People

Christopher is a partner in our banking and finance group, advising on a broad range of banking transactions.

Christopher advises debtor and creditor stakeholders on restructuring and insolvency transactions, private equity sponsors, corporate borrowers and mezzanine lenders on acquisition finance transactions, investment grade loan facilities, ISDA documentation, guarantee and security issues, mezzanine debt and intercreditor issues.

Recent highlights include advising:

• GSC Group, Sankaty and AXA on their £70m mezzanine debt for the acquisition of Wood Mackenzie.  This acquisition was one of the main acquisitions to be completed in Europe in 2009;
• Oak Hill Capital Partners on its £650m senior and mezzanine debt financing for its acquisition of the Firth Rixson group;
• Pernod Ricard on its £7.4bn debt financing for its acquisition of Allied Domecq plc;
• GSC Group and DE Shaw on their £30m mezzanine debt financing for the acquisition of the Lowell Group;
• creditors for the Ferretti, IMO Carwash and British Vita restructurings;
• a borrower group for the restructuring of its £1.5bn debt package;
• Montagu Private Equity on the consensual restructuring of LINPAC, a global packaging business;
• a leading private equity house and its investee group on the restructuring of £190m of senior, mezzanine, vendor and subordinated debt, implemented by way of a combined pre-packaged administration and debt and equity restructuring;
• an international investment company on its acquisition of the $150m senior and mezzanine distressed debt of a multi-jurisdictional group of companies, the subsequent enforcement of security rights and the acquisition of the debtor group out of Chapter 11 proceedings;
• the firm's private equity clients on their acquisitions, including Alchemy Partners, 3i and August Equity;
• DuMont Schauberg on its €152m acquisition of a German publishing house from Mecom Group plc;
• an international corporate on a €4bn total return share swap put in place in connection with an international public bid; and
• Heidelberg Cement on its debt financing for its £8bn acquisition of Hanson plc.