Lawyers

Katie Yorke

Katie Yorke

Work Department

Tax

Position

Katie is a Legal Director in the corporate team, based in the London office.

Katie advises national and international clients on a diverse scope of corporate matters, including mergers and acquisitions (domestic and cross-border), private equity investments and disposals, fundraisings, corporate governance, joint ventures and shareholder arrangements. Katie has particular expertise in multi-jurisdictional matters and helps manage Shoosmiths’ international relationships in the World Services Group (WSG) and the International Bar Association (IBA).

Katie also has experience in acting for AIM and Main Market listed companies, nominated advisers and brokers on reverse takeovers, initial public offerings, secondary fundraisings and regulatory compliance. In 2018, Katie co-authored Thomson Reuters’ annual regulatory overview of UK Equity Capital Markets.

Key recent and historic transactions include:

  • advising FPE Capital and management on the sale of TNP to Node4 (backed by Providence Equity Partners);
  • acting for Universally Speaking, a leading localisation and quality assurance provider in the gaming sector, on its strategic investment from Phoenix Equity Partners;
  • advising management on the sale of global prototyping and specialised manufacturing group, Goodfellow, to Battery Ventures, with subsequent reinvestment;
  • acting on the share sale of a UK-headquartered international innovation group, with simultaneous Dutch and US group divestments;
  • acting for a Cayman-based entity and its shareholders on a US$160million disposal of its joint venture interests in Cyprus, Dubai, Turkey and Africa to its German co-shareholder under English law;
  • working with the UK arm of a US-headquartered group on a US$120million acquisition of an international technology and IP group based in Australia, Asia and the UK;
  • advising a Saudi Arabian group of companies on a new joint venture and related arrangements with its German partner under English law; and
  • advising the selling shareholders of Indigo Planning on its sale to Canadian-listed global services firm, WSP.

Career

Prior to joining Shoosmiths, Katie spent a number of years within the London office of a growing national firm and previously worked in-house with 3M, managing the group’s UK company secretarial compliance.