Travers Smith LLP has announced today the promotion of nine lawyers to its partnership, with effect from 1 July 2025.
The new partners and their principal areas of practice are:
James Barnard, Financial Services and
Markets
James advises across a range of financial services regulatory
matters, with particular expertise in the asset management sector.
He acts as a trusted adviser to global and European clients,
providing advice at all stages of their business lifecycle,
including matters relating to licensing and authorisations,
fundraising, ongoing compliance, regulatory change and mergers and
acquisitions.
Adam Burk, Finance
Adam is a financing lawyer specialising in structured finance and
fund finance deals. On the structured finance side, he advises
originators and lenders across the full range of specialty finance,
securitisation, portfolio sale and other asset-backed transactions.
His fund finance practice predominantly involves advising on NAV,
ABL and other structured products.
Jaryd Davidson, Private Equity & Financial
Sponsors
Jaryd is corporate lawyer who specialises in private equity related
M&A transactions. He acts primarily for institutional
investors, management teams and portfolio companies, supporting
them throughout the investment lifecycle. Jaryd has advised many of
the firm's key clients on domestic and multi-jurisdictional
transactions including buy-outs, minority investments, exits and
restructurings.
Elissavet Grout, Tax
Elissavet provides incentives and remuneration advice on all public
company transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, listings
and takeovers. Outside of the transactional work, Elissavet advises
companies listed both in the UK and on non-UK exchanges, on
executive remuneration, employment and social security taxation,
and on the design and implementation of their long-term incentive
plans. Elissavet also provides both buy-side and sell-side
incentives advice to clients in private M&A transactions and
supports private equity backed clients with establishing their
global management incentive plans. Elissavet is highly experienced
in cross border work and regularly advises on global mobility
employment tax and incentive matters alongside the firm's
Employment and Immigration Practice.
Nick Glynn, Financial Services and
Markets
Nick advises on a range of financial regulatory and ESG matters
including cross-border fund marketing and distribution,
securitisation, business line licencing and structuring, regulatory
perimeter issues, regulatory capital other prudential matters,
change in control, sustainability disclosures and ESG financial
product labelling.
He mainly works with international asset managers in both the retail and institutional spaces and capital markets businesses.
Tom Margesson, Tax
Tom specialises in the taxation of private capital managers and
their investment funds. He advises on all aspects of fund
formation, the remuneration structures of private capital
professionals, alternative liquidity solutions (including secondary
transactions) and complex tax matters affecting private capital
businesses. Tom's clients include the full spectrum of asset
managers from global multi-strategy houses to first time
managers.
Michael O'Brien Kelly, Funds
Michael specialises in the structuring, formation and distribution
of private investment funds for first-time and experienced sponsors
across all asset classes. He has particular experience working with
private equity, venture capital, debt and infrastructure focussed
houses on the structuring of bespoke and complex products.
Richard Offord, Technology & Commercial
Transactions
Richard specialises in high value and complex contractual projects,
outsourcings and commercial transactions. He has a particular focus
on the financial services sector, where he specialises in
technology focused contractual projects and the energy and
infrastructure sector, where he regularly advises on the contracts
that underpin major long-term investments. Richard is also very
experienced in successfully structuring the carve-out elements of
complex M&A deals.
Ella Sharpley, Corporate M&A and
ECM
Ella specialises in public and private acquisitions and disposals,
joint ventures, equity fundraisings and general corporate advice.
She is an experienced and trusted adviser to public and private
companies, institutional investors and financial intermediaries in
a number of sectors and regularly advises on both cross border and
domestic matters.
Travers Smith Managing Partner Edmund Reed commented:
"Congratulations to our nine new partners on their well-earned promotions. I am really pleased to welcome them to the partnership.
These promotions deliver on our plan to invest in strategic areas which we believe are key to the firm's continuing success. Each of our new partners will develop our offering in those areas to help deliver exceptional service to our clients. I look forward to watching their successful careers develop as partners."
Travers Smith Senior PartnerAndrew Gillen commented:
"My sincere congratulations to each of our new partners. Their promotions are a testament to their exceptional leadership and expertise in their respective fields, and I look forward to seeing them take this next step in their careers."