Paul Hastings’ Finance and Restructuring Growth Accelerates with High-Profile Partner Addition in London

August 20, 2020

London, UK — Paul Hastings LLP, a leading global law firm, is adding to a steady stream of recent lateral investments, announcing today that Peter Hayes has joined the firm’s London office as a partner in its market-leading Finance practice. He joins from Shearman & Sterling, where he led the European finance practice. Hayes’ arrival follows impressive additions to the London office, including Finance & Restructuring partner Mei Lian.

“Peter has been on our radar for some time given his reputation in the market, so as we continue to invest in our leading global Finance & Restructuring practice, we are delighted to welcome Peter to our London office,” said Seth Zachary, chairman of Paul Hastings. “With his deep expertise and impressive track record of top-tier finance work, Peter is a strong addition who will help further accelerate our growth in London,” he added.

“Paul Hastings’ impressive growth in London, globally and across the global Finance & Restructuring practice, together with its collaborative culture and its future-focused approach, were all very attractive to me,” said Hayes. “I’m excited to join forces with my new colleagues in the firm’s global Finance team to continue to grow my practice.”

Hayes focuses his practice on bank finance, particularly cross-border acquisition and leveraged finance, including related restructuring work. He represents private equity sponsors, hedge funds, commercial banks, investment banks, direct lenders and corporate borrowers across the capital structure.

Hayes’ arrival continues Paul Hastings’ strong lateral growth across its global and Finance & Restructuring platforms. Over the past 18 months, the firm has welcomed more than two dozen partners, and in the last six months alone has added Finance & Restructuring partners Mei Lian in London, Guilhem Bremond in Paris, James Grogan in Houston, Justin Rawlins in Los Angeles, and Philip Ratner in New York.

Paul Hastings’ London Finance & Restructuring practice regularly advises on large, complex matters. Recent representations include advising Global Cloud Xchange, Gulf Keystone Petroleum and General Healthcare Group. The team has also worked on the $3.5 billion loan and bond financing for Bain Capital’s acquisition of Kantar from WPP, the £700m recapitalization of the Co-operative Bank, the financing for Altice’s combination of Suddenlink and Optimum, and the £2.5 billion financing for Advent’s acquisition of Cobham. Paul Hastings was named Law Firm of the Year (Lending & Securities) for 2019 by Alt Credit Intelligence and won Loan Deal of the Year at the IFLR Europe Awards 2019.

At Paul Hastings, our purpose is clear — to help our clients and people navigate new paths to growth. With a strong presence throughout Asia, Europe, Latin America, and the U.S., Paul Hastings is recognized as one of the world’s most innovative global law firms.