Regional legal heavyweight Osborne Clarke has been named as one of the UK's top 10 deals advisers. The Bristol-based law firm has been rated the fifth most active in the UK by analyst Experian Corpfin while mergermarket, which records higher value deals, ranks it in 10th place.
The firm also tops Experian’s South West table as the most active legal adviser on deals in the region. Head of corporate Alistair Livingstone said: “It’s a real testament to the expertise of our lawyers and sheer hard work they put in to getting the right results for our clients. We work hard to build long-term relationships with our clients and the fact that many of the deals we advise on are repeat instructions shows how important this is.
“In 2011 we saw a real upsurge in deal activity both in the South West and across the UK. We’ve already had a good start to 2012, which suggests that businesses and investors have an appetite to buy and sell. There are a lot of negative factors at play though, which will have an impact on deals where the fundamentals don’t stack up. The watchword for 2012 will be quality, with investors on the lookout for companies with a good trading record and a solid business model.”
In the 2011 Bristol Legal Review, Osborne Clarke was described as ‘still undisputedly at the top’. The team advised Tribal Group on its £12m disposal of Nightingale Architects, and Swindon-based RWE npower on the acquisition and disposal of combined heat and power plants. Other instructions came from Babcock Marine, Unite Group and new client Inflexion Private Equity.
The firm also acts for a host of high-profile clients including Dell, Carphone Warehouse, Cable & Wireless UK, and Mulberry.
