Fielding a team of ‘very commercial partners who are well connected in the market with deep knowledge of the industry’, Herbert Smith Freehills LLP’s private capital offering covers an array of sectors and transactional types. ‘Thoughtful, calm and experienced’, practice head John Taylor advises on domestic and cross-border M&A, bolt-ons, joint ventures and equity financings. Boasting expertise in the infrastructure, tech and financial services sectors, David D’Souza is lauded as ’a savvy professional able to go toe to toe with even the most technical practitioners in the City.’ Malcolm Lombers’ varied clientele – which include sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, hedge funds and family offices – turn to him for his strength in cross-border M&A, while Eleanor Shanks, who joined the firm from Sidley Austin LLP in October 2023, is praised as ‘technically superb.’ Joseph Dennis also comes recommended, notably for growth capital work.
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
‘Joseph Dennis is excellent. He's very responsive, stays on top of everything and is able to understand and work through complex issues very efficiently.’
'Malcolm Lombers has deep expertise, has great knowledge of how to get deals done with the least fuss and is very easy to deal with. A strong team of associates assists well.'
‘John Taylor is a thoughtful, calm and experienced private equity lawyer - I would strongly recommend him.’
‘Eleanor Shanks is technically superb, dedicated to client service and fun to work with.’
‘Very commercial thinking partners who are well connected in the market with deep knowledge of the industry.'
'Eleanor Shanks is grace under pressure personified. She has shepherded us through countless deals and always delivers on time while exceeding expectations. She has found a great platform in HSF and we are excited to see her execute and help lead the growth of the practice.'
'David D’Souza stands out as a savvy professional and able to go toe to toe with even the most technical practitioners in the City.'
Key clients
- Blackstone Capital Partners
- Ardonagh Group
- DIF Capital Partners
- Miller Insurance
- Odevo
- Stonepeak
- DWS
- Audley Capital
- GIC
- Australian Super
Work highlights
- Advised Blackstone on the non-US elements of Emerson's sale of a $14bn majority stake in its Climate Technologies business to private equity funds managed by Blackstone.
- Advised AustralianSuper on its capital investment of €1.5bn, in conjunction with an overall equity capital raise of €1.959bn, in the EMEA branch of Vantage Data Centers.
- Advised The Ardonagh Group on the merger between Markerstudy Group and Atlanta Group.
Practice head
The lawyer(s) leading their teams.
John Taylor