Leading Transactions & Cases:

Acquisition of SAB Miller by Anheuser-Busch InBev –

Advising SAB Miller on the largest acquisition in UK corporate history.

Re Dee Valley Group plc –

The first Court decision on “share splitting” in the context of a scheme of arrangement, in which 6 Erskine barristers represented different parties.

Acquisition of Friends Life by Aviva –

£5.6bn acquisition, to create the largest life and pensions firm in the UK.

Bid by Qatar’s Investment Authority (QIA) and Brookfield for Songbird Estates - the owner of Canary Wharf –

The £2.6bn bid was the largest property deal in a decade.

Virgin Money IPO –

Virgin Money’s £1.25bn flotation on the London Stock Market in November 2014

Acquisition of Invensys plc by Schneider Electric –

£3.4bn takeover of the British engineering group.

Glencore takeover of Xstrata –

£26bn merger between Xstrata, a mining company and Glencore, a commodities trading house, to create one of the world's largest natural resource groups.

Vodafone sale of its 45% stake in Verizon Wireless for $130bn –

The largest corporate deal in a decade.

Re Bumi plc –

Complex shareholder dispute in which 9 Erskine barristers represented different parties.

Leading Transactions & Cases:

JSC BTA Bank v Ablyazov –

Global Dispute of the Year, 2014 (American Lawyer Magazine) - complex civil fraud proceedings which have resulted in over 70 leading decisions, including 15 in the Court of Appeal.

Hewlett Packard and Autonomy v Lynch –

Acting for Hewlett Packard entities in a £3bn breach of fiduciary duty and deceit claim against former directors of Autonomy.

RBS Rights Issue –

Acting for institutional shareholders in this high-profile prospectus liability claim arising from RBS' 2008 rights issue.

Mezhprombank v Pugachev –

Civil fraud dispute against the former owner of Mezhprombank, who is currently subject to a US $2bn worldwide freezing injunction.

Eclairs Group Limited v JKX Oil & Gas Plc –

Questions whether a power in articles of association to impose voting and transfer restrictions in relation to shares had arisen and, if so, whether it was exercised for the proper purpose.

BAT Industries v Winward –

Application by BAT for the appointment of receivers over a claim by a debtor for $800m in relation to unlawful dividends. Part of multi-headed series of commercial disputes in the Commercial Court and the Chancery Division.

Re: Charterhouse Capital –

Leading judgment from Court of Appeal on unfair prejudice petition in respect of a private equity LLP.

Liverpool Football Club and RBS v Hicks –

Shareholder dispute regarding ownership of Liverpool Football Club.

Leading Transactions & Cases:

Trustees of Olympic Airlines SA Pension & Life Assurance Scheme v Olympic Airlines SA –

Supreme Court decision on the meaning of “establishment” under Insolvency Regulation 1346/2000 art.2 (h).

Lehman Brothers –

A number of Erskine barristers have been instructed on multiple claims arising from the insolvency of Lehman Brothers.

Singularis v PwC –

Privy Council decision on appeal from the Bermuda Court of Appeal. Extent of the common law power of a court to give assistance to the liquidator of a foreign company.

PwC v Saad –

Privy Council decision on appeal from the Bermuda Court of Appeal which held that the Bermuda Court had no jurisdiction to wind up a foreign non-permit company.

MF Global –

Special administration regime: various issues relating to the manner in which the administrators should deal with the claims of clients, including how to determine the method of valuing client money claims under the FSA ‘client money’ rules.

Assenagon Asset Management v IBRC –

Acting for a noteholder seeking to challenge the validity of a substantial debt restructuring carried out by Anglo-Irish Bank.

Leading Transactions & Cases:

Validus v IPC (Bermuda) –

Hostile scheme of arrangement to effect takeover.

Waddington v Chan (Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal) –

Multiple derivative action (the first reasoned decision on multiple derivative actions in a common law jurisdiction outside the USA).

Cukurova Finance International v Alfa Telecom Turkey Ltd (Privy Council) –

Right of appropriation of shares resulting from default on $1.6bn loan.

Singularis v PwC (Privy Council) –

The extent of the common law power of a court to give assistance to the liquidator of a foreign company.

Culross Global SPC v Strategic Turnaround Master Partnership (Privy Council) –

Power to suspend redemptions of shares in hedge funds.

Leading Transactions & Cases:

RBS Rights Issue Litigation –

Prospectus liability under s.90 FSMA arising from RBS' 2008 rights issue.

Lehmans Client Money –

Questions concerning the statutory trust created by the client money rules in the FSA Handbook at CASS 7.

Lehman Brothers v DZ Bank –

Dispute regarding the interpretation of tri-party repo agreements following the insolvency of Lehman Brothers.

Integration by Royal London of the long-term insurance business of Co-operative Insurance Society –

Part VII FSMA transfer of insurance business.