Corporate lawyers advise their clients on a broad range of matters, including mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and takeovers, as well as on methods for raising additional cash, such as flotation on a stock exchange. The length of a transaction will vary depending on the type and size of the deal. Some deals are completed in less than a week, while others may take several months. For instance, Malcolm Glazer's recent £790m takeover of Manchester United Football Club took 15 months to complete.
As a corporate lawyer, you have to be commercially-minded as well as having a good understanding of the law. This means that getting to know your clients' businesses and the industry sectors is essential.
A corporate lawyer's client base is very varied and typically includes entrepreneurs, small privately-owned businesses and large multinational corporations such as pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline and BP. Most corporate lawyers also act for a range of financial institutions, including high street banks and investment banks.
The size of transactions on which corporate lawyers will work varies depending on the size of the law firm they work for. For instance, a lawyer working for a top 20 City firm will typically handle deals worth millions or even billions of pounds. Magic circle firms Allen & Overy and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer handled Glazer's bid for Manchester Utd.
In contrast, a lawyer employed by a law firm in the regions, such as Birmingham-based Gateley Wareing, would typically handle deals for small to medium-sized companies or family-run businesses.
The nature of deals handled by corporate lawyers may be affected by the state of the world's major economies. For instance, until recent months there have been very few companies floating on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) due to a lack of confidence in the performance of the FTSE100 (the index of the UK's top 100 share prices). The M&A market has also been relatively flat because companies have not had sufficient cash to expand.
In contrast, the private equity deals continue to be the latest fad. Private equity houses such as CVC and Apax buy businesses with a view to selling them off at a profit. For example, in July private equity house Cinven sold NCP, the UK car park operator it bought in 2002, to rival private equity group 3i for £555m. The sale resulted in Cinven converting its initial £140m investment into just over £400m.
The working culture
The pace in a corporate department can be very fast at times and it is not unusual for lawyers to work long hours, sometimes throughout the night. Although there is great pressure at times, most people manage to retain their sense of humour. With this hard work comes a great team spirit and a real feeling of satisfaction when a deadline is finally met; and there is also the party to celebrate the successful completion of the deal to look forward to. Of course, there are invariably quieter periods to allow you to recover from the busy times.
A corporate lawyer's day-to-day responsibilities will differ, depending on how many years they have been in practice.
Senior corporate lawyers will act as a transaction manager and liaise with the client's other advisers, including investment banks and accountants. They will also be the client's principal point of contact and will advise companies on strategic matters so that they can achieve their corporate goals. Senior corporate lawyers will also attend high-level meetings and lead negotiations. The complex nature of transactions means that junior lawyers are often handed less responsibility than their counterparts in other departments.
A junior corporate lawyer's work is extremely varied and can include such tasks as carrying out research, drafting agreements, sitting in on client meetings and conducting due diligence (reviewing a company's contracts with lenders, suppliers etc). The downside is that deals are usually very document-heavy, meaning trainees in corporate departments can sometimes get handed the photocopying and proofreading duties.
Trainees and junior lawyers in corporate departments also tend to work longer hours than their colleagues in other departments.
Why is this interesting?
Being at the hub of a large transaction is fascinating, as you will be involved in the deal from start to finish. It is also rewarding to read about the deal you were working on in the national press.
Personal and legal skills required
Corporate lawyers must have a good knowledge of the law and relevant regulations and should be commercially aware.
They also need to be effective team players because the sheer size of many deals means there will usually be a large number of lawyers from different departments all handling different aspects of the transaction. They also need to be organised and able to meet tight deadlines. With the long hours culture being prevalent, a good sense of humour is vital to help you get through those busy and stressful periods.
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