Freshfields

Senior Partner: Georgia Dawson

Managing Partners: Alan Mason, Rick van Aerssen and Rafique Bachour

US Managing Partner: Sarah Solum

Number of partners: ~400

Number of lawyers: 2,800+

US Offices: New York, Silicon Valley, Washington DC

Firm Overview:

Freshfields is a global law firm with a long-standing track record of successfully supporting the world's leading national and multinational corporations, financial institutions and governments on groundbreaking and business-critical mandates. Our 2,800-plus lawyers and other legal professionals deliver results worldwide through our own offices and alongside leading local firms. Our commitment, local and multinational expertise, and business know-how means our clients rely on us when it matters most.

Industries of Focus:

Freshfields boasts specialized industry lawyers to help our clients capitalize on sector-specific trends and developments around the world. While the firm covers a broad range of sectors, Freshfields is particularly strong in Life Sciences, Technology, Private Capital, FinTech and Industrials.

Main Areas of Practice:

Antitrust

Freshfields has a proven track record in managing the most challenging cases in the most difficult jurisdictions, securing the right results where it matters most. The firm is among the leading firms advising on large-scale Second Request merger reviews, agency civil investigative demands, antitrust litigation and enforcement.

Capital Markets & Securities

Freshfields’ capital markets team advises public and private companies and underwriters on a full range of debt and equity offerings, including IPOs. We advise pre-IPO companies holistically, from IPO preparation (including financings), post-IPO offerings, life as a public company and day-to-day needs.

Corporate/M&A

Freshfields handle the largest and most complex domestic and cross-border transactions. Our teams advise companies, their boards and special committees on a broad range of matters, including public and private M&A, carve-outs, spin-offs, split-offs, joint ventures and strategic alliances.

Corporate Advisory & Governance

Freshfields advises public and private companies, senior management and boards of directors on a broad range of corporate governance, compliance and disclosure matters. Our integrated offering covers day-to-day matters as well as time-sensitive, event-driven challenges.

CFIUS

Freshfields has a history of successfully managing the US regulatory scrutiny of acquisitions by foreign buyers, helping their clients across a variety of industries and foreign entities to acquire US businesses that may implicate national security issues.

Data Privacy & Security

Freshfields brings together veterans in data privacy, employee data, financial services regulation, investigations, litigation and antitrust, enabling the firm to work with clients on their cybersecurity/data strategy, including by assessing and mitigating cyber risk, incident response plans, and internal controls.

Complex Commercial Litigation

Freshfields’ commercial litigation practice represents clients in high-stakes US cases, including complex multijurisdictional and cross-border matters in which few firms can match Freshfields’ sophistication with regards to jurisdictional defenses.

Global Investigations

Freshfields conducts large scale, cross-border internal investigations and litigation in response to allegations of improper conduct. The firm regularly represents clients before the DOJ and SEC in government investigations conducted under the FCPA.

International Arbitration

Freshfields is widely recognized as the world’s leading arbitration practice across all key jurisdictions and sectors due to the firm’s ability to conduct arbitrations whatever the governing law of the dispute, the language of the arbitration, the applicable arbitration rules, or the subject matter of the dispute.

Private Capital

Freshfields covers the full range of domestic and cross-border private capital investments, including private equity M&A, leveraged finance, private funds and secondaries, and private credit and capital solutions, bringing new and creative solutions to complex legal challenges. We cover all investment strategies and industries, providing “best in class” advice.

Restructuring & Capital Solutions

Freshfields regularly acts for stakeholders involved in corporate restructurings or experiencing financial stress. The firm steers corporate boards of directors through troubled waters, and advises investment funds, asset managers, banks, bondholders and other lenders on debt and corporate restructurings.

Securities & Shareholder Litigation

Freshfields’ securities and shareholder litigators have secured victories for many of the world’s leading corporations, financial institutions, and executives, obtaining dismissals of securities class actions and shareholder suits in federal and state courts across the US and helping shape securities laws.

White-Collar Defense

Freshfields manages corporate crime risk and responds to allegations, investigations and criminal prosecution on behalf of leading companies and financial institutions. The firm is involved in some of the highest profile financial conduct and anti-bribery and corruption investigations globally.

Other Areas of Practice

Strategic risk and crisis management, executive compensation and benefits, tax, financial regulatory, intellectual property transactions, sanctions and trade, leveraged and acquisition finance, project finance, structured products and derivatives, and real estate.