Beyond its energy sector specialism, Burges Salmon LLP's expertise spans food and beverage, hotel and leisure, education, transport, healthcare, and technology. The practice is jointly chaired by Nick Graves and Rupert Weston: Graves regularly advises clients on M&A transactions and corporate governance projects, while Weston - a corporate finance partner - is also noted for his capabilities in the hotel space. Private equity experts Richard Spink and Mark Shepherd work with various financial institutions on buyouts and development capital transactions. Corporate energy head Camilla Usher-Clark focuses on M&A, equity fundraising, and joint ventures, while Dominic Davis advises investors on both domestic and cross-border transactions. Other key contacts include Andrew Mills, who joined in May 2023 from MJ Hudson, and Alex Lloyd, who was promoted to partner in May 2023.
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
‘The team were really responsive in supporting us and our mutual client on the transaction, providing timely and commercial input – they were integral to the buy-side team and worked seamlessly with us as we led and coordinated advice across the various jurisdictions.’
‘They were flexible in their approach and stepped in to take the lead amongst the various UK advisers on the deal that weren’t apparent at the start, being proactive in identifying tasks to make sure the UK aspects were sorted.'
‘Richard Spink provided excellent partner level support, staying close to the detail, and it’s clear that he has extensive experience of cross border deals, interacting with other firms and the underlying client in a really positive way.’
‘Burges Salmon were integral to us getting the deal that they worked with us on over the line, and within an extremely tight timeline. Without them, I do not believe we would have got the deal done. They were highly results orientated and focused on solutions not problems. This was particularly valuable when we were thrown a last minute curveball which threatened to derail the deal. Burges Salmon's creativity and solution orientated approach enabled us to conclude the deal despite this last minute "glitch".'
‘Burges Salmon's team are highly responsive, which was particularly valuable given that the deal was taking place across a number of time zones. Amy Carr was the fulcrum around which the deal revolved from a legal point of view, and I felt that I could always count on her to be on the ball at all times, and to be completely across all the detail and process that is so key to getting a deal over the line.’
- ‘Burges Salmon also had a great deal of calmness which enabled them to be the perfect foil to any emotion or over exuberance exhibited by other parties in the deal. This was mirrored in the very significant experience that Richard Spink brought to the table, which was invaluable in a complicated process.’
Key clients
- Octopus
- Virgin Group
- Zetland Capital LLP
- Bluefield Solar
- FirstGroup plc
- Darwin Alternatives
- Saltus Partners
- Atrato Onsite Energy PLC
- ITM Power plc
- Trivela Group LLC
- Progressive Energy
- Pandox AB
- Engie
Work highlights
- Advised FirstGroup plc on its acquisition of Ensign Bus Company Limited.
- Advised the shareholders of StarTraq on a complex transaction which saw the founders successfully exit the business in tandem with a major investment by August Equity into the company.
- Advised ENGIE on its £64.8 million acquisition of Ixora Energy Ltd.
Practice head
The lawyer(s) leading their teams.
Nick Graves, Rupert Weston