Noted for its ‘excellent industry knowledge’ and ’very attentive’ approach, Latham & Watkins combines a pedigree in high-end cross-border transactions with deep sector fluency across tech, healthcare, and life sciences. Its global reach and bench strength make it a go-to for complex, often regulated, public company work, with major corporates, private equity houses, and financial institutions consistently turning to the team for support on headline-grabbing deals. The practice is jointly steered by Richard Butterwick, an expert on Takeover Code matters, and Samuel Newhouse, a trusted adviser to multinational corporates and financial institutions on high-profile transactions across the UK, US, Africa, and India. Elsewhere in the team, Edward Barnett, praised as being in a ‘class of his own’, frequently acts on high-value deals across sectors the energy, tech, media, and financial services sectors, while Nick Cline’s practice focuses on advising UK and international companies and boards on M&A, joint ventures and other strategic projects. Farah O’Brien is singled out for her work with later-stage growth investors and sponsors.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Accolades
Client satisfaction
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
'Incredible bench strength. Real quality advice in every area and you never feel you have to put up with something inferior when they call on any specialist area.'
‘Ed Barnett is in a class of his own. Quite an exceptional lawyer and advisor. Great skill and leadership ability. And is always available to clients in the right timescale and in the right way.’
‘Excellent industry knowledge and very attentive and reactive to client concerns (adapting team structure, proposing solutions, ready to work with and coordinate local lawyers when in our best interests).’
‘Experts in the industry, but willing to take time to explain things clearly - they don't just impose their solutions but work with us to find the best ways to meet our business needs. Simon Tysoe is particularly good at this.'
‘The team is led by people whom the Board and I would trust to run the business. The firm is trustworthy and reliable, and amazingly talented at all levels, both sides of the Pond.’
‘Nick Cline and Richard Butterwick are wise, commercially astute, and incredibly responsive. We also found Sarah Gadd a joy to work with on employment law aspects.’
Key clients
- Anglo American plc
- GSK plc
- London Stock Exchange Group plc
- Vodafone Group plc
- Plus500 plc
- Evoke plc
- Manchester United plc
- Tyman plc
- Access Industries
- Canva
- Cadence Design Systems
- Darktrace
Work highlights
Advised FTSE 100 London-listed Darktrace plc on its public-to-private recommended takeover offer by Thoma Bravo.
Advised FTSE 100 London-listed Anglo American plc on two multibillion dollar M&A transactions during 2024.
Advised CVC Capital Partners on its recommended £5.4 billion offer, in a consortium with Nordic Capital and ADIA, for Hargreaves Lansdown plc.
Lawyers
Leading partners
The strongest partners in their field, leading on market-leading deals and endorsed by peers and clients alike.
Practice head
Richard Butterwick, Sam Newhouse
Other key lawyers
Farah O’Brien; Doug Abernethy; Edward Barnett; Nick Cline; Robbie McLaren; Hector Sants