‘Excellent, reliable and commercially astute’, the team at Dentons is co-chaired by Simon Masri who is noted for his expertise in structured investment acquisitions, joint ventures and disposals in the hospitality sector. The wider team boasts significant expertise in multijurisdictional refinancing, acquisitions, disposals, and franchising as well as contentious insolvency work. Fellow co-chair Matthew Tinger advises on corporate real estate in the hotels and leisure sector. Other key figures include global retail and franchise group chair Babette Märzheuser-Wood, and Laura Gowing, who leverages her extensive experience advising on investment, finance and development transactions.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
‘Very commercial team, extremely responsive and provide sound advice on key commercial / judgement areas of contracts.’
‘The firm offers a full 360 degree service in all areas of law and hence have been able to introduce me to other partners/lawyers that I have needed in other areas of my business.’
‘The individuals knowledge of the law goes without question however both partners we worked with have been rather entrepreneurial. Offering support on strategy and making us aware of any pitfalls in our strategy. They both went above and beyond our expectations.’
‘Professional, proactive and responsive. Dentons are a tier 1 firm and are attentive to us on legal matters. The team has a blend of experienced and younger lawyers which is also positive to see.’
‘We have worked with Simon Masri and Matthew Tinger on real estate transactions in the hotel sector. They are very well known in the industry and in the hotel M&A world.’
‘Excellent client service; market knowledge; partner attention and cost sensitivity. ’
‘We have dealt with Dentons for several years now and they have continued to impress in terms of the quality of people employed, advice given, and the ability to put resource onto a project / transaction when deadlines need to be met. ’
‘Simon Masri has continued to be our main point of contact and he has continued to excel in terms of advice provided. We have had several scenarios arise where his proactive and commercial advice has allowed us to successfully get over challenges in respect of transactions.’
Key clients
- Aprirose
- Exclusive Hotels
- Arora Group
- Topland
- KSL Capital Partners
- Z Hotels
- Hilton
- Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation
- Village Hotels
- Malmaison and Hotel du Vin
Work highlights
Advising HSBC on £232m term facilities agreement between, amongst others, HSBC UK Bank plc and OakNorth Bank plc as lenders and Splendid Hospitality Group LLP (a UK hotel group) as borrower.
Advising Aprirose Real Estate Investment on £53m sale of the The Queens Hotel in Leeds, together with the hotel operations, to Swedish investor, Pandox.
Assited Kempinski with the structuring and implementation of their first ever franchise agreement. This was a major strategic project for our client involving advisory work at the highest level working with the special envoy of the King of Bahrain, his Excellency Aymen Almoayed and the entire legal team at Kempinski.
Lawyers
Leading partners
The strongest partners in their field, leading on market-leading deals and endorsed by peers and clients alike.
Next Generation Partners
Junior partners with significant recognition from clients and peers in the market and key roles on multiple matters.
Practice head
Simon Masri; Matthew Tinger
Other key lawyers
Laura Gowing; Babette Märzheuser-Wood