Varners

Firm Overview:

Varners has established a reputation for providing timely and efficient legal services and has grown to be one of the leading full-service law firms in Sri Lanka. Core practice areas of the firm include mergers and acquisitions, banking and finance, construction and project development, corporate and commercial, intellectual property, labour and employment, litigation and dispute resolution, real estate and conveyancing.

The Firm adopts a progressive approach to work which has enabled it to provide exceptional value to clients. Its ethos is that a satisfied client is our best reference. The team’s result-oriented approach aims to put their clients at an advantage, factoring in both legal and commercial aspects to any given issue.

With a dedicated commercial team of specialised lawyers and support staff, led by Raj Selvaskandan and Mahinda Haradasa, Varners has built a strong corporate and commercial practice, acting for domestic clients as well as major international investors from many parts of the world, such as USA, Japan, Canada, Australia, China, India, Singapore, and south-east Asia.

Main practice areas of the firm include:

Banking & Finance:

The Firms Banking & Finance practice blends in seamlessly with their extensive corporate & commercial, and real estate & conveyancing practices. This enables the team to leverage cross-sectoral knowledge to advice clients on the financing of mergers and acquisitions, corporate restructuring, construction, project development, real estate, and other commercial transactions.

Construction:

The team at Varners is well equipped to deliver a broad range of legal services encompassing all phases of a construction project from procurement to negotiation and formation of contracts, to administration and completion.

Project Development:

The Firm regularly advise sponsors, developers and project companies on issues encountered in the complete project life cycle - from procurement, financing, development, contract administration, to completion. As a testament to its capabilities, the Firm has been appointed to advice on the landmark Port City Project.

Corporate & Commercial:

Owing to its individualised approach and established reputation, a large number of domestic and international clients have retained the Firm in a variety of corporate & commercial transactions. The Firm assists clients through all stages of their transactions to ensure successful transaction outcomes. The Firm’s clients benefit from a valuable combination of global outlook, local insight, and transactional experience that enables the fruition of complex transactions.

Intellectual Property:

The Firms Intellectual Property ("IP") practice is renowned around the world for its individualised, right-on time, and comprehensive service. The Firm's expertise is sought after for a full gamut of IP services including the conduct of searches, filing, prosecution, oppositions, cancellations, portfolio management, and renewals. The team’s involvement in IP transactions includes advising on franchising, licensing, assignments and marketing. The Firm further handles enforcement of IP rights and litigation involving infringement on behalf of clients.

Labour & Employment:

The Firm prepares organisational rules and codes of conduct that legitimately balances the interests of both employers and employees, as well as, documents pertaining to the development of welfare funds, employee share ownership trusts, and other arrangements aimed at providing incentives to employees. The team regularly provides advice on a range of labour and employment matters. The members of the Labour & Employment practice collaborate with the Firm's Litigation practice to deal with all aspects of labour related disputes.

In addition, the Firm has extensive experience in M&A matters, having concluded some of the largest and most complex merger acquisitions in Sri Lanka. The team has conducted comprehensive due diligences on numerous listed and non-listed entities in Sri Lanka, covering areas such as regulatory framework, secretarial, material agreements, banking and finance, property, employment, insurance and intellectual property matters. Recent M & A transactions include:

·Acquisition of Bata Shoe Company of Ceylon, subsidiary of a multinational footwear, apparel and fashion accessories manufacturer and retailer.

·Assisted Commercial Credit & Finance PLC to acquire nearly 20% stake in Mega Pay Ltd, which provides payment services operating under the “Pay & Go” brand name.

·Assisted in acquiring over a 51% stake in Dankotuwa Porcelain PLC, a renowned porcelain brand in Sri Lanka.

·Assisted Asia Pacific Institute of Information Technology Lanka (Private) Limited in acquiring 51.08% stake in a number of subsidiaries in Suwasevana Hospitals (Private) Limited.

·Advised and assisted Laugfs Gas PLC and lead the negotiation process in relation to them selling their stake in Laugfs Gas (Bangladesh) Limited (their LPG distribution business in Bangladesh) as primary counsel.

·Assisted Commercial Credit & Finance PLC to acquire the entire shareholding in AMW Insurance Brokers Ltd.