Joint ventures and strategic alliances lawyers

We advised a PRC-based, Hong Kong-listed fashion group in its acquisition of a Shenzhen apparel business and proposed joint venture with an Italian fashion group.

We advised a US juvenile products brands in its proposed joint venture with a Hong Kong-listed group.

A leading global computer component manufacturer with operations around the world, including the US, Singapore and China contacted Withers when it needed to carry out a major worldwide restructuring. Our team has lawyers across many jurisdictions and was glad to advise on issues of anti-expatriation, earnings stripping and transfer pricing.

We are currently helping a new entity that is establishing a worldwide private members' club to include up to 65 five-star properties worldwide. We began by assisting on the debt financing with a bulge bracket lender. With locations expected to include Scotland, England, New Zealand, the US and the Caribbean, there are also numerous property deals in the works and we are negotiating management contracts to run the clubs.

The Old War Office at 57 Whitehall, London is a prestigious and historic building. We were proud to act for State Bank of India in its client Hinduja Group's purchase of the site, which is to be converted into a luxury hotel.

We advised a PRC-based, Hong Kong-listed fashion group in its acquisition of a Shenzhen apparel business and proposed joint venture with an Italian fashion group.

Acted for a facilities management company in tender to provide conferencing and related services to the UK Cabinet Office.

We advised Bella Freud on additional venture capital from The Pembroke Fund for the Bella Freud fashion label and a proposed exclusive distribution agreement with international hotel group ME Hotels for her fragrance and lifestyle brand Bella Freud Parfum. Freud started working for another of the firm's clients, Vivienne Westwood, during the 1980s before setting up her own design company. She is the daughter of artist Lucian Freud and the great granddaughter of the inventor of psychoanalysis, Sigmund Freud.

We advised Casa Vincola Zonin and Tramite to establish a joint venture company in the US, to import and distribute of Italian wine and food in the North America market. Founded in 1821 by the Zonin family, it is Italy's largest privately owned vineyard and winemaking company with 9 estates in the most important wine producing regions in Italy and consistently produces some of Italy's best wines and sells 25 million bottles annually throughout 69 countries.

We advised on the reorganisation of Soho House's casual dining business - brands, Pizza East, Chicken Shop, Dirty Burger - worth about £40 million - into a joint venture in order to facilitate financed roll out of outlets internationally at an ambitious rate.

In partnership with Newlat, a leading Italian food producer, we advised on the acquisition of Kraft Heinz’s Italian infant food and nutraceuticals production plant. The Parma plant owned by US food giant Kraft Heinz, produces the well-known Plasmon biscuits as well as pasta, liquid milk, dry milk and cereals, among other products. The deal included an arrangement for Newlat to manufacture infant milks and nutrition products including Kraft Heinz owned products. The Newlat Group is one of the top ten players in the Italian food sector, with a turnover exceeding US$355 million. Its business is focused on milk and wheat-based products, with an existing base of 11 production plants.

We advised Renault on its €1.5 billion investment in motorsport and technology. This was a multi-jurisdictional and multi-party project involving Mr Bernie Ecclestone, CVC, FIA, key sponsors of Lotus, incoming and outgoing drivers of Lotus F1 as well as outgoing minority shareholders.

Via della Spiga 26 is a beautiful building in the 'golden triangle' of Milan, housing Dolce & Gabbana's flagship store as well as the offices of Tiffany & Co. We helped Thor Equities and Invesco to acquire the site, negotiating with a family who had held the property for generations and were initially locked in dispute between themselves. Our clients and the vendors were grateful for our help in brokering what had seemed an impossible deal.

We used our experience of working with entrepreneurs to help the founders of a food business providing goods to UK high-street retailers as they sold their company. Our lawyers assisted with the commercial aspects of the sale to a private equity firm, handling complex UK remittance tax issues and US tax issues. We were also involved in our clients’ reinvestment in a new holding company.

Withers was called on to act for a well-known managing partner of an international investment firm when his reputation was under threat. Our robust approach to reputation management prevented the filing of false statements in a form U-5 (Uniform Termination Notice for Securities Industry Registration) that would have had a detrimental effect on his future career and earnings.

Increasingly, we are called upon to represent corporate clients in international arbitration. For example we acted at the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) on behalf of a subsidiary of an Azerbaijani company that was in dispute with a conglomerate of Israeli companies over a joint venture agreement. The case related to a license to drill oil just off the coast of Israel.

We advised a US juvenile products brands in its proposed joint venture with a Hong Kong-listed group.

We advised an American specialist engineering contractor on EPC contracts to retro-fit existing coal fired power stations with 'green' technology. These contracts were based on various FIDIC, NEC3 and bespoke terms. We also offered additional advice on joint venture arrangements with other specialist contractors.

We advised Casa Vincola Zonin and Tramite to establish a joint venture company in the US, to import and distribute of Italian wine and food in the North America market. Founded in 1821 by the Zonin family, it is Italy's largest privately owned vineyard and winemaking company with 9 estates in the most important wine producing regions in Italy and consistently produces some of Italy's best wines and sells 25 million bottles annually throughout 69 countries.

We used our experience of working with entrepreneurs to help the founders of a food business providing goods to UK high-street retailers as they sold their company. Our lawyers assisted with the commercial aspects of the sale to a private equity firm, handling complex UK remittance tax issues and US tax issues. We were also involved in our clients’ reinvestment in a new holding company.

At Withers we like a challenge, so it is always pleasing to be presented with complex cases such as a reverse triangular merger on which we were instructed by a client that held extensive real estate in New York City and Long Island. Our client wished to transfer stock in the merger, and requested advice on shareholder liability as well as the state and city real estate taxes.

This well-known, publicly held brand has more than 1,200 retail outlets throughout the US. We negotiated a new package (valued in excess of $2 million annually) on behalf of the incoming chief executive.

We represented the chief financial officer of a software company in connection with a SEC investigation. The commission was alleging that there had been accounting improprieties on our client's watch, but we were able to obtain a favourable resolution of all charges.

A leading global computer component manufacturer with operations around the world, including the US, Singapore and China contacted Withers when it needed to carry out a major worldwide restructuring. Our team has lawyers across many jurisdictions and was glad to advise on issues of anti-expatriation, earnings stripping and transfer pricing.

We are currently helping a new entity that is establishing a worldwide private members' club to include up to 65 five-star properties worldwide. We began by assisting on the debt financing with a bulge bracket lender. With locations expected to include Scotland, England, New Zealand, the US and the Caribbean, there are also numerous property deals in the works and we are negotiating management contracts to run the clubs.

Italian fashion house Max Mara has a long history of designing luxury couture clothing and has a strong reputation as one of the world's top fashion brands. When their latest campaign involved offering American screen actress Jennifer Garner the opportunity to be the face of their new sunglasses range, Withers was there to assist and provide advice for the agreement.

We acted on behalf of the holding company and shareholders behind one of the largest conglomerates of heavy industrial companies in Russia. The company was in dispute with a bank over the basis of a loan the bank had given it. The complex legal proceedings included an LCIA arbitration in London, anti-suit injunctions and injunctions in the Netherlands.

Increasingly, we are called upon to represent corporate clients in international arbitration. For example we acted at the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) on behalf of a subsidiary of an Azerbaijani company that was in dispute with a conglomerate of Israeli companies over a joint venture agreement. The case related to a license to drill oil just off the coast of Israel.