all areas. He is also a good manager of his team.’
‘High quality, professional service. Each team member was knowledgeable and offered a bespoke service. Client interaction was strong and geared to individual requirements.’
‘Professional, knowledgeable. The individuals spent time to fully understand our requirements in order to provide the most efficient service. Individuals were able to act with autonomy without the requirement to have multiple staff involved in every conversation.’
‘Amazing team in terms of legal advice, creativity, and reactivity. I would work with none other in the UK.’
‘Paul Rajput is the Rolls Royce of legal advice in the UK. We have worked with him for more than 20 years. His business acumen is unparalleled.’
‘Gavin McNaughgton was brilliant across all 3 deals. His attention to detail was excellent and ability to jump from one deal to the next was immensely helpful to us.’
‘Very commercial, excellent sector knowledge, proactive, excellent drafting, and worked very hard to help bring the acquisition to fruition.’
'Proactive, thoughtful, empathetic but also objective at the right times.'
'They took the time to really understand what it was we wanted from the deal, and what was less important to us. This meant that we were able to move quickly and close the deal on a timeline that really worked for us.'
Key clients
- Sideshow Group Limited
- Wildstone Development Ltd
- Publicis Groupe SA
- Havas SA
- Sopra Steria SA
- Next 15 Group Plc
- Haymarket Media
- Banijay UK Productions
- Valeo SE
- Norstella Group
- The Hoffman Agency
- Futurlab
- The Bot Platform
- Telementum Global LLC
- The shareholders of Driveright Limited
- The shareholders in 59 Group
- Novate Global Markets Limited
- Safe Sign Technologies
- Shareholders of FDM
- Rezonate Masters Limited
Work highlights
Advised Publicis Groupe on various acquisitions including that of Mars United Commerce.
Advised Havas on its 51% share acquisition with put and call options over the balancing 49% of DMPG.
Advised the founders of FuturLab on its sale to Miniclip.
Lawyers
Hall of Fame
The lawyers at the very top of the profession, widely known and respected by peers and clients for their longstanding involvement in market-leading work.
Leading partners
The strongest partners in their field, leading on market-leading deals and endorsed by peers and clients alike.
Jo Evans
Practice head
Paul Rajput
Other key lawyers
Jo Evans; Gavin McNaughton; Sadiq Tajbhai; Karish Andrews; Joe Lythgoe; Barnaby Stokes; Matthew Rowbotham