French speaking

Our French-speaking team specialises in advising French, Belgian and Swiss clients on matters of English law.

The team members are either native French or fluent French speakers. Drawing together expertise from across our firm, the team provides legal expertise based on a practical understanding of the respective legal systems and business cultures, and the economic and cultural distinctions between the UK and France, Belgium and Switzerland. Members of the team practice in all of our core departments.

Our Experience

• Dassault Aviation, France – acquisition of a Falcon 900LX aircraft for US$37.5m, including the US$26m financing with Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank.
• High net worth individual – acquisition and financing of a chalet in Megève for approx. €10m including tax advice for the holding of assets in France.
• Eleclink Limited – suite of agreements entered into with National Grid for the connection and supporting transmission infrastructure and the bilateral agreement as part of a pioneering project to establish a connection between the UK and French grids to allow transfer of power between the two countries.
• British based car manufacturer – claims against a French company and individual arising out of the sale of a racing–car and the provision of support services to the French company and individual.
• French family retailing conglomerate – project managing the purchase of a substantial residential property in Hampstead, London. The transaction involved complex financial arrangements that included international trust issues.
• Masternaut UK Ltd, known as Masternaut Three X – acquisition by Masternaut International, a subsidiary of Hub Télécom owned by Europe’s second largest airport operator, Aéroports de Paris. The deal created Europe’s largest fully integrated telematics, mobile resource and fleet management solutions organisation
• Adventurous Journeys Capital Partners and other investors – disposal of Hotel Saint–Barth Isle de France to LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, the world’s largest luxury products group. The five star hotel, located on Flamands Bay on the Caribbean island of St Barthélemy, has won numerous awards.
• Tritax, the marketing leading investment fund house – disposal of an entire fund, holding a portfolio of 13 hotels, to the French hotel group, Accor for £71m.
• APV Restaurant SARL, France (who are the owners of the Parisian restaurant, La Chateaubriand) – arrangements in relation to the opening of a restaurant in Mayfair, London.
• GDF Suez – £multi–billion agreements with EDF Nuclear Generation Limited in relation to substantial design, engineer and construct agreements of infrastructure in relation to the high–profile Hinkley Point C nuclear power station project involving the construction of two nuclear reactors with a combined generation capacity of 3,200 MW with a total construction cost in excess of £16bn and the first nuclear power station in the UK in over 20 years.