DWF LLP

Corporate law is an intricate and multifaceted practice, which means firms often need expert support and guidance when dealing with any issues in this area. With a large team of corporate lawyers across DWF, we are recognised for our skill in combining corporate legal expertise with a distinctively energetic, decisive and clear approach.

Why work with our Corporate team?

Whether offering corporate legal advice on domestic, international or cross-border deals, what sets us apart is our practical approach to providing useful guidance on corporate law issues. We are also known for grounding everything we do with a clear and unique understanding of your needs.

Our industry insight across multiple sectors helps frame our thinking in a way that will benefit your firm. This expertise of the corporate legal world, underpinned by our technical ability, also means we can get you the transactional results you need and want through all stages.

How we can help you

From start-ups to multinationals, listed and quoted organisations, through to family-run businesses, we manage a wide range of corporate law transactions. What’s more, our expertise runs deep into the finer details of corporate law – going beyond that of a typical corporate finance legal business – providing more opportunities for us to support your company.

The Corporate team can advise in relation to:

• Private equity transactions for both institutions and management teams.
• Public and private mergers and acquisitions.
• Equity capital markets - IPOs on AIM and the Main Market and secondary fundraisings.
• Venture capital and growth capital.
• Corporate law governance and compliance, including shareholder agreements, partnership transactions and joint ventures.

More than ever global businesses are facing complex operating environments or unprecedented levels of risk. Our Dispute Resolution team helps you operate ethically, legally and effectively, allowing you to unlock the full potential of your business.

Why work with our Dispute Resolution team?

Together, our dispute resolution advisors, business consultants and innovation and process specialists provide integrated legal support designed to meet your specific challenges. We anticipate and mitigate risks, and in worst case scenarios, litigate. Our specialists operate at the intersection of risk and governance to provide client-focussed risk mitigation strategies, helping you evolve and overcome the challenges.

We have approximately 900 dispute resolution lawyers supporting clients across the world, spanning

• International arbitration
• Distressed projects
• Corporate, commercial and contractual disputes
• Fraud and investigations
• Data breach litigation.

Collectively, we are focussed on achieving the best commercial and legal results for our clients, whether claimants or defendants.

We’re renowned for our expertise, knowledge, experience and commercial awareness. Most importantly, we understand that you’re looking for a speedy resolution to your litigation challenges, whether you are negotiating an out-of-court settlement, need support with alternative dispute resolution strategies such as  mediation or arbitration, or you need lawyers who are prepared to pursue a matter with tenacity and expertise through court proceedings.

We pride ourselves on understanding your needs so that we can provide innovative solutions and decisive action.

How we can help you

Through our fully integrated legal management solutions, we provide a complete end-to-end service. Our approach is multidisciplinary, drawing on our loss adjusters, quantity surveyors, forensic accounts, data analysts, software experts, costs lawyers and in-house barristers.

Good people are at the heart of any successful business. Here at DWF, our employment law experts possess the know-how to guide you through the ever-changing legislative framework, as well as any challenges presented by the world of employment and pensions. This allows you to focus on getting the best from your employees.

Why work with our Employment and Pensions team?

We have large Employment Legal Services and Pensions teams who work globally and act for a broad range of clients, from local SMEs to multinational conglomerates. We also advise human resources teams, in-house lawyers, and provide support directly to businesses.

We can support you at every stage of the employment journey, from recruitment to termination and every step in-between. Plus, our highly skilled Pensions team can also offer you advice on the complexities of pensions and governance issues.

Our expert Employment Legal Services team understands the trends that global businesses face. However, our local approach always ensures we are familiar with the idiosyncrasies of each jurisdiction.

We know that legal compliance is no longer enough. This is why the guidance we provide takes into account important agendas such as ESG, diversity, equality and inclusion. By combining innovative, sustainable advice with topical governance expertise and tailored training, our internationally-recognised Employment Legal Services team applies its knowledge and industry experience to your individual circumstances and needs.

How we can help you

We offer clear and concise employment legal advice on the full range of employment and pensions law services, including:

• Recruitment (including employment contracts, compensation and incentives, immigration and global mobility)
• Day to day (including HR privacy, policies and procedures, discrimination and equality, health and safety)
• Compliance (including risk management, audits, investigations, employment status, external staff)
• Termination (including exec severance, team moves and injunctions)
• Tribunals and court representation
• Collective Employment  (including collective bargaining, collective agreements, collective actions, works council)
• Restructuring and M&A (including due diligence, redundancy and change management, TUPE, post-merger integrations, business transfers & outsourcing)
• Pensions

We have one of the largest specialist insurance teams and are based across the globe. We offer our clients a complete solution, including coverage and litigation in both the private and public sectors.

Understanding your legal and commercial needs

With consolidation both in the insurance and legal sector, and ongoing regulatory change leading to a reduction in litigation frequency, the steps we have taken in recent years to diversify our offerings have enabled us to thrive in a changing market.

DWF offer a range of claims and non-claim services to our insurance clients. We house a full service insurance team, handling thousands of outsourced motor, casualty, property and professional indemnity claims on an annual basis, whilst also continuing to handle the most high value, complex and often sensitive claims for our clients. We are leaders in innovation, combining technology and service excellence.

Our corporate and commercial service gives our insurance clients a full service offering whatever their business needs and objectives.With investment in our non-contentious corporate insurance teams in recent years, we have broadened our offering to the insurance market beyond claims.Our insurance and regulatory teams have been involved in some of the highest profile and sensitive claims this year, often with intense media coverage.

Our clients include many of the leading global and international insurers, adjusters and corporates, with many relationships spanning back more than 20 years.

Real estate is one of the world’s most significant stores of investment and wealth. Our dedicated real estate lawyers know how to secure finance and acquire, manage, develop and construct real estate assets across all classes, worldwide. With our real estate legal services, we seamlessly integrate partner-led technical knowledge, with industry experience and market-leading technology, to provide a critical edge to our clients, their assets and portfolios.

Why work with our Real Estate team?

Our real estate lawyers have the depth, experience and local knowledge to help you at every step of the process. We have built a strong reputation for getting the deal done and delivering pragmatic, proactive advice. This is underpinned by the latest in legal technology, which enables our Real Estate team to act as an extension of yours, helping you to achieve your goals.

Our team has been involved in some of the most complex and significant regeneration, infrastructure, energy and development projects across the world, for governments, public authorities and private companies.

How we can help you

Our global team has the experience and capability to manage every aspect of real estate across a broad range of assets, including:

• Affordable housing
• Industrial and warehouses
• Hospitality and leisure
• Office and retail
• Student accommodation
• Senior living
• Residential and mixed use schemes

From complex acquisitions and transactions, regeneration and development projects and new methods of construction, through to effective and proactive asset management, we can advise you at every stage of the project life-cycle.

We act for market-leading, multi-layered funds, banks, developers, construction companies, occupiers and investors, to provide innovative real estate legal services and solutions that are tailored to your requirements.

We can support you with:

• Asset Management & Investment
• Construction advice and disputes
• Development
• Housing
• Occupiers
• Planning
• Real Estate Finance & Restructuring
   
• Real Estate Litigation