Corporate and Commercial

Introduction:

We combine deep legal expertise with a practical understanding of business to help clients navigate complex corporate and commercial challenges. From strategic transactions and joint ventures to regulatory compliance and corporate governance, we deliver solutions that are both commercially sound and legally robust.

Our approach is collaborative and client-focused: we take the time to understand your business, sector, and objectives so that every recommendation is tailored, proactive, and results-driven. Whether advising fast-growing innovators, multinational enterprises, or established market leaders, our team provides clear guidance, strategic insight, and hands-on support to help you achieve your goals.

With experience spanning domestic and cross-border transactions, our lawyers draw on both technical expertise and sector knowledge to tackle complex issues efficiently and effectively. Above all, we focus on creating value, building relationships, and delivering the right outcomes, getting the right deal done

Regulatory and Compliance

Navigating today’s complex regulatory landscape requires more than legal expertise, it demands a practical understanding of your business and its global context. Our Regulatory & Compliance team helps clients anticipate and manage risks across sectors and jurisdictions, providing guidance on reporting, trade, sanctions, anti-money laundering, and broader regulatory obligations.

We work closely with clients to design and implement compliance frameworks, conduct due diligence, and manage internal investigations, helping to prevent issues before they arise. When challenges do occur, we offer experienced representation in regulatory inquiries and enforcement actions, always with a focus on practical, business-oriented solutions.

With deep knowledge of local and international regulatory regimes, our lawyers combine technical expertise with strategic insight. We guide companies through evolving requirements, ensuring compliance without hindering growth, and helping them operate confidently in an increasingly regulated world.

Commercial Disputes

Disputes are an unfortunate reality of business, but with the right guidance, their impact can be managed effectively. Our Commercial Disputes team combines legal expertise with a deep understanding of your business and sector to provide pragmatic, commercially focused solutions.

We advise on a wide range of matters, from contractual and supplier disputes to intellectual property and commercial property issues. Whether through negotiation, mediation, arbitration, or litigation, we adopt a measured approach, aiming to achieve the most effective outcome while controlling cost and risk.

Our team works closely with clients to align strategy with commercial objectives, ensuring decisions are informed, proportionate, and focused on resolution. With extensive experience across domestic and international markets, we are equipped to manage disputes of any scale, guiding clients with clarity, confidence, and control throughout the process.

Intellectual Property

In an increasingly interconnected and innovative world, intellectual property is a vital business asset. Our Intellectual Property team helps clients capture, protect, and commercialise their innovations and creative output, providing practical, commercially focused advice at every stage of the IP lifecycle.

We work across a wide range of sectors, from technology, biotech, and pharmaceuticals to entertainment, luxury brands, and consumer goods. Whether advising on trade marks, copyright, patents, licensing, or IP disputes, our approach is tailored to the unique needs of each client, combining technical expertise with a clear understanding of commercial objectives.

Our team also supports clients on complex projects and transactions, ensuring that IP considerations are fully integrated into wider business strategies. By helping clients safeguard and maximise the value of their intellectual assets, we enable them to maintain a competitive edge, manage risk, and capitalise on opportunities in both domestic and international markets.

Commercial Advisory

Our Commercial Advisory team helps businesses navigate the full spectrum of commercial and corporate matters, providing clear, practical advice tailored to your objectives. We work with businesses of all sizes, from start-ups to established corporates, across a wide range of sectors, ensuring that commercial decisions are legally sound and aligned with your strategic goals.

We advise on contracts, transactions, and business arrangements, helping clients manage risk, protect assets, and create certainty in their commercial relationships. Our experience covers a variety of agreements, including:

• Terms and Conditions
• Service and Sub-Contract Agreements
• Agency and Distribution Agreements
• Joint Venture and Collaboration Agreements
• Franchise Agreements
• Confidentiality Agreements
• Investment Agreements
• Factoring and Finance Agreements

Having robust agreements in place from the outset provides clarity, limits exposure, and protects your intellectual property. Our team guides clients through the appropriate contract structures, ensuring they are fit for purpose and reflective of each party’s intentions.

We also support businesses with raising finance, drafting security arrangements, and navigating related corporate and regulatory obligations. Beyond individual transactions, our Commercial Advisory lawyers offer practical guidance on wider business laws affecting day-to-day operations, including the Sale of Goods, Supply of Services, and international trade.

Our focus is on delivering commercial solutions that help businesses operate with confidence, make informed decisions, and seize opportunities in a complex legal and business environment.

Financial Contracts

Our Financial Contracts team provides expert guidance on the drafting, negotiation, and management of financial agreements, helping clients navigate complex commercial and regulatory landscapes. We work with banks, financial institutions, corporates, and investment funds to structure contracts that are legally robust, commercially sound, and tailored to each client’s objectives.

We advise on a wide range of financial arrangements, including:

• Loan and credit agreements
• Security documents and guarantees
• Derivatives and hedging contracts
• Investment and subscription agreements
• Securitisation and structured finance documentation
• Debt restructuring and refinancing agreements

By combining technical legal expertise with a clear understanding of commercial and sector-specific considerations, we ensure that financial contracts are carefully aligned with our clients’ business strategies. Our team also provides support in managing regulatory obligations, risk allocation, and dispute prevention within financial agreements.

Whether negotiating complex cross-border financing, advising on the structuring of investment transactions, or reviewing standardised agreements, we aim to deliver practical, proactive solutions that protect value and support business objectives. Our focus is on clarity, precision, and efficiency, helping clients operate confidently in dynamic financial markets.

Settlement Contracts

Our Settlement Contracts team provides expert guidance to employees and employers on legally binding settlement agreements, helping resolve workplace disputes efficiently and fairly. We advise on the terms of financial settlements, ensuring that clients understand their rights, obligations, and the implications of entering into a legally binding agreement.

Settlement agreements are designed to formally conclude employment relationships, often including financial compensation and additional benefits such as references or agreed confidentiality terms. While they offer the opportunity to leave on favourable terms, they also require careful consideration, as signing typically means giving up the right to bring employment claims or pursue tribunal action.

Our team works closely with clients to:

• Review and explain the terms of settlement agreements
• Negotiate fair and reasonable outcomes with employers
• Ensure compliance with statutory requirements and legal obligations
• Advise on the broader commercial and personal implications of the agreement

With extensive experience across sectors and locations throughout England and Wales, our solicitors provide fast, practical, and high-quality advice. We guide clients through the process with clarity, helping them make informed decisions while safeguarding their interests.

Trading and Business Arrangements

Our Trading and Business Arrangements team advises clients on the full spectrum of commercial relationships, helping businesses structure, manage, and optimise their trading operations. We provide practical, commercially focused guidance that aligns with your business objectives and mitigates risk.

We assist with a wide range of arrangements, including:

• Supplier and distribution agreements
• Franchise and licensing arrangements
• Agency and joint venture agreements
• Commercial partnerships and collaborations
• International trade agreements and cross-border contracts

Our approach combines legal expertise with a clear understanding of commercial realities, ensuring that agreements are not only legally sound but also practical and tailored to your business needs. We guide clients through negotiation, drafting, and execution, providing clarity on obligations, risk allocation, and dispute prevention.

Whether you are establishing new trading relationships, expanding into international markets, or reviewing existing contracts, we help you achieve secure and commercially effective arrangements. Our focus is on delivering solutions that protect your business, support growth, and create lasting value.

Corporate Restructuring

Our Corporate Restructuring team advises businesses, directors, and stakeholders on navigating complex financial and operational challenges. We combine legal expertise with commercial insight to deliver practical, tailored solutions that protect value, manage risk, and support sustainable outcomes.

We guide clients through all aspects of restructuring, including reorganisations, debt arrangements, mergers and acquisitions, and insolvency-related processes. Whether a business is under financial pressure or pursuing growth opportunities, we help design strategies that are clear, compliant, and commercially effective.

Our team works closely with all parties involved, from creditors and investors to employees and regulators, to ensure smooth execution of restructuring plans. We focus on balancing legal requirements with strategic objectives, helping clients make informed decisions with confidence.

Key services include:

• Developing and implementing restructuring strategies
• Advising on reorganisations, mergers, and divestments
• Supporting Company Voluntary Arrangements and administrations
• Negotiating with creditors, investors, and other stakeholders
• Addressing employment issues, TUPE, and redundancies
• Ensuring compliance with corporate governance and insolvency law
• Providing guidance on regulatory approvals and notifications
• Assisting with post-restructuring governance and transition

Our approach is proactive, pragmatic, and results-driven, giving clients the clarity and support they need to manage change successfully and achieve their business objectives.

Joint Ventures

Our Joint Ventures team helps businesses create and manage strategic partnerships that maximise value, share risk, and combine expertise. We provide practical, commercially focused advice on the formation, operation, and exit of joint ventures, ensuring that our clients’ interests are protected at every stage.

We work with a variety of structures, including companies, limited partnerships, and limited liability partnerships, often involving multiple parties across different jurisdictions. Our team supports clients throughout the lifecycle of these arrangements, from initial structuring and negotiation to governance, regulatory compliance, and, where necessary, exit or dispute resolution.

Our approach is collaborative and sector-informed. We draw on experience in industries such as natural resources, technology, and finance to design arrangements that reflect both commercial goals and legal requirements. We also coordinate with international advisors when offshore or cross-border structures are needed, ensuring seamless implementation.

Key services include:

• Structuring joint ventures and partnerships
• Drafting and negotiating partnership, shareholder, and membership agreements
• Advising on sales, acquisitions, and exit strategies
• Resolving partner disputes and addressing non-performance
• Coordinating cross-border and offshore arrangements
• Integrating intellectual property, real estate, and financing considerations

By combining legal expertise with commercial insight, our team helps clients establish joint ventures that are robust, flexible, and aligned with their long-term strategic objectives.

⁠Corporate Finance

Our Corporate Finance team advises businesses, investors, and financial institutions on all aspects of corporate funding, ensuring transactions are structured efficiently, compliantly, and strategically. We provide practical guidance on complex financing arrangements, helping clients achieve their commercial objectives while managing risk.

We assist with a wide range of corporate finance matters, including:

• Equity and debt fundraising
• Acquisition and leveraged finance
• Structured and project finance
• Debt restructuring and refinancing
• Security arrangements and guarantees
• Investment agreements and shareholder financing

Our team works closely with clients throughout the lifecycle of a transaction, from initial structuring and negotiation to documentation and completion. We combine technical legal expertise with commercial insight to ensure that financing arrangements are robust, clear, and aligned with broader business goals.

We also provide advice on regulatory, governance, and compliance issues, supporting clients in navigating the complexities of domestic and cross-border transactions. Whether advising corporates, private equity investors, or financial institutions, our focus is on delivering practical, results-driven solutions that enable clients to secure capital, execute transactions, and grow their businesses with confidence.

Debt Structuring

Our Debt Structuring team advises clients across the capital structure on managing financial distress, refinancing, and complex funding arrangements. We work with corporates, boards, management teams, sponsors, banks, lenders, noteholders, and institutional investors to deliver practical, commercially focused solutions.

We handle a broad range of matters, including:

• Liability management exercises and debt restructurings
• Out-of-court and in-court restructurings
• New capital raises, exchange offers, and debt exchanges
• Acquisitions of distressed companies or assets
• Equity-linked and structured finance transactions
• Rescue financings and insolvency-related matters
• Litigation risk assessment and mitigation

Our team has extensive experience with a wide spectrum of financial instruments, including leveraged finance, high yield debt, project finance, real estate finance, derivatives, securitisations, and structured products. We combine technical expertise with innovative structuring solutions to address clients’ challenges, protect value, and optimise outcomes.

We support clients across industries such as energy, natural resources, retail, consumer, financial services, industrials, aviation, and shipping. By drawing on our firm-wide expertise in litigation, tax, regulatory compliance, M&A, employment, and pensions, we deliver fully integrated, end-to-end solutions globally.

Our focus is on providing tailored, practical advice that preserves and enhances value, helping clients navigate complex financial situations with confidence.

⁠Group Restructuring

Our Group Restructuring team advises corporate groups on reorganisations, streamlining operations, and optimising corporate structures to support growth, efficiency, and strategic objectives. We provide practical, commercially focused guidance across the full lifecycle of a restructuring, helping clients navigate complex legal, regulatory, and operational considerations.

We work with businesses on a wide range of group restructuring matters, including:

• Internal reorganisations and corporate simplification
• Mergers, demergers, and spin-offs
• Cross-border restructurings and international structuring
• Intra-group transfers of assets, liabilities, and shares
• Governance, compliance, and regulatory considerations
• Tax-efficient structuring and operational optimisation

Our team collaborates closely with directors, management, and other advisors to design strategies that minimise risk, maximise value, and maintain operational continuity. We focus on delivering solutions that are legally robust, commercially sensible, and tailored to the specific needs of each group.

Whether responding to business growth, operational realignment, or regulatory requirements, our Group Restructuring team helps clients implement effective, sustainable changes that support long-term success.

Corporate Formation

Our Corporate Foundation team advises clients on the establishment, governance, and management of corporate foundations and charitable entities. We provide practical, commercially minded guidance to ensure that foundations operate effectively, comply with legal and regulatory requirements, and align with the philanthropic objectives of the business or its stakeholders.

We support a wide range of corporate foundation matters, including:

• Establishing charitable trusts and corporate foundations
• Governance structures and compliance with charity law
• Drafting constitutions, bylaws, and operational policies
• Regulatory approvals and reporting obligations
• Philanthropic strategy and alignment with corporate objectives
• Risk management and safeguarding assets

Our team works closely with directors, trustees, and senior management to design foundations that are legally robust, transparent, and sustainable. We combine legal expertise with strategic insight, helping clients maximise the impact of their philanthropic activities while ensuring compliance with relevant legislation and governance standards.

Whether setting up a new foundation, reviewing existing arrangements, or navigating complex regulatory issues, our Corporate Foundation team delivers clear, practical advice to support long-term success and meaningful impact.

Corporate Governance

Our Corporate Governance team advises businesses, boards, and directors on best practices, compliance, and strategic decision-making to ensure effective management and sustainable growth. We provide practical, commercially focused guidance that helps organisations operate with clarity, accountability, and confidence.

We assist clients with a wide range of corporate governance matters, including:

• Board structures, roles, and responsibilities
• Director duties and liability management
• Shareholder agreements and corporate decision-making processes
• Compliance with statutory and regulatory obligations
• Policies and procedures for risk management and internal controls
• Governance in mergers, acquisitions, and corporate restructuring

Our team works closely with directors, management, and stakeholders to design governance frameworks that are legally sound, commercially practical, and aligned with organisational objectives. We also provide support on navigating regulatory inquiries, stakeholder engagement, and corporate reporting requirements.

Whether advising on day-to-day governance issues or strategic corporate initiatives, our Corporate Governance team helps clients maintain robust governance practices, manage risk, and strengthen long-term business resilience.

Mergers and Acquisitions

Our Mergers and Acquisitions team advises businesses, investors, and private clients on all aspects of corporate transactions, providing practical, commercially focused guidance throughout the lifecycle of a deal. We work with clients to structure transactions in a way that meets strategic objectives while managing risk and regulatory obligations.

We assist with a wide range of transactions, including:

• Buy-side and sell-side due diligence
• Asset and share acquisitions
• Joint ventures and strategic partnerships
• Private equity and investment transactions
• Management incentive plans and post-completion integration
• Warranty and indemnity insurance
• Solvent group reorganisations

Our approach is collaborative and multi-disciplinary, drawing on expertise across corporate, tax, real estate, employment, and regulatory law to ensure every aspect of a transaction is carefully considered. We work closely with clients’ advisers to deliver commercially effective solutions, whether for domestic, international, or cross-border deals.

From mid-market transactions to complex, high-value acquisitions, we provide clear, pragmatic advice that enables clients to navigate the legal, financial, and commercial complexities of mergers and acquisitions. Our goal is to protect value, minimise risk, and support long-term business success.

Private Equity

Our Private Equity team advises investors, management teams, and businesses across the full lifecycle of private equity transactions. We provide practical, commercially focused guidance on raising capital, acquisitions, refinancings, management buy-outs, and exits, helping clients navigate the complexities of private equity deals with confidence.

We support a wide range of transactions, including:

• Growth equity and expansion funding
• Leveraged buyouts and management buy-outs (MBOs)
• Minority and majority investments
• Refinancing and recapitalisations
• “Buy and build” or bolt-on acquisitions
• Exit strategies and divestments

Our team works closely with corporate, M&A, banking, and capital markets specialists to provide integrated, end-to-end advice. We guide founders, management teams, and investors through every stage of a transaction, ensuring commercial objectives are met while protecting value and managing risk.

Whether advising early-stage companies or established mid-market businesses, our Private Equity lawyers combine technical expertise with practical insight to help clients structure deals efficiently, comply with regulatory obligations, and achieve successful outcomes.

⁠Venture Capital

Our Venture Capital team helps investors fund innovative, high-growth businesses and supports start-ups and scale-ups in raising the capital they need to grow. We provide practical, commercially focused advice throughout the investment lifecycle, from initial fundraising and deal structuring to portfolio management and exits.

We advise a wide range of clients, including venture capital firms, angel investors, and entrepreneurial businesses. Our team combines deep sector knowledge with insight into market trends, investor expectations, and fundraising best practices, ensuring that transactions are structured efficiently and completed successfully.

Our services include:

• Advising on venture investments and fundraisings
• Structuring and negotiating investment terms and shareholder agreements
• Fund creation, fund structuring, and governance
• Portfolio management and exit strategies
• Guidance on co-investor arrangements and cross-border investments
• Sector-specific insight in technology, life sciences, healthcare, and other high-growth areas

We also provide strategic support to businesses seeking capital, helping founders understand investor expectations, navigate due diligence, and close fundraising rounds smoothly and efficiently. By combining legal expertise with commercial insight and industry knowledge, we help clients maximise value, manage risk, and achieve long-term growth objectives.

Corporate Disputes

Our Corporate Disputes team helps businesses manage and resolve commercial conflicts efficiently, combining legal expertise with a clear understanding of business objectives. We provide practical, strategic advice to protect value, manage risk, and safeguard reputations.

We act on a wide range of disputes, including:

• Contractual and commercial disagreements
• Shareholder and joint venture conflicts
• Intellectual property and brand protection disputes
• Employment-related commercial issues
• Regulatory and compliance disputes
• Cross-border and multi-jurisdictional matters

Our approach is pragmatic and tailored to each client’s needs. We guide clients on the most effective strategy for resolution, whether through negotiation, mediation, arbitration, or litigation, always balancing legal risk with commercial priorities.

By combining legal insight with commercial awareness, we help businesses resolve disputes efficiently, protect their interests, and maintain operational continuity even in complex or high-stakes situations.