Shoring up – the Offshore report

In what will undoubtedly be remembered as an unpredictable year in more ways than one, offshore firms across the globe leveraged their resilience and diverse practice offerings to weather the storm that 2020 brought. The US-China trade wars and the uncertainty around the EU/UK divorce gave way to the devastation of the global coronavirus pandemic, plummeting oil prices and markets in freefall, and the final throes of Brexit negotiations.

However, the offshore legal sector seemingly managed to duck every blow and avoid every collapse, with 2020 and early 2021 proving to be highly successful years across the offshore market. For Edward Mackereth, global managing partner of Ogier, ‘unprecedented was the word of 2020’, while Christian Luthi, chair of Conyers, states: ‘2020/21 has certainly tested the adaptability of the firm, and Conyers has come through extremely well’. Jonathan Green, global managing partner of Maples, adds: ‘2020 and early 2021 have been very active periods for us, setting new high-water marks in many of our practice areas. Our global teams have delivered without missing a beat, pandemic notwithstanding.’

The all-encompassing nature of the pandemic had a notable impact across the full breadth of practice areas, with almost all teams seeing notable shifts in the nature of work being handled. According to Jonathan Rigby, global managing partner at Mourant, the equity capital markets arena was particularly affected: ‘Equity capital markets faced a tumultuous 2020, although we’re expecting IPO levels to pick up this year as vaccination programmes reach critical mass, driving a recovery in corporate earnings and share prices. We also saw an uptick in private equity M&A through the second half of 2020 and expect to see that sustained throughout 2021.’

‘As acquisition activity intensified in the latter part of 2020 and early 2021, there followed a significant uptick in the number of “new money” deals.’
Ingrid Pierce, Walkers

The stratospheric levels of private wealth held offshore, and the related legal market, was seemingly the least affected. As Rigby explains: ‘It would be overstating it to say that the market has been redefined by the pandemic, though there has been some impact. We have seen a noticeable increase in clients’ awareness of their own mortality, which has led to a focus on estate and wealth planning arrangements.’

Funds practices and debt teams also thrived in 2020. Ingrid Pierce, Walkers’ global managing partner, comments: ‘The rush to access liquidity during the early stages of the pandemic was closely followed by a wave of debt restructurings as market participants across multiple sectors sought to traverse the economic turmoil. In particular, our investment funds and debt capital markets team have been extremely busy. However, as acquisition activity intensified in the latter part of 2020 and early 2021, there followed a significant uptick in the number of “new money” deals, with clients utilising debt financing to take advantage of investment opportunities.’

Asia also remains a highly active region for firms with offices there. According to group managing partner at Collas Crill, Jason Romer: ‘In Cayman, we have seen a lot of restructuring work come out of Asia in the form of squeeze-out mergers and creditor-driven restructurings’.

Rigby continues: ‘The fact that the Asia-Pacific region has grown from 10% of global private equity assets under management in 2010 to 25% in 2020 is testament to the fast pace at which the region has evolved over the past decade and the future opportunities of doing business there’.

Peter Tarn, Harneys’ chair also notes: ‘The IPO market has remained especially hot in Asia and we expect homecoming listings of China concept stocks to continue.’ While Pierce concludes: ‘The majority of our clients in Asia-Pacific remain largely unaffected with a robust pipeline of business requiring offshore legal advice’.

‘If ever there was going to be a decade of regulatory work, this is the decade.’
Ed Mackereth, Ogier

Looking at future predictions for the offshore legal sector in the post-pandemic cycle, Mackereth suggests: ‘There will be significant opportunities in the contentious world with an uptick in insolvencies, a sharp increase in solutions involving restructurings and shareholder disputes stemming from lost value.’

And looking beyond Covid-19? ‘If ever there was going to be a decade of regulatory work, this is the decade,’ Mackereth contends. ‘I predict a steady increase in the amount of complexity of regulation throughout the financial world, interspersed with periods of significantly sharper increases in regulatory burdens, and that will play out in how we advise and help our clients navigate their markets.’

Below are snapshots of the ten largest offshore firms in 2021 and an analysis of how they fared over a unique year.

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Appleby

Lawyers: 184, including 70 partners
Offices: Ten (Bermuda, BVI, Cayman Islands, Guernsey, Hong Kong, Isle of Man, Jersey, Mauritius, Seychelles, Shanghai)
Group managing partner: Malcolm Moller (Mauritius)
Focus: Corporate, dispute resolution, private client/trusts, property, technology and innovation, and regulatory
Recent standout work: Acting as Cayman counsel for AMTD International on the secondary listing of its class A ordinary shares on the main board of the Singapore Exchange; acting for the joint administrators on the administrations of Monsoon and Accessorize

With a substantial presence across the global offshore market including offices in all three Crown Dependencies, Appleby has been notably active with corporate and dispute resolution work, with financial services mandates, M&A and insolvency work being particularly busy. The firm is particularly recognised for its strength in advising finance sector clients, with notable expertise across banking, finance, insurance and regulatory matters.

In team news, the firm’s Bermuda office expanded its compliance offering with the return of Jarion Richardson, a specialist compliance adviser, who previously served as compliance manager between 2012 and 2016, and the firm also saw a raft of partner and of counsel promotions across its Caribbean offices and Jersey base.

Firm group managing partner Malcolm Moller continues to lead the firm from its base in Mauritius, and the firm also has key expertise in Asia with practitioners in Hong Kong and Shanghai. The firm also added to its network in early 2020 with the establishment of its office in The Seychelles.

The firm leverages its Appleby Global Services offering, which celebrated its second year in 2020; the specialist corporate and trust services provider assists clients, including high-net-worth individuals and multinational corporates, with administration, reporting and fiduciary services mandates.

Bedell Cristin

Lawyers: 82, including 32 partners
Offices: Six (BVI, Cayman, Guernsey, Jersey, London, Singapore)
Group managing partner: Tim Pearce (Jersey)
Focus: Banking and finance, corporate and commercial, employment, funds, insolvency and restructuring, international private client, litigation, pensions, regulatory and compliance, wills and probate
Recent standout work: Acting for Atlantic Leaf Properties on its £152m acquisition by South Downs Investment, a wholly-owned subsidiary of investment funds managed by Apollo Global Management, by means of a members’ scheme of arrangement; acting for Tullow Oil on its offering of $1.8bn senior secured notes and $600m super senior revolving credit facility; acting for Ocorian on its acquisition of Platinum Compliance; acting as lead counsel for the vendor shareholders in the sale of Robus Group to Ardonagh Group

Bedell Cristin was one firm to lead the way in terms of conduct and protocol innovations amid the jostle to seamlessly adjust to the nascent world of virtual court proceedings arising from Covid-19. As far back as early 2020, Jersey’s managing partner David Cadin and commercial litigation partner Edward Drummond were early adopters of virtual affidavits, which in turn became the mechanism du jour for the Bailiff of Jersey and competitor firms.

Bedell’s Jersey dispute resolution bench also enjoyed a period of growth, having hired Robert Christie from Dickinson Gleeson, whose reputation for trust litigation continues to expand. In the BVI, the commercial and insolvency offering was bolstered by numerous hires and promotions, including Lisa Walmisley becoming partner. In Singapore, Joanne Verbiesen, an experienced private wealth partner, joined from a leading international bank.

Cayman is also a growth jurisdiction; early 2021 saw the relocation to larger offices in order to facilitate a growing team. Tim Pearce, global managing partner, notes: ‘Our presence in Cayman is a key part of our international strategy and has enabled us to broaden our reach within key markets where our clients do business, particularly those in Asia and the Middle East who are especially familiar with using Cayman structures. The move to these new premises is the next step in our international growth plan and underpins our long-term investment in Cayman.’

The onset of Covid-19 proved not to be a hindrance to breaking ground in innovative, zeitgeist sectors; Jersey’s desk secured high-profile fundraising mandates in the medicinal cannabis sector. And given Bermuda’s ongoing push for liberalisation (encompassed by the tabled Bermuda Cannabis Licensing Act 2020), it is possible that the firm might leverage this knowledge in the Caribbean going forward, despite a modest yet growing presence in the region.

Carey Olsen

Lawyers: 265, including 59 partners
Offices: Nine (Bermuda, BVI, Cape Town, Cayman, Guernsey, Hong Kong, Jersey, London, Singapore)
Group managing partner: Alex Ohlsson
Global senior partner: John Kelleher (Jersey)
Focus: Banking and finance, corporate and commercial, investment funds and private equity, TISE listings, dispute resolution, trusts/private wealth, property, employment and insurance
Recent standout work: Acting for the creditors of PizzaExpress Group on its £1.1bn debt-for-equity restructuring; advising the Government of Jersey, the States of Guernsey and the Isle of Man government on the establishment of the Crown Dependencies’ £140m Covid-19 business interruption loan guarantee schemes; acting for the debt holders in Luckin Coffee’s restructuring; advised Nordic Capital on the launch of Nordic Capital Fund X, which held a €6.1bn close in less than six months

Responding to increasing demand for fraud, asset tracing and shareholder litigation, Carey Olsen’s long-term strategy seeks to bolster the dispute resolution partner bench in the Caribbean. Indicatively, the BVI office welcomed esteemed QC Alex Hall Taylor, while Tim Wright came full circle, rejoining the team after an 18-month stint heading Bedell Cristin’s outfit.

Steven Rees Davies from Appleby is a notable addition to the fairly young Bermuda office. His strong technology practice adds another dimension to the corporate and commercial offering, which now stands at four partners from zero less than four years ago.

‘Jersey and Guernsey are being used for increasingly sophisticated corporate transactions.’
Alex Ohlsson, Carey Olsen

Asia is also a key growth region, following a clear market trend for global offshore firms. ‘We were one of the later firms to start (in Asia), but the practice is growing pretty rapidly on both the corporate and litigation side, both in Hong Kong and Singapore,’ according to managing partner Alex Ohlsson.

One region where Carey Olsen maintains clear market dominance is the Channel Islands. ‘Jersey and Guernsey are being used for increasingly sophisticated corporate transactions,’ notes Ohlsson. ‘The financial services sector has been very strong, particularly investment funds, so we continue to grow in those areas.’

The firm not only sustained positive growth in headcount and annual turnover, but also secured prolific work arising from the pandemic, most notably on the Crown Dependencies’ revolving credit facilities to finance their successful business remedies.

If nothing else, the fact that four branches – Bermuda, BVI, Singapore and Hong Kong – relocated to larger premises throughout 2020/21 represents healthy growth in the face of pandemic pressures.

‘The team has been fantastic,’ reflects Jersey investment funds co-head James Mulholland. ‘And that’s not just our fee-earners but support staff too. They’ve all pulled through to make Carey Olsen really thrive in what have been challenging conditions.’

Collas Crill

Lawyers: 79, including 37 partners
Offices: Five (BVI, Cayman, Guernsey, Jersey, London)
Group managing partner: Jason Romer
Global chair: Simon Beswick
Focus: International wealth and private client, dispute resolution (particularly trust litigation and insolvency), risk and regulatory, commercial property, corporate, banking and finance and funds
Recent standout work: Acting for Curaleaf on its acquisition of EMMAC Life Sciences; advising TEAM on a placing of shares and successful admission to trading on AIM; acting for Mail.ru Group on its $200m equity fundraising and $400m debt offering – one of the largest security issues by a BVI-domiciled company in 2020; assisting Alfa Bank in obtaining urgent freezing injunctions and receivership orders in support of its global $150m claims against former Russian minister Mikhail Abyzov

‘Our people have adapted brilliantly to the challenges brought on by the pandemic,’ states Collas Crill’s global managing partner Jason Romer. ‘Last year we launched a new flexible working approach to help us support work/life balance in a pragmatic and adaptable way across the firm, recognising that there is no one-size-fits-all solution.’

However, the year also saw some major changes at the board level. Following the departure of chair Nigel Vooght, the firm welcomed Simon Beswick to take the reins. Reflecting on the move, Romer states: ‘Simon brings an abundance of experience of growing law firms and has had huge success at Osborne Clarke where he has been international CEO for the past 12 years and UK managing partner for nine years prior to that. He is a great fit for Collas Crill’s entrepreneurial and dynamic culture, and joins the firm at an exciting time as we begin to emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic.’

Elsewhere, Stephen Leontsinis was promoted to Cayman managing partner following successes in growing the dispute resolution team over the past six years. Meanwhile, Ellie Crespi joined from Harneys as the BVI’s managing partner and head of corporate finance and funds, while the Channel Islands gained a number of new partners and consultants in the private client, funds and risk and regulatory teams.

Discussing robust growth in Cayman, Romer states: ‘Our investment in that office is really starting to deliver. The traditional areas of corporate, funds and our deep insolvency practice continue to thrive. We have also recruited Gina Berry who has really kickstarted the growth of our property practice there. The merger appraisal practice, led by Rocco Cecere, has also ballooned in the last year or so.’

Conyers

Lawyers: 143, including 66 partners
Offices: Six (Bermuda, BVI, Cayman, Hong Kong, London, Singapore)
Chair: Christian Luthi (Bermuda)
Focus: Corporate (including aviation, banking and finance, capital markets, investment funds, insurance, M&A, private equity/venture capital and shipping), litigation and restructuring, private client and trust
Recent standout work: Acting for Digicel on its $7bn debt restructuring, which involved an innovative Bermuda scheme of arrangement; acting for AquaVenture Holdings on its $1.1bn acquisition by Culligan, one of the largest takeovers of a publicly listed BVI company by transaction value; acting for DeepGreen Metals on its proposed $2.9bn merger with Sustainable Opportunities Acquisition Corporation, a Cayman SPAC; acting for Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation on its $6.6bn IPO

For Conyers, 2020 and early 2021 saw a growth in demand for services across the firm’s entire global network, with the firm’s traditional areas of strength being notably consistent. Christian Luthi, the firm’s global chair, states: ‘The growth we have seen is, to some extent, a function of the disruption caused by the pandemic and the stress it has imposed on a number of business sectors. However, our business model has proved to be diverse enough geographically and in terms of services to be resilient to the economic impact of the virus.’

‘The growth we have seen is, to some extent, a function of the disruption caused by the pandemic and the stress it has imposed on a number of business sectors.’
Christian Luthi, Conyers

The firm’s growth was also evident within the team, with former Carey Olsen partner Michael Makridakis joining the firm’s Hong Kong office in early 2021 as a litigation partner from Delta Capital Partners Management, with another litigation partner soon to be added. ‘Their recruitment is part of our investment in new senior talent in Hong Kong to meet client demand,’ states Luthi. ‘This fast-paced, growing region has been creating unprecedented opportunities for our clients and our firm.’ The firm’s Cayman office has also continued on its growth trajectory, with the demand for services increasing at a steady pace.

‘We have seen a great deal of activity in the debt markets and have handled a number of major financing deals,’ says Luthi of the dominant areas of the last 12 months. ‘Our fund finance practice in Cayman has been very active, and we have also worked on several major restructurings and handled a significant number of privatisations of Bermuda, Cayman and BVI entities using private vehicles.’ While the firm has also remained strong in the insurance, investment funds, shipping and aviation sectors, the type of work handled within these industries has changed: ‘Our major industry sectors are as busy as ever. However, the nature of the work we have been doing for clients has shifted somewhat as businesses either tackle liquidity/debt challenges or seek to make the most of opportunities in disrupted markets.’

The group also recently handled some innovative and novel work, with the firm’s Asia offices advising Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation on its record-breaking $6.6bn IPO, which was the first dual listing of a Cayman company on both the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong and the SSE STAR Market.

Harneys

Lawyers: 164, including 54 partners
Offices: 11 (BVI, Cayman, Cyprus, Hong Kong, London, Luxembourg, Montevideo, São Paulo, Shanghai, Singapore, Vancouver)
Executive committee chair: Peter Tarn (BVI)
Focus: Litigation, insolvency and restructuring, commercial and corporate, private wealth/trusts, investment funds, tax and regulatory, banking and finance, international arbitration
Recent standout work: Acting for JTrust Asia in a complex international fraud case in the BVI and Cyprus in which a Japanese individual fraudulently misappropriated a sum of $210m; acting for Virgin Group on the BVI elements of Virgin Atlantic’s £1.2bn private-only solvent recapitalisation of the airline and holiday business; acting as Cayman counsel for Xpeng Motors on its pre-IPO series financing and $1.5bn listing on the New York Stock Exchange; acting for ArcelorMittal USA, which is seeking to enforce a $1.5bn ICC arbitration award against Essar Group following its failure to perform an iron ore pellet supply contract

Harneys’ 2020 continued the trend of previous years with team promotions across the firm’s offices; in July 2020, Nick Hoffman was appointed managing partner of the Cayman office, Henry Mander was made global head of trusts and private client in January 2021, and Peter Ferrer was promoted to co-head of litigation, insolvency and restructuring in May 2021, leading the team alongside Phillip Kite.

The practice also expanded its legal tech offering through its development of a reporting solution to assist trust companies with their BVI economic substance reporting, which launched in October 2020. The firm also established its Tech Accelerator Program in November 2020, which is designed to support technology innovators and professionals with free legal advice and trust company services as they prepare to launch a company or fund.

According to chair Peter Tarn: ‘2020 was a pretty good year with the second half being incredibly busy, and the first quarter of 2021 has continued that trajectory.’ New statutory requirements in both the BVI and Cayman led to a strong year for the firm’s global investment funds and regulatory team, with the China and private wealth practice also showing notable growth. Tarn also adds: ‘Litigation and insolvency had one of its strongest years as the pandemic created situations where shareholders fell out or money ran out. The increase in insolvency and restructuring instructions is likely more related to Covid insolvency issues for corporates.’

Prominent areas of expertise also remained consistent for the firm. ‘Transparent, tax-efficient fund structures remain critical plumbing to the global financial infrastructure and show no sign of losing their importance,’ states Tarn. ‘There is also no doubt that as the use of offshore vehicles requires more and more substance, being able to offer a far wider selection of services will be vital to any law or other professional services firm.’

Other key areas of activity include the IPO market in Asia, particularly homecoming listings of China concept stocks, and succession planning mandates. Says Tarn: ‘Covid has prompted high-net-worth individuals to contemplate their own mortality and what they prioritise in life, which has led to the implementation of a large number of succession planning vehicles due to the increased focus by high-net-worth clients on asset protection and estate planning issues.’

Maples

Lawyers: 372, including 143 partners
Offices: Nine (BVI, Cayman Islands, Dubai, Dublin, Hong Kong, Jersey, London, Luxembourg, Singapore)
Global managing partner: Jonathan Green (Cayman Islands)
Focus: Disputes, corporate, finance, funds, insolvency and corporate restructuring, insurance, IP/technology/telecoms, private equity, property/construction, regulatory/financial services, sports/media/entertainment, tax and trusts
Recent standout work: Acting for United MileagePlus, United Airlines’ loyalty programme, on the Cayman aspects of its $3.8bn bond offering and its concurrent $3bn term loan; acting for Delta Air Lines and its indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary, SkyMiles IP, on the Cayman elements of its $3bn term loan facility and its $6bn offering of senior secured notes; acting for the senior lenders to the Constellation Group on its global restructuring, which was valued at $1.5bn

For Maples, the defining characteristic of 2020 was growth: the firm welcomed several new lateral hires to the group and saw a notable number of promotions, totalling 15 new partners and nine of counsel. Key changes include Manuela Belmontes and Philip Ireland being appointed as joint managing partners of the Dubai office, Michael Gagie taking on the role of regional managing partner in Asia, Nick Evans becoming the head of the firm’s Jersey office, and Clare Kennedy and Owen Brookman being appointed as global chief operating officer and group general counsel respectively.

According to Jonathan Green, global managing partner of the firm: ‘The group is keen to build on what we have learnt during the recent periods, having successfully adapted to a changing work environment. We find that clients really like our one-group approach and the efficiencies that come with that. Those synergies are generating growth across all areas of the firm as a whole, as well as our core areas of corporate, finance, funds, dispute resolution, insolvency and private client work.’

‘The group is keen to build on what we have learnt during the recent periods, having successfully adapted to a changing work environment.’
Jonathan Green, Maples

The firm’s dispute resolution and insolvency practice saw an increase in the volume of section 238 fair value disputes, while the corporate practice handled increasing numbers of IPOs and Cayman SPAC deals. Other key areas of activity included the funds and investment management group and the regulatory practice.

The firm also leveraged its asset finance team to handle several large loyalty scheme fundraising transactions and subsequently launched its new Irish asset finance practice in its Singapore office, which will help the firm assist its aviation clients with multi-jurisdictional and time-zone sensitive legal advice on the ground in Asia.

Mourant

Lawyers: 246, including 61 partners
Offices: Six (BVI, Cayman, Guernsey, Hong Kong, Jersey, London)
Group managing partner: Jonathan Rigby (Jersey)
Global senior partner: Jonathan Speck (Jersey)
Focus: Corporate; banking and finance; regulatory; investment funds; restructuring and insolvency; dispute resolution; and international trust and private client.
Recent standout work: Advising BorgWarner on its acquisition of Delphi Technologies via a Jersey scheme of arrangement; advising MaiCapital on the launch of a tokenised investment fund and formation of a related SPV; assisting Ardian with its eighth-generation secondaries fund, attracting $19bn of commitments from global investors; acting on Tailored Brands’ Chapter 11 restructuring

Reflecting on Mourant’s newly adopted five-year business strategy, global managing partner Jonathan Rigby outlines: ‘We see significant opportunities to continue to grow our market share for offshore legal work originating in North America and Asia, and will be investing further in the growth and development of our Cayman and BVI practices. We continue to be one of the fastest-growing offshore firms in the Asia region.’

‘We see significant opportunities to continue to grow our market share for offshore legal work originating in North America and Asia.’
Jonathan Rigby, Mourant

Evidently, contentious mandates are driving this strong growth in the east. ‘BVI insolvency and restructuring matters continue to account for a large share of our work in Asia,’ states Rigby. ‘Much of the remainder comprises shareholder disputes, often with an asset-tracing element. Contentious trusts are also increasing steadily.’

The imminent launch of Mourant Consulting, a specialist regulatory consulting business, aims to deepen the client services on offer. Mike Jones, who acted as the director of the Jersey Financial Services Commission until his recent hire, is spearheading the project. In other lateral hires, the BVI office gained an impressive corporate practice head in Ian Montgomery, formerly the managing partner at Collas Crill.

Mourant was quick to capitalise on the ‘SPAC boom’ which was propelled by the pandemic and ‘has continued at full pace during the first quarter of 2021’, according to Rigby. ‘Our Cayman team has been very busy advising on these transactions with many still in the pipeline. Interestingly, we’re now seeing demand from our clients in Asia with a number of highly regarded private equity sponsors looking at launching SPACs in the near term.’

With a positive outlook, Rigby contends that ‘the pandemic has helped us to identify more efficient and sustainable working practices. Our focus now is on embedding these in the organisation going forward.’

Ogier

Lawyers: 270, including 80 partners
Offices: Eight (BVI, Cayman, Guernsey, Hong Kong, Jersey, Luxembourg, plus presences in Shanghai and Tokyo)
Group managing partner: Edward Mackereth
Global senior partner: Rachael Reynolds (Cayman)
Focus: Corporate, dispute resolution, investment funds and restructuring and insolvency
Recent standout work: Advising Atotech on its $498m IPO on the NYSE; advising WH Smith on its £327m bond offering to finance 100 store openings across North America; handling high-profile restructurings for PizzaExpress Group and Virgin Atlantic

Ogier executed hires and promotions across the breadth of jurisdictions and service lines in the past year. In particular, Cayman, BVI and Hong Kong showed strong partner headcount gains, while funds, dispute resolution, corporate and banking and finance were the true growth areas.

In a drive to reinforce the Channel Islands’ private wealth offering, partner Matt Guthrie was brought over from Mourant to head up the Guernsey private wealth team. The BVI team welcomed qualified barrister David Welford from Maples to strengthen the commercial and financial disputes bench, whereas corporate teams across the board benefited from notable hires.

‘Ogier’s inclusive culture means we continue to attract the best people, and it is with our talented and energetic people that our true success lies.’ Rachael Reynolds, Ogier

Commenting on highlights in the funds space, global managing partner Edward Mackereth observes: ‘We have seen significant activity this year with a number of new fund launches kicking off and new enquiries coming in. A big development for us is impact and sustainable investment funds, to which we are now providing legal and advisory services. The pandemic accelerated and highlighted the importance of sustainability and ESG factors and we don’t expect this momentum to slow.’

Following her successes as head of the Cayman litigation outfit, Rachael Reynolds was appointed as the firm’s global senior partner, taking up the mantle from Jersey’s Steve Meiklejohn. Reynolds regularly deals with globe-spanning contentious insolvencies, and comes to the role on a platform of diversity and inclusion.

‘Ogier’s priorities of fostering a culture of inclusion, investing in people, and helping them to thrive, are close to my heart. I’m proud that these aspects of our vision are lived, day to day, at all levels within Ogier. This inclusive culture means we continue to attract the best people, and it is with our talented and energetic people that our true success lies,’ she says.

Walkers

Lawyers: 410, including 120 partners
Offices: Ten (Bermuda, BVI, Cayman, Dubai, Hong Kong, Guernsey, Ireland, Jersey, London, Singapore)
Global managing partner: Ingrid Pierce (Cayman)
Focus: Banking and finance, corporate, funds, insolvency and dispute resolution, listing services, private capital and trusts, private equity, real estate, regulatory and compliance, re/insurance, structured products/capital markets and taxation (Ireland).
Recent standout work: Acting on the multimillion-pound restructuring of Travelex; acting as Cayman counsel to Queen’s Gambit SPAC on its $300m IPO on Nasdaq; acting as Cayman counsel to Goldman Sachs Lending Partners on a first-of-its-kind $6.8bn financing comprising $3.8bn of senior secured high-yield bonds and $3bn of senior secured terms loans to MileagePlus Holdings; acting as Bermuda counsel for Barclays Pension Funds Trustees on the £5bn longevity swap transaction between Barclays Bank UK Retirement Fund and Reinsurance Group of America

Walkers had a stable 2020 and expanded its product offering with the establishment of a Bermuda practice from its Hong Kong office and the launch of an e-learning, anti-money laundering training portal.

The firm’s work levels also remained consistent with the firm’s offices in Asia and the Middle East maintaining their substantial operations. In the UK offshore, Ireland and London offices, the firm had a notable year for transactional work and litigation proceedings; the Ireland-based investment funds and debt capital markets teams were also very busy and the banking and finance group in London saw an uptick in matters relating to accessing liquidity, debt restructurings, financial covenant waiver processes and rescue financings.

Global managing partner Ingrid Pierce comments: ‘Globally, work levels remained strong across the firm, largely due to our reputation in the market, scale and practice group coverage. We managed the transition into and out of working from home while maintaining our high levels of client service. 2020 and early 2021 have been successful years for Walkers.’

When asked about the prominence of practice areas over the last 12 months, Pierce adds: ‘Undoubtedly the economic effects of Covid-19 have pushed our insolvency and dispute resolution group to the fore with our restructuring and insolvency experts working closely with members of our banking, finance and corporate and investment funds group in formulating structures and techniques to assist distressed companies.’

The past year has also brought in a raft of regulatory work for the firm globally, with new registrations and regulatory filings arising from the recent introduction of economic substance and beneficial ownership requirements, among others. The Cayman office has also seen an increase in instructions advising on Cayman-domiciled SPACs with listings in the US fuelling substantial levels of IPOs, business combinations and acquisitions for the Cayman office as well as the Asia and London teams. Pierce also highlights the firm’s private client work. ‘Our global private capital and trusts teams have expanded to meet increasing client demand, and this area intersects with almost every other practice area,’ she says.

2021 looks to be a notable year for Walkers, with the firm celebrating the 20th anniversary of its London office, the 15th anniversary of its Jersey office and the five-year anniversary of the opening of its Bermuda and Guernsey offices. LB