How did you get into corporate law?
As an argumentative child it was suggested to me that maybe I should be a lawyer. It stuck – I studied law at Durham University and liked corporate law because the focus was client aims rather than a never-ending stream of new rules and regulations. When aiming for a training contract, I concentrated on firms with a strong corporate offering and joined PwC Legal. I enjoyed helping frame the start of a new relationship, which is why corporate transactions work appealed.
After qualification, what was your next step?
I qualified in 2009, when the financial world was still reeling from the collapse of Lehman Brothers. Luckily, PwC was to some degree protected from the worst of the recession because of the range of its work. I was kept busy on a mix of restructuring and transaction work. I took a secondment to the legal team at Lehman Brothers’ European arm to settle claims from their largest creditors, including Citigroup, working alongside the PwC administrators and a litigation team from Travers Smith. It was by far the largest single deal PwC had undertaken and easily the most complex to negotiate and structure. The experience was invaluable, and seeing my deal on the Times Square news tickers was a career highlight. I then joined Travers Smith’s PE team to work at a firm with more emphasis on corporate deals.
What have you learned from deals you worked on?
No matter how experienced you are, there is always more to learn, even on what might seem the most vanilla of deals. You need to understand what your client really wants, and get them to that position. Many lawyers see the transaction as the end of the process, but really it’s the start of a relationship.
What is your current role?
I joined Addleshaw Goddard’s corporate team as managing associate in 2018. I focus primarily on PE deals – buy-side and sell-side, acting for both PE funds and management teams. We’ve had a really successful period of growth since I joined and it has been great to play a key part in that. I was also recently ranked as a rising star for mid-tier PE in the Legal 500, which was great recognition. I have responsibilities to help build and develop the team around me, so I am also heavily involved in training for junior associates, diversity initiatives and graduate recruitment.
Recent deals?
My first PE deal was acting for Phoenix Equity Partners while I was at Travers Smith, and not long after joining Addleshaw Goddard I advised on their investment in Nineteen Group. I’ve recently acted for Phoenix Equity Partners on some buy-and-build strategy investments. Buying businesses from founders is more challenging but rewarding. Without the rigours of a previous due diligence process, primary buy-outs often turn up real legal challenges that frequently can’t be effectively addressed with documentary protection. It can be tough working out how to address these challenges in a business that often can’t easily sustain high levels of fees at this stage of its development. Primary buy-outs give you the opportunity to see a founder experience validation after working hard to develop their business; you also see them receive significant investment and get the opportunity to take it to the next phase – although for many founders relinquishing complete control can be emotionally challenging.
And particular ambitions?
I joined Addleshaw Goddard to help build the PE team in London and still love the thrill of completing a deal. I also think it’s important that firms get the culture right. So often businesses underestimate the benefits – in terms of retention, financial efficiency and client service – of having a motivated, diverse team who are comfortable being themselves at work. Seeing each member of a team as a separate, unique individual is important to getting diversity right. Often people are grouped based on one aspect of who they are, which can preserve the view of them as a minority. If firms put in place measures to ensure that anybody with particular skills can flourish, diversity and inclusion initiatives are far more likely to work. Helping Addleshaw Goddard continue to promote an inclusive culture will be a key part of the next phase of my career.
About the interview
- This article originates from the Corporate Financier April 2020 magazine.
