RPC has beefed up its corporate practice with the hire of three of Wragge & Co’s heavyweight partners as it targets more mid-sized deals for the largest FTSE 100 and 250 companies and multinational businesses.
The City Domestic firm hired Wragges’ former managing partner Richard Haywood and corporate head Maurice Dwyer. The duo joined fellow partner David Marshall at the beginning of the year.
Haywood was managing partner at Wragges from 2003 until 2006 and was also the firm’s corporate head. Most recently, he advised Premier Foods on the £182m sale of its canning division to Princes Foods.
Dwyer had been Wragges’ corporate chief since 2011. He has 25 years’ experience in M&A and private equity transactions, particularly in the healthcare, aerospace and private equity sectors. Wragges’ corporate partner David Vaughan replaces Dwyer as practice chief.
‘We want to be seen as peers to the Magic Circle and City International firms in terms of service.’
Tim Anderson, RPC
The new additions bring RPC’s corporate partner headcount to 12. Head of corporate Tim Anderson said: ‘We want to be seen as peers to the Magic Circle and City International firms in terms of the service we are able to provide – not necessarily on the largest stellar deals but, certainly, for upper mid-market and significant or complex transactions.’
He added: ‘We want to be in a position where – by continuing to build a top quality team – the general counsel of the FTSE 100 or 250 companies think of RPC alongside the bigger firms for those types of transaction.’
RPC’s corporate revenues grew 20% during 2011/12 and similar growth is expected this year. The firm’s corporate client base includes the Daily Mail & General Trust and Sports Direct.
The departures leave Wragges’ corporate practice with around 20 partners. Senior partner Quentin Poole preferred not to comment on the departures, issuing a prepared statement that said: ‘Richard, Maurice and David are all great partners as well as good personal friends – we will be sorry to lose them. But this is an exciting opportunity for them – RPC is a firm we know well and very much respect. We wish them all the best for the future.’
Wragges’ corporate and finance practices, as at many firms, had been hit hard since the onset of the financial crisis, which may have prompted some internal restructuring. The corporate practice accounted for 12% of its gross fee income for 2011/12, much less than real estate (30%) and disputes (28%). However, the loss of three of its most respected corporate partners is undoubtedly a heavy blow for the firm.