Latham Named a Private Equity Practice Group of the Year

Law360 has recognized Latham & Watkins as a Private Equity Practice Group of the Year for 2017, highlighting the practice’s work on complex high-profile transactions throughout the year that involved dedicated private equity teams around the world. The annual awards program honors “the law firms behind the litigation wins and major deals that resonated throughout the legal industry in the past year.”

From advising on multibillion dollar “going private” transactions and cross-border carve-outs to structuring complex global tax efficient investment vehicles, Latham’s lawyers understand the nuances of the most sophisticated private equity deals and are able to guide clients through the complex global regulatory environment.

In a recent profile story, Law360 noted Latham’s representation of “major investment companies in high-value consortium deals,” and featured the firm’s work advising ArcLight Capital Partners in its $2.2 billion acquisition of four power plants in a joint venture with Blackstone Group. It also mentioned a similar role representing Energy Capital Partners in its $17 billion “take private” acquisition of Calpine Corporation. Law360 noted the close collaboration between Latham’s private equity teams and energy regulatory lawyers that is required for such deals. 

Latham’s work for long-time client The Carlyle Group was also highlighted in the Law360 article, particularly two related deals involving Nature’s Bounty that required private equity teams in multiple Latham offices to work in tandem. While lawyers in the firm’s London office were representing Carlyle and Nature’s Bounty in the sale of the Holland & Barrett chain of retail stores, teams in Chicago and Washington, D.C. advised Carlyle in the sale of a majority stake in Nature’s Bounty to KKR.

From its roots as a pioneer in private equity, Latham & Watkins has grown its practice into one of the largest and most highly-regarded of its kind in the world. Shaun Hartley, Global Co-Chair of the Private Equity Practice, told Law360 that, “Private equity M&A is in Latham’s DNA.”

The private equity practice is fully-integrated with Latham’s leading global capital markets, leveraged finance and investment funds practices in each of the major financial centers, thereby allowing Latham to assist private equity firms in every stage of the investment cycle.