Europe
The Paul, Weiss European Practice focuses on three of the firm's traditional core corporate practice areas, adapted to the European context. These include capital markets transactions involving European issuers, cross-border M&A transactions, and private equity and private M&A transactions in Europe. The practice is headquartered in London and complements the firm’s full service capabilities offered through its offices in New York and Washington and its network of foreign offices in Hong Kong, Tokyo and Beijing, enabling the firm to provide seamless legal services in the principal financial and business centers around the world. The London office also serves as an operational resource for Paul Weiss's premier Litigation Department, which is consistently ranked among the top U.S. firms in contentious practice.
Out of London, we have advised on numerous equity and debt offerings. Our private equity practice advises European private equity funds on investments in the U.K., Germany, France, Italy, Finland, Sweden and elsewhere. We have also been involved in several high-profile M&A matters, including for Hollinger International (owner of
The Daily Telegraph and
The Spectator), a major European semiconductor firm, a major German bank, and other U.S. and European corporations.
The practice is comprised of New York-trained lawyers with a broad range of experience in the core areas of the firm's corporate practice. As part of its European focus, the practice relies on its relationships with law firms in England and on the continent for transactions involving matters of local law.
Representative experience throughout Europe includes the following:
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Representation of Hollinger International Inc. in litigation arising out of its sale of the Telegraph Group Limited to Press Acquisitions Limited, a company controlled by the Barclay Brothers. Hollinger Inc., the Lord Black-controlled parent company of Hollinger International, filed a motion to enjoin the sale, arguing that it should be submitted to a shareholder vote. The Delaware Chancery Court denied the motion on the grounds that the sale did not constitute "substantially all" the assets of Hollinger International; the Delaware Supreme Court denied a subsequent appeal by Hollinger Inc. Following the rulings, Hollinger International was able to complete the £729.5 million (approximately $1.3 billion) transaction.
- Representation of Swiss Reinsurance Company in connection with the execution of a $4 billion back-up credit facility. The senior unsecured facility has a six-year maturity with a one year term out option, and provides Swiss Re with a $2.5 billion letter of credit sub-facility and a $1.5 billion revolving credit sub-facility to support its reinsurance business in the United States and worldwide liquidity needs.
- Representation of General Atlantic Partners, LLC, as the largest stockholder of Germany-based Ixos Software AG ("Ixos"), in connection with the sale of Ixos to Open Text Corporation, a company which develops software used to search corporate intranets, manage documents and collaborate on business projects, for approximately $230 million.
- Representation of Williams Lea, a London-based business process outsourcing provider and specialist in corporate information solutions, in connection with the acquisition of Bowne Business Solutions for approximately £100 million. The combined business will employ a staff of more than 5,000.
- Representation of HAL Investments B.V., a Dutch private equity firm, in connection with its acquisition of a 20% stake in Pearle Europe B.V., a European eyeglass retailer, from Luxottica Group S.p.A. for €144 million.
- Representation of Movado Group, Inc., in connection with their acquisition of luxury watch brand, Ebel, from LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton, for a purchase price of 62 million Swiss Francs.