Overview
Skadden established a European presence more than 30 years ago with the opening of our London office, followed by offices located in Paris, Brussels, Frankfurt and Munich. This network leverages us to lead some of the most important pan-European deals, driving inbound and outbound investment. We deliver highly efficient, cost-effective and collaborative client service by utilizing our attorneys’ deep knowledge of the region, seamlessly working with our offices around the world in the following areas: M&A, capital markets, private equity, banking, corporate restructuring, investment management, tax, insurance, government enforcement and white collar crime, international litigation and arbitration, EU competition, ESG, financial regulatory, labor and employment, and IP, IT, data protection and cybersecurity.
Our recognition includes:
- Litigation, Arbitration and Dispute Resolution Team of the Year (Law.com British Legal Awards 2023).
- First-ever U.S.-headquartered law firm to top Bloomberg’s rankings of U.K. announced deals (January 2022).
- Corporate Team of the Year and Competition or Antitrust Team of the Year (The Lawyer European Awards 2021).
- Best International Tax Team (Tolley’s Taxation Awards 2023).
- Competition Team of the Year (Legal Business Awards).
- Transatlantic Restructuring Team of the Year, Transatlantic Antitrust Team of the Year, Transatlantic Tax Team of the Year and International Litigation and Arbitration Team of the Year (The American Lawyer and Legal Week Transatlantic Legal Awards).
- International Italian Desk of the Year (TopLegal Awards 2023).
Skadden was one of the first firms to have a full-time U.S. corporate law capability in Europe. With one of the leading M&A practices in the world, we have extensive experience managing complex cross-border issues and the demands of multiple legal and regulatory regimes in Europe, while remaining sensitive to the local environment in which the acquisition entities are established. We have significant and unique experience in structuring and executing challenging transactions throughout Europe. We have an established first-tier capability in Takeover Code-regulated transactions and advise on non-public and private equity-related transactions.
Skadden has a long-established private equity practice combining leading corporate, financing, capital markets, tax, antitrust, IP, employment and regulatory capabilities to advise on all aspects of private equity transactions around the globe for a loyal client base of prominent and highly active investment houses. We also represent businesses owned by our private equity clients, frequently counseling on legal issues that typically arise under private equity ownership and leveraged structures.
Our European Capital Markets Group focuses on providing legal advice to corporate, investment banking and governmental clients. We advise on a variety of capital markets transactions, including initial public offerings, rights offerings, high-yield financings, offerings of regulatory capital and other hybrid securities and other global equity and debt offerings. We counsel clients in nearly every country in the greater European region, the former CIS, the Middle East and Africa, providing transactional and compliance advice in connection with securities offerings under the European Prospectus Directive and U.S. Rule 144A and Regulation S listings on the major European and U.S. stock exchanges.
Our European Banking Group comprises experienced finance lawyers familiar with all aspects of leveraged finance, project finance and other banking products, as well as restructurings. We are well acquainted with the issues associated with senior and mezzanine financings, as well as high-yield debt issuances and the associated intercreditor issues. Working in tandem with lawyers in our capital markets, mergers and acquisitions, and restructuring groups, we are one of the few legal practices in Europe with the ability to combine a leading technical capability in debt financing with combined U.S. and European capital markets experience. Our lawyers have a wealth of experience in advising both lenders and borrowers/sponsors on every aspect of debt financing transactions across all tiers of the capital structure in a wide range of jurisdictions. The group is regularly engaged in the development of new techniques for financing and restructuring transactions when a bespoke solution is required.
Our European Corporate Restructuring Group has a wealth of experience in advising debtors, creditors, and other interested parties on all aspects of distressed debt situations. Given the nature and many ways in which these transactions may evolve (from simple waivers and covenant resets to a multiparty consensual or forced reorganization to liquidation) we often take a cross-disciplinary approach. The group combines often works with our M&A, banking and capital markets teams to advise European enterprises in cross-border, out-of-court restructurings; prenegotiated plans of reorganization; judicial, insolvency restructuring transactions; and bankruptcy proceedings.
Skadden’s European Investment Management Group is a multidisciplinary London-based team servicing a wide range of private capital and asset management clients. Our investment management clients include many of the world’s leading asset managers and investors. The team’s core experience lies in the structuring, establishment and operation of a wide variety of pooled capital enterprises, such as general private equity funds, real estate funds, hedge funds, credit funds, infrastructure funds, investment clubs and managed accounts. Our skills also include advising on capital markets and bespoke capital raising, trading in secondary interests, distressed and recovery scenarios, manager seeding, inception and M&A, compensation structuring for employees and principals, ongoing regulatory and compliance advice, white collar crime issues, spin-outs and the implementation of tailored investment strategies. We were among the first major law firms to become involved in the growth of the hedge fund sector, and we have handled the establishment of numerous multi-strategy firms and global asset management firms. Our lawyers have acted on flotations of fund managers and regularly advise sovereign wealth entities.
Skadden represents insurance and reinsurance companies and their financial advisors and underwriters in a wide variety of corporate transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, public and private financings, restructurings and reorganizations. The firm represents all parties — purchasers, sellers, targets and boards of directors, as well as investment banking firms, financial advisors and financial sponsors — in structuring acquisitions, disposals and mergers, joint ventures, asset transactions (including portfolio transfers, bulk deals and renewal rights deals) and distribution arrangements. Skadden also provides a broad range of regulatory advice to insurance and reinsurance companies, investment banks and other non-insurance entities.
The European International Litigation and Arbitration Group advises on international commercial disputes for multinational companies and major institutions, including arbitrations under bilateral investment treaties, ICC, LCIA and UNCITRAL rules, and under the auspices of all the major international arbitration institutions. The firm’s practice encompasses mediation, conciliation and the representation of clients before the English courts. Our lawyers also have served as arbitrators in a number of complex international arbitrations.
Skadden’s European White Collar Defense and Investigations Group provides wide-ranging advice and representation to corporations and individuals involved in cross-border regulatory investigations and disputes, enforcement actions and internal investigations. The firm defends corporations, directors, officers and employees against allegations in various business contexts and at every stage of the investigation and enforcement process. We have resolved a number of complex parallel proceedings involving criminal, civil and administrative components in multiple jurisdictions, in a wide variety of subject areas.
Skadden’s European Tax Group comprises international tax lawyers based in the key financial centers of London, Paris and Frankfurt. We are one of the few international law firms to provide a combined offering of both domestic and cross-border tax advice within the major European jurisdictions, working together as one team on cross-border matters. Our work focuses on tax advice in connection with M&A and private capital transactions, and we also frequently provide tax advice on real estate-related matters, as well as on behalf of high-net-worth individuals.
Skadden’s London-based practice advises international clients across various industries on IP, IT, data protection and cybersecurity matters. Our lawyers possess the legal and technical knowledge needed to stay consistently ahead of the curve on emerging issues in the sector. We understand that IT, data protection and cybersecurity are now at the heart of most corporate transactions and investigations, and experience in these areas forms an important nexus around which other areas of law are oriented. We assist at every stage of the matter to ensure compliance with applicable privacy, data protection and cybersecurity legal and regulatory frameworks. Our attorneys are often able to anticipate the challenges before they arise, enabling our clients to enact an approach of privacy-by-design on any project.
Skadden’s European labor and employment practice advises businesses and senior executives on a wide range of issues. We also have extensive experience counseling on corporate transactions, including how deal structures may be impacted by employment law, and on mitigating commercial risks.
The European financial regulatory practice works closely with Skadden’s investment management, M&A, capital markets, banking, and white collar defense and investigations practices on a range of matters. The group also gives regulatory advice, on both U.K. domestic and cross-border issues, to a broad range of clients.
Our EU and international competition practice represents clients across a full range of competition law issues raised in the context of multinational M&A and other transaction structures. We also advise in connection with investigations of cartels, abuses of dominant positions and other anticompetitive conduct issues under the EC Merger Regulation.
Drawing on the experience of the firm’s corporate, banking and tax practices, the European Energy and Infrastructure Projects Group provides comprehensive assistance on complex energy transactions. The team represents clients in a broad array of energy matters, including petroleum exploration; production and infrastructure investments; utility and petrochemical sector privatizations; large-scale power plant, pipeline and refinery developments; mergers, acquisitions and corporate financings involving energy companies; and non- or limited-recourse financings for capital intensive energy projects.