Law firm Paul Hastings has appointed Nigel Ward as a leveraged finance partner in the firm’s London office.
Ward is ranked in Band 1 for banking and finance by Chambers and named a ‘Leading Individual’ for acquisition finance by Legal 500.
His practice focuses on leveraged-loan transactions including UK and cross-border acquisition financing, refinancing, recapitalisation, restructuring, and post-IPO crossover financing. He has experience acting for senior lenders, junior lenders, borrower groups, and alternative asset managers on a variety of capital structures, as well as on corporate lending, debt portfolio acquisitions, and specialist financing transactions.
He has also developed a strong practice in hybrid infrastructure financing, a market which in recent years has incorporated technology and techniques from the leveraged finance market.
“In recent years, we have focused on expanding our leveraged finance practice to become one of the global market leaders in serving financial institutions, sponsors and other players,” says Seth Zachary, chair of Paul Hastings. “Nigel’s leading reputation and outstanding client relationships will help us continue to expand on this success in London.”
“Nigel joins us at an exciting time during the growth of our Finance practice in London and Europe,” says Ronan O’Sullivan, chair of the London office. “We are one of the few integrated international teams able to advise on English law loans, New York law loans and New York-law high yield bonds at the highest level. Nigel is one of the most respected lawyers in the London market and his arrival adds significantly to our strength on both sides of the Atlantic.”
Ward joins a growing team in Europe including leading high yield bond partner Peter Schwartz and leveraged finance partner Luke McDougall in London, leveraged finance partner Olivier Vermeulen, who joined the Paris office earlier this year, as well as English finance and restructuring partner David Ereira.
