Harper Macleod LLP is recongised as a major player in Scotland’s corporate market, advising a wide array of top clients from national and internationally recongised corporate groups and investors to high-growth businesses, owner-managers, entrepreneurs and scale-ups. The team, led from Glasgow by Donnie Munro, is best known for its skill handling complex M&A, equity investments, and high-growth business deals, with a particular focus on the technology sector. Heading the entrepreneurial team is Paula Skinner, a trusted advisor to businesses, high-growth scale-ups and investors across a broad range of sectors, with an emphasis on the technology and renewable energy sectors.

Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

‘Extremely capable and approachable team that are a pleasure to work with. No matter what is thrown at them and at what notice (from IP, property, share options, fundraising, contractual...) they never let you down.’
‘Capable, flexible, and responsive.’
‘The way in which they complete transactions at pace, this is what makes Harper MacLeod unique.’
‘The team are exceptional.’
‘The Harper Macleod partnership provides a full-service offering, with specialist partners in all areas needed.’
‘The lead partner is always available and takes the trouble to explain in detail the intricacies of the contract negotiation.’
'We are usually working on multiple transactions together, which are all at different stages, but we always deliver and work as a team to do this.'
'The team are exceptional.'

Key clients

Webhelp Group
Clyde Dental Practice Limited (part of the Clyde Munro Dental Group)
Optical Express
Halfords Autocentres Limited
Kent Foods Limited
Morrison Community Care Holdco Limited
Fred Olsen Renewables Limited
Caribou Property Ltd
MacDonald Group
Statkraft UK Limited

Work highlights

Advised the MacDonald Group, one of Scotland’s largest independent insurance brokers, on its sale to the private equity backed Partners & Group. The MacDonald Group brand has been retained, and now has access to a UK-wide broker offering a wider range of services, enabling the business to significantly enhance their client proposition.
Advising the Clyde Munro Dental Group on their Scotland-wide acquisition programme. This entailed 12 successful acquisitions throughout 2022.
Advised Kingdom Technologies, one of the fastest growing technology startups in Scotland, on an investment from Scottish Enterprise and European VC’s including Metaplanet, Ironwolf, Superangel and Specialist VC.

Lawyers

Next Generation Partners

Junior partners with significant recognition from clients and peers in the market and key roles on multiple matters.

Paula Skinner

Harper Macleod LLP

Partner Paula is head of the entrepreneurial team at Harper Macleod that focuses on advising entrepreneurs on all legal aspects of their business. Her personal specialism is advising entrepreneurs on corporate transactions such as investments (including equity crowdfunding), acquisitions/disposals and restructures. She works with businesses at all stages of their life cycle – from inception of idea to funding to exit. Paula previously worked in-house at a venture capitalist and within the investment team at Scottish Investment Bank. Her team completed over 186 transactions over the past 3 years, 74 of them being equity investments and 27 being M&A transactions. You can review some of the deals Paula and her team have been involved in at our up-to-date corporate deals table. Paula has in the past participated in an entrepreneurship course by Babson College at the University of Strathclyde.

Practice head

The lawyer(s) leading their teams.

Donnie Munro

Other key lawyers

Paula Skinner

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Corporate and commercial: Edinburgh and Glasgow