Chris Towle

Chris Towle helps clients to stay in control of their acquisitions, disposals, restructurings, strategic investments and joint ventures, in order to ensure that they are successfully delivered while maximising value and minimising risk.

While Chris regularly advises on all forms of corporate transactions, restructurings and governance, he has particular experience in cross-border M&A, major corporate restructurings, private equity and indirect real estate transactions.

Chris' clients benefit from his deep appreciation and experience of cross-border transactions. The majority of his work involves international corporates, funds or other cross-border elements and so, while he advises on English law, he is well used to managing teams of lawyers in Europe and beyond, and coordinating work streams in multiple jurisdictions, in order to deliver integrated cross border advice and to ensure a consistent approach to the delivery of that advice, no matter where a client is doing business.

A firm believer in hard work, proactivity and responsiveness, Chris aims to make the whole process as efficient and painless as possible for his clients and to work in a way that genuinely compliments and responds to their needs.

Chris enjoys spending time getting to know the people within his clients' organisations and immersing himself in their businesses in order to genuinely understand their culture, business needs and the way that they operate. In doing so he strives to work alongside his clients, as an extension of their wider team, in order to offer the most appropriate commercial and legal advice and expertise.

As well as being head of our Birmingham Corporate Team and overall global lead for the firm's US initiatives, for many years Chris has lead our UK Indirect Real Estate practice and so is highly experienced in advising in relation to complex corporate transactions involving real estate assets and property-rich companies

Recognition

"Despite the urgency of the matter when we first instructed you it did turn out to be a marathon rather than a sprint. Chris stuck with us through some difficult challenges on the company side when it all seemed to us to be coming off of the rails but his calm measured approach always got us through."
In-house Counsel, Local Government

Experience

Chris has advised:

  • One of the UK's largest independent owners and operators of care homes, as their primary corporate legal adviser – providing a broad range of full service support ranging from individual corporate and/or real estate acquisitions and disposals, major portfolio disposal processes, joint ventures, major corporate restructurings to simplify the client's overall group of companies (involving circa 50 entities and in excess of 2,000 restructuring documents), corporate finance advice and general day to day assistance and corporate governance.
  • A US real estate investment fund on the acquisition and disposal of numerous office and industrial property-holding entities (primarily Jersey SPVs and JPUTs).
  • Blackstone (and related portfolio companies) on a number of indirect real estate focused investments and disposals, including the sale of the Westminster and Tower Bridge DoubleTree by Hilton hotels for a combined value of c.£490 million, held through two UK incorporated corporate vehicles.
  • A US real estate investment fund on the acquisition and subsequent liquidation of a portfolio of thirteen commercial, office and industrial property-holding Luxembourg S.à r.l.s, with a combined value of over £210 million.
  • Avison Young on the acquisition of GVA Grimley and numerous subsequent European M&A processes and general corporate governance advice.
  • HAIL on the purchase of Brindley Place, Birmingham for £260m via the corporate acquisition of multiple Luxembourg incorporated S.à r.ls.

Career & Recognition

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