Financial services products & services
We advise our clients on the legal aspects of:
- the structuring of, and terms and conditions which apply to, the provision of services to their clients
- the structuring, establishment and distribution of financial products.
Typical examples of legal support to our clients on financial services and products:
- comprehensive advice on the structuring, establishment (and including where appropriate listing on investment exchanges) and distribution of UK and offshore investment funds.
Typical fund structures we advise on:
| Fund type |
UK
Offshore
Listed/unlisted |
| Regulatory status |
UCITS/non-UCITS retail schemes
Qualified investor schemes
Unauthorised funds |
| Fund vehicle |
Companies
Investment trusts
OEICs
Common investment trusts
Unit trusts
Limited partnerships/LLPs |
| Asset class |
Property
Private equity
Transferable securities
Derivatives
Commodities
Debt
Alternative (eg intellectual property, art, musical instruments) |
- structuring and drafting the terms and conditions which apply to investment, dealing, custody and related services
- advising on the structuring and documentation of banking services including bank account facilities, lending services (including lending services regulated by the Consumer Credit Act) and specialist banking products including structured products
- advising on the design and terms and conditions of structured products
- advising on derivatives contracts
- advising on the participant documentation for multi-lateral trading facilities and clearing houses
- advising on “wrappers” for financial products including SIPPs, ISAs, life assurance contracts and on prospectuses offering financial products approved by the Financial Services Authority under the Prospectus Directive regime.
Experience
Three examples of our recent work:
- advising a major fund manager on the launch of a fund aimed solely at UK charities. The fund was constituted as a non-UCITS retail scheme and at the time of launch there was only one other fund of this type. Extensive dialogue and negotiations with the Charity Commission and HMRC was required
- acting for a UK fund manager on the structuring and establishment of a Cayman domiciled absolute return fund. The fund invests in discounted equity and credit investments including public equity, equity linked securities and secondary credit instruments
- acting for an international fund management group on the restructuring of Dublin based UCITS sub-funds and UK FSA authorised unit trusts to facilitate the appointment of a new manager and trustee.