Watson Farley & Williams LLP‘s offering is headed up by the ’outstanding’ Felicity Jones, who has expertise across the range of corporate and M&A cases and harnesses particular expertise handling various matters relating to individual hotels and portfolios of hotels in the EMEA region. Barry Hembling is a name to note in the team for his abilities in advising hotel and leisure clients on significant construction and development projects. Matt Buxton is particularly active on M&A, joint venture and corporate deals relating to hotels, hospitality and infrastructure, and Thomas Newlyn is also recommended. Richard Hughes departed in January 2025.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Accolades
Client satisfaction: Lawyer & team quality
Client satisfaction: Billing & efficiency
Client satisfaction: Sector knowledge
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
- ‘Very efficient and has a good negotiating style.’
- ‘Barry Hembling does a really good job simplifying complex negotiations and helping them to be resolved and agreed upon very efficiently.’
- ‘A very personal service, they make you feel like they are part of your team, not simply professionals advising. They also have depth, and they always fit into the situation as they've clearly been well-briefed.’
- ‘They show genuine interest in the work they're undertaking.'
- 'Felicity Jones is outstanding and has a comprehensive knowledge of both the hospitality industry as well as corporate advisory. Also, never felt the clock was being watched.’
- ‘Attentive, attention-to-details, experienced, commercial.’
Key clients
- Atogarden
- Formby Hall Hotel and Golf Resort
- Willow MezzCo
- ASB Development Limited
- KE Hotels
- Millennium Hotels and Resorts
- One One Hospitality 1 Limited
- PM29 Real, Unipessoal Lda
- Zaha Hadid Architects
Work highlights
Advising on the £70m+ sale of a five-star luxury Shoreditch hotel to an expanding Swiss private equity fund.
Advising Atogarden Ltd in relation to the development, opening and operation of a creative high-end Korean barbeque restaurant and brand.
Providing construction law advice for a number of hotels within the Millennium Hotels and Resorts portfolio.
Lawyers
Leading partners
The strongest partners in their field, leading on market-leading deals and endorsed by peers and clients alike.
Practice head
Felicity Jones
Other key lawyers
Barry Hembling; Matt Buxton