- Senior Partner: Christopher Saul
- Number of partners: 112
- Number of solicitors: 393
- Other fee-earners: 182
THE FIRM Slaughter and May is a leading international law firm with a worldwide corporate, commercial and financing practice. The firm provides its clients with a professional service of the highest calibre, combining technical excellence with commercial awareness and a practical, constructive approach to legal issues. Every client receives a personal service tailored to their requirements; special emphasis is placed on partner involvement, approachability and continuity of client service. International work is central to the firm’s practice. The firm has close working relationships with leading independent law firms around the world which enables it to provide clients with a first class and seamless legal service worldwide.
PRINCIPAL AREAS OF WORK Slaughter and May has a diverse and extensive practice advising on a full range of corporate, financing and other matters for UK and international clients. Main areas of practice comprise:
Asset Management: The establishment, structuring, promotion and administration of investment funds; fund and investment products and reorganisations; and alternative investments.
Capital Markets: Capital issues ranging from ‘plain vanilla’ to highly structured products; sovereign debt; initial public offerings; rights issues; convertible and exchangeable securities; placings; equity derivatives, hedging and stabilisation of equity and equity-related products.
Competition: EC, UK and cross-border merger control, cartels, abuse of dominance, market investigations, State aid, public procurement, and sectoral regulation; and competition and regulatory litigation. Competition Litigation: Advising on competition litigation before English and European courts including appeals against decisions of competition authorities and regulators and private actions for damages and other forms of relief.
Contentious Tax: Advising clients on all aspects of tax disputes with domestic and overseas tax authorities from the investigation stage through to proceedings before the tax tribunals and courts.
Corporate & Commercial: A broad range of corporate and commercial work including demergers and reorganisations; joint ventures; returns of capital; corporate governance and general advice to corporates.
Corporate Recovery & Insolvency: Advising companies, directors, creditors, insolvency practitioners and other parties on complex restructuring and refinancings.
Dispute Resolution: Handles the full range of litigation and arbitration, including complex international and domestic disputes, as well as regulatory investigations and inquiries, risk management and mediation.
Environment: Compliance, management and liability and the environmental aspects of corporate and financing transactions.
Financial Regulation: A range of regulatory issues affecting financial institution clients and non-regulated customers.
Financing: Acquisitions/leveraged finance; loan finance; derivatives; securitisations; structured products; and leasing and asset finance.
Information Technology: Advising companies active across a broad range of new and mainstream technologies on their technology and e-commerce related matters.
Infrastructure, Energy & Natural Resources: A range of matters for infrastructure, energy and natural resources clients, including mergers and acquisitions, projects and investments.
Intellectual Property: Creation, exploitation and enforcement of IP rights including on global IP licensing strategies; R&D arrangements and franchising; multi-jurisdictional and domestic IP disputes such as patent litigation and alternative dispute resolution.
M&A: Buying and selling public and private companies and businesses, often involving a cross-border element.
Outsourcing: A range of outsourcing and other strategic sourcing projects across a broad range of sectors and jurisdictions and for a variety of services (ITO, BPO, HRO etc).
Pensions & Employment: Employment, pensions and employee benefit matters.
Private Equity: Venture capital investment through to the largest and most complex cross-border mergers and acquisitions and from the initial investment all the way through to exit.
Real Estate: All types of commercial property transactions as well as construction and engineering projects.
Sport: On-field matters (such as player contracts, transfers, registration issues and disciplinary actions); other sporting authority disciplinary and arbitration proceedings; and regulation of participants by sports governing bodies.
Tax: Tax aspects of corporate transactions and activities; the development of tax-efficient structures and instruments; and tax disputes and investigations.
RECRUITMENT There are approximately 90 vacancies for trainee solicitors per year. In addition, work experience placements are available at Easter and during the summer for penultimate year students considering a career in law. The firm also runs 2-days workshops in December for non-law finalists and non-law graduates, and an Open Day at Easter for first year law students. Applications should be made using the online form which can be accessed via the website (www.slaughterandmay.com) and be addressed to Mrs Mel Binks. Further information is available on the careers section of the firm’s website.