Lateral hire lets international firm meet growing demand for US-style leveraged financings
Lorraine Vaz, a leveraged finance specialist, has joined international firm McGuireWoods as a partner in its London office. She joins from King & Wood Mallesons, where she was a partner.
McGuireWoods believe Lorraine’s arrival, which brings the debt finance team to six people in the London office, will help it satisfy increasing demand in the UK for US-style leveraged financings.
Lorraine is the third partner to join the London office since February, following debt finance partner Jennifer Kafcas and M&A partner Jeremy Davis.
She brings deep knowledge of the leveraged finance market and an established reputation in her field. Able to work on both lender and borrower financings, her clients include banks, debt funds and other financial institutions, as well as private equity sponsors. Her in-depth experience includes domestic and cross-border financings across the credit spectrum, from large to mid-market leveraged and acquisition finance deals. She also advises on public bid finance, workouts, restructurings and funds finance.
McGuireWoods boasts one of the largest finance law practices in the U.S. and includes a highly respected debt finance team in London. With lawyers in key financial hubs such as London, New York, Atlanta, Charlotte, San Francisco, Chicago and Los Angeles, the firm has handled domestic and cross-border commitments exceeding $100bn in each of the past two years.
‘Lorraine’s wealth of knowledge of London leveraged finance markets opens a world of opportunity for McGuireWoods to satisfy the continuing movement toward US-style leveraged finance in the UK,’ said Raj Natarajan, chair of the firm’s Debt Finance Department.
‘With her cutting-edge practice and cross-border experience assisting clients in sophisticated financing deals, Lorraine is integral to replicating in London the success McGuireWoods already enjoys as a market leader in the US for debt finance deal work,’ said Daniel Peyton, managing partner of the London office. ‘Lorraine represents another important chapter in the continuing strategic growth of McGuireWoods London.’
Lorraine said: ‘I am eager to help build the leveraged finance team in London, and to work with the firm’s deep transactional practice to continue the firm’s strategic growth in Europe.’
