Ropes & Gray is a preeminent international law firm with an outstanding reputation in its core competencies. A global leader in private equity (financing and mergers and acquisitions), investment funds, life sciences, and health care, we also have strengths in international tax, bankruptcy and business restructuring, and litigation.

With more than 1,000 lawyers across nine offices in Boston, Chicago, Hong Kong, London, New York, San Francisco, Shanghai, Silicon Valley, Tokyo, and Washington, D.C., the emphasis now is on establishing the firm in key international business centres. 

For additional information about our lateral hiring opportunities, please click here or email your materials directly to lateralhiring@ropesgrayhiring.com.

Our London Office

Ropes & Gray is a firm committed to growth in London backed by a long-term strategy and vision. Given the start-up nature of the London office, we are able to offer something completely different to all those wishing to join us in what we feel will be an exciting project. Our culture is informal and non-hierarchical, offering all levels of staff direct client contact in a small, friendly environment.

In London, we are building a multinational team of partners, lawyers, and business support professionals with the aim of competing and winning against the major private equity and finance powerhouses for cross‑border deals in Europe and beyond. Our aim is not to be just another London office of a U.S. law firm, but to become part of the fabric of the London legal market. 

There is total commitment from both the co-managing partners of the office and senior management in the United States to make London a success with a clear articulated plan and buy-in from the entire partnership.

With a very unambiguous and focussed strategy presenting a low-risk, high-quality proposition to recruits, we have a philosophy of building it right and building it for the future that allows us the luxury of creating only what we need initially around the traditional strengths of the firm. A conservative plan of 60–80 lawyers within the first three years is in place but with expectations already surpassed, this is being revised upwards.

Both London co-managing partners, Maurice Allen and Mike Goetz, have a track record of successful start-ups. We believe there are exceptional opportunities for new quality entrants given the recent dislocation in the London market.

We are known for the quality of our recruits, many of whom are drawn from top law schools. This is due in part to our commitment to training, our business support infrastructure, and the fact that we offer tangible career progression for our lawyers and business support teams. This standard continues in

London, where candidates are being offered a unique opportunity to build their own client base along with options for client and office secondments, making this an exciting place to start (or expand) a career.

Ropes & Gray enjoys high rankings in many key categories by the Vault Guide, the influential directory for law firm associates and candidates.  The Vault Guide rankings are based on surveys completed by nearly 19,000 associates in the United States who are asked to evaluate firms based on factors such as job satisfaction, diversity, and training and development.  In the 2012 Vault Guide rankings, released in July 2011, the firm was ranked number one in two categories -  formal training and informal training -  and ranked second in best firm to work for, firm culture, satisfaction, and associate/partner relations. 

Our approach to compensation is one of rewards linked to contribution in the broadest sense rather than solely by reference to individual performance. We offer competitive pay—above the Magic Circle and in line with other top U.S. firms in London—along with a benefits package that is expected of a leading law firm in London. 

Our office is located in a fantastic new development in vibrant New Street Square with easy access to Chancery Lane and Farringdon stations. The modern building offers room for expansion; the ability to use the resources of the lead-tenant, Taylor Wessing; and first-class technology including Bluetooth telephone headsets for all staff and the most advanced video conference facilities currently available in the market.

Challenging Work

With a focus on blue-chip clients in areas that play to our strengths, most of our work involves cross-border transactions, which means thinking on our feet and understanding the legal and business requirements of multiple jurisdictions.

We are looking for people with an entrepreneurial approach to dealing with clients and business development. Direct client contact is taken for granted and not just at senior levels—all our lawyers are encouraged and supported in playing their own part in active business development. This is balanced by an open door policy ensuring candidates will have the support to build a successful career.

We have already made an impact in the market with some standout instructions from key players, including:

• Acting for certain mezzanine lenders to KCA Deutag Oil Services Group, including funds managed by BlackRock Financial Management, Inc., EIG Management Company, LLC and GoldenTree Asset Management LP, in connection with the KCA’s recent financial restructuring. The Aberdeen-based group is one of the largest international land drilling contractors outside the Americas. The restructuring saw cancellation of the Group’s US$585.9 million mezzanine facilities and an injection of US$550 million new money from the mezzanine lenders and the Group’s incumbent sponsor, funds advised by Pamplona Capital Management LLC.
• Acting for Liberty Global Inc. in connection with the financing for its approximate €3.16 billion acquisition of Germany's third-largest cable TV operator Kabel BW Erste Beteiligungs GmbH, from Swedish private equity group EQT Partners AB.
• Acting for UPCB III Finance Limited and UPC Holding B.V. on the issuance of US$1 billion 6⅝% Senior Secured Notes due 2020, the proceeds of which were used to fund a new loan under the UPC senior credit facility.
• Acting for Telenet Finance III Luxembourg S.C.A. and Telenet Group Holding N.V. on the issuance of €300 million 6⅝% Senior Secured Notes due 2021, the proceeds of which were used to fund a new loan under the Telenet senior credit facility.
• Acting for UPCB II Finance Limited and UPC Holding B.V. on the issuance of €750 million 6⅜% Senior Secured Notes due 2020, the proceeds of which were used to fund a new loan under the UPC senior credit facility.
• Acting for Telenet Finance Luxembourg S.C.A. in connection with the issuance of its €500 million 6⅜% Senior Secured Notes due 2020.
• Acting for Sankaty Advisors and GoldenTree Asset Management as Euro note purchasers in connection with the issuance of €110 million eight-year senior-secured notes that will refinance the debts of the world’s largest specialty alumina products producer, Almatis, resulting in the company’s exit from bankruptcy.
• Acting for UPC Holding BV in connection with the €640 million senior notes issue to be used to fund the refinancing of their existing and outstanding 2014 high-yield notes. 
• Acting for TPG in a co-investment with Goldman Sachs for the €1.2 billion secondary buyout acquisition of Ontex N.V., Europe’s market leading hygienic disposable products manufacturer, from Candover Partners Limited.
• Acting for Liberty Global Inc. in connection with its €2.6 billion high-yield offering to finance the acquisition of Unitymedia GmbH, Germany’s second largest cable operator. This was the biggest secured bond in European high-yield history, the largest ever high-yield deal in the cable space, the second biggest high-yield deal ever completed in Europe, the largest private equity exit in Europe in 2009, and the first major European deal where high-yield bonds have usurped bank loans to fund an acquisition.
• Acting for a private equity consortium consisting of Berkshire Partners, Bain Capital, and Advent International in its US$1.1 billion leveraged buyout of SkillSoft, an Ireland-based public company, and at the time the largest European public takeover since the credit crunch.
• Acting for UPCB Finance Limited on the English and U.S. law aspects of its issuance of €500 million principal amount of 7⅝% senior secured notes due 15 January 2020.
• Acting for the committee of subordinated lenders on the restructuring of Zodiac Marine & Pool Group, a French and U.S. leisure group.

We are building a multinational team that is a reflection of London itself and already includes 13 nationalities of people who speak 20 different languages.

One of the differences in the build-out of a new office is that there is openness and a sense of involvement that is rarely found in larger firms, extending to quarterly updates on progress and strategic plans at the office- and firm-levels for all staff.
 
The open and friendly approach to the office extends from partners’ open doors to the social scene, which includes team ski-trips, dinners, and the bar in the square.

Bankruptcy & Business Restructuring
Financing
Health Care
High Yield Debt Offerings
Life Sciences
Mergers and Acquisitions
Private Equity
Private Investment Funds
Tax
Regulatory