BRABNERS MAINTAINS POST-COVID PACE FOR H1 M&A

The corporate team at leading independent law firm Brabners continues to support the UK’s resilient M&A market, having advised on more than 60 deals in 2022 so far.

The volume of deals, led by its teams in Liverpool, Manchester and Lancashire, keeps it on track to better its performance in 2021 – which represented an 80% increase on pre-pandemic levels and deal values in excess of £1.3bn.

The firm recently launched a new office in Leeds – including the appointment of new partners Marcus Armstrong and Chris Peace from Knights – which will expand its corporate offering to clients in Yorkshire.

The 40-strong team – which is among the largest and most active in the North of England – continues to support the growth of the wider firm, with deals aligning with Brabners’ core sector strengths including sport, real estate, healthcare, retail, tech and supply chain.

Key deals included supporting the floatation of healthcare firm Probiotix; the sale of £110m-turnover BMW and Mini dealer Specialist Cars to automotive retail giant Sytner Group; and Cole Waterhouse and Tonia Investment’s acquisition of the 4-acre brownfield site that will become Leeds City Village – a 1,000-home development on the border of Leeds’ cultural district.

With business owners increasingly implementing long-term succession plans, Brabners’ specialist team also continued to support the transition of a range of businesses to employee ownership, including Evolve Family Law. Elsewhere in the professional services sector, it furthered its relationship with Begbies Traynor, as the business recovery and advisory firm acquired Budworth Hardcastle into its property division, Eddisons.

Mark Rathbone, head of corporate (Liverpool) at Brabners, said: “Deal activity has held up incredibly well throughout 2022, despite the level of uncertainty brought about by the war in Ukraine and inflation. While these issues are unlikely to be resolved with any great speed, the market’s resilience is evidence of the continued trend towards consolidation across a range of sectors, as well as the appetite among investors to pay a premium for high-quality businesses that have traded well coming out of the pandemic.

“It’s been incredibly rewarding to see the high level of activity in our core market in the North, and we’re looking forward to growing our sphere of influence as we work alongside Marcus and Chris to build out our offer in Leeds.”