Legal 500 Venture Capital London

Henry Humphreys, a “helpful and trustworthy” founding partner, is “knowledgeable and experienced in the early-stage venture capital market.” “Simon Bullock is very strong in the UK financial markets.” “Dominic Traynor, in particular, is an exceptional legal advisor, both commercially and practically – his extensive experience in industrial affairs and general negotiability provides information far beyond what is expected of a legal advisor. His legal skills are excellent and he makes effective use of the support team. Ashurst is known for his extensive practice and represents leading issuers, shareholders and investment banks in a number of ECM transactions, particularly in connection with divestments. The firm also has extensive expertise in U.S. securities. Nicholas Holmes is “one of the leading legal minds and legal voices in the London ECM market”. He co-leads the practice with Jennifer Schneck, who advises corporate clients and investment banks on global securities offerings. and Stuart Rubin, whose strengths are international equity markets and M&A transactions in Europe and Asia. Another notable name in the team is Simon Bullock, who is recommended as “very strong in the UK financial markets”. “Watson Farley has a number of partners with varying degrees of experience in different areas of the oil and gas industry and the legal and regulatory systems of different countries.” Goodwin`s strategy a few years ago to hire some of the best names in the industry at many top-tier law firms continues to pay off. This, coupled with its strong corporate/fund finance heritage and US platform, has allowed the company to already have a significant presence in the market, despite its relative performance. Led by David Mardle of London, but also with a strong presence in Cambridge, the team has “impressive expertise and experience” and is able to “handle the most complex transactions with serene authority”.

Ali Ramadan, an expert in the technology sector, benefits from a “very commercial mindset” and illustrates the company`s versatility in this sector, as he is as comfortable for start-ups as for investors in a later scenario. In addition to traditional venture capital mandates in technology and life sciences, Sophie McGrath also focuses on impact investing and “is simply exceptional when it comes to health technology transactions.” Other recommended practitioners include Elizabeth Rhodes, Cambridge “technical, commercial, cool and strategic” associate; the “phenomenal” Andrew Davis, whose workload includes a significant number of transactions in the proptech space; and partner Adam Thatcher, who divides his time between the Cambridge and London offices. While Fladgate LLP previously possessed some expertise in this area, particularly in terms of growth capital, the emergence of Fladgate LLP as a serious venture capital player can be attributed in large part to the arrival of the “amazing” Howard Watt, who joined the firm from Sheridans as a team leader in May 2021. Since then, the firm has advised a number of equity investors and clients on transactions at various stages of the technology financing lifecycle. “Cost-effective, efficient and brutally good at their jobs,” clients are particularly grateful to be able to leverage Watt`s extensive transaction expertise (both in private practice and in-house in a fund), ensuring that the practice “has an up-to-date understanding of what is `normal` in a particular company.” Jagdip Gujral – who has extensive in-house experience – offers a highly commercial service with high added value. Excellent for providing business solutions to the most specific and esoteric legal and business challenges. With an ideal location in the middle market segment, DLA Piper covers the main market of the London Stock Exchange and AIM. The firm advises on transfers between the London Stock Exchange markets and manages issuer and underwriter transactions as well as equity-financed mergers and acquisitions. Another important selling point for the practice is their expertise in the US in London and in the EU. Alex Tamlyn leads the team and his experience includes corporate finance, UK and international offerings, Tier 1 acquisitions and divestitures, systems of arrangement and securities regulation.

Key names on the team include Martin Penn, who handles a number of ECM transactions; and General Counsel Karin Kirschner, whose strengths are AIM and Main Market transactions. Armstrong Teasdale has experience in public markets M&A transactions and has a proven track record of IPOs on AIM, with a focus on the natural resources, life sciences, retail, biotechnology, chemical, e-commerce sectors, financial services and technology. Joan Yu leads the practice and handles key IAM and LSE market files, as well as public takeovers and reverse takeovers. The team has been strengthened by the arrival of Nick Heap from Bird & Bird LLP in 2022, who advises clients on core market, AIM and AQSE exchange matters. and Rashid Gaissin of KPMG Law in Kazakhstan, whose extensive experience includes capital markets issues. Withers LLP provides investors and equity companies with “highly responsive and helpful” advice on mandates throughout the investment lifecycle, particularly in the life sciences and technology sectors. The team is also able to capitalize on the strength of the firm`s retail client base, which is particularly important due to the increasing involvement of family offices investing in the asset class. In addition, practitioners in Boston and San Francisco ensure the team is well positioned to take advantage of the flow of technology and capital across the Atlantic. James Shaw has many years of experience throughout the financing lifecycle for entrepreneurs and investors, leading a team that includes Cambridge`s “extremely smart and highly commercial” Susanna Stanfield, who works for a number of Cambridge-based companies to help them commercialize their scientific discoveries or technologies. “Louis Chenard, in addition to his great skill in legal techniques, demonstrated a very good knowledge of business issues and fundraising practices.

His negotiating skills were also decisive in reaching a conclusion under the right conditions. “A good management team takes a commercial approach to small-cap equity capital markets. “Incredibly strong in venture capital. A great help in our negotiations with the funds. Proskauer Rose LLP offers clients broad and deep private fund expertise with experience working for a range of general practitioners and LPs in the private equity and growth capital, infrastructure, lending and renewable energy sectors. The team`s expertise includes fund creation, fundraising and transactions; She is increasingly making a name for herself in the secondary market, managing a steady stream of incorporations and transactions in this area, including advising funds of funds and continuation funds. Jordan Hurwitz was promoted to Partner in November 2021 and joins the “exceptional” Bruno Bertrand-Delfau as a Supporting Partner in the team. Nigel van Zyl leads the agile team and advises renowned clients on fund set-up and management. Edward Lee is known for his interest in venture capital, while Peter Olds specializes in infrastructure funds.

The firm is recognized for its strength in U.S. substantive matters, and London-based partners often work with partners in the U.S. The group also has a large number of employees, with Christopher Elson chosen for his “calm attitude, balanced views, network and work ethic.” Orrick Rambaud Martel has a strong venture capital and growth capital presence in France, representing a mix of start-ups, growth stage companies and leading investors. The team regularly advises clients on high-value business transactions, both at home and abroad. Known for his experience in technology and internet companies, Benjamin Cichostepski leads the team alongside Olivier Edwards, who has advised emerging companies and venture capital funds for more than two decades. Olivier Vuillod advises start-ups and growth technology companies throughout their lifecycle and has extensive expertise in cross-border transactions. Led by Amit Kataria and a key part of Morrison Foerster`s global emerging companies and venture capital team, which includes key strategic offices in the US and Asia, the London-based team has extensive experience in private equity and growth equities for an investor-focused client base, particularly in financial services, technology and biotechnology. Most of the work takes place later in the investment lifecycle, including a significant volume of work for the company`s primary client, Softbank Vision Fund. “Very competent team, from the partner to the trainee, both from a purely legal point of view and from the point of view of market practice. Business-oriented with pragmatic solutions, very responsive.

Flexible billing terms. D`Ornano + Co. is a specialist in software and e-commerce and advises on cross-border transactions. The firm performs buy-side or sell-side due diligence on LBO, growth and venture capital transactions and provides strategic advice to companies transformed by technology. Founder and Managing Partner, Raphaëlle d`Ornano is an expert in the impact of technology on businesses. Yann Auregan, partner at Ssociate, focuses on mergers and acquisitions.