James Cameron > Milbank > London, England > Lawyer Profile

Milbank acts for a client roster composed of airlines, lessors and banks across JOLCO transactions and PDP financing amid a range of structured aircraft finance deals, while also overseeing the acquisitions and disposals of large aircraft portfolios. Jointly leading are James Cameron and Nick Swinburne, with the former being the key contact for asset finance and leasing transactions, and the latter taking on portfolio deals in addition to structuring asset and receivables-backed transactions. Andy McAdam is also recommended for financing and restructuring mandates in the aviation sector.

Drawing upon strong core aviation finance capability in London and New York, and also able to leverage broader corporate, finance and restructuring competence, Milbank remains at the forefront of the market for lessors, banks, investors and operators across the full spectrum of their cross-border finance and leasing needs. In particular, the team excels in handling complex and novel transactions which are often heavily structured, as well as recently undertaking more secured lending mandates by virtue of a recent dip in capital markets activity. Nick Swinburne is ‘incredibly knowledgeable’ across a range of financings and broader corporate transactional work in the sector, including in the context of portfolio acquisitions for lessors and the utilisation of Japanese operating lease with call option (JOLCO) structures. James Cameron, who co-heads the team alongside Swinburne, has ‘excellent knowledge of the industry and is great for large transactions’, where he is able to corral the expertise of ‘an excellent bench of associates’, including the ‘bright and efficient’ Tom Jackson. Mark Leverkus departed for Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher in April 2024.