Katten

Chicago based Katten has a (hitherto this point) small London presence, known for advisory work (particularly in the fields of financial regulation and tax). The past three years, however, have seen the firm’s London office surge financially, fuelled by a focus on ‘proper’ funds work. Let’s take a look at the London offices historic core first: its advisory practice. Centring advisory work (technical, regulatory advice practices) as opposed to transactional or disputes offerings is somewhat unusual for a US firm in the City. However, Katten has made this niche its own with remarkable success. It has done so through three specific practices. First, its regulatory derivatives group. Led by Carolyn Jackson, this team works with a range of financial institutions (though broker-dealer investment banks are a particular speciality) to make sure the complex financial products (derivatives) that they are involved with are legally compliant. For those who are unaware, the 2008 financial crisis precipitated a wave of derivative regulation across both sides of the Atlantic. And this is exactly the teams focus: dealing with derivatives-related regulation spanning the US and the UK. This cross-border strategy is spearheaded by the aforementioned Jackson, who is dual qualified in New York and England & Wales. Second, its general financial regulation team. Stepping outside of the narrower derivatives practice, the broader department is a Legal 500 ranked powerhouse operating across an impressive range of issues for such a small office. Particular specialities include regulatory reporting, compliance plans, and FCA authorisation. The clientele for this practice tends to be banks, fund managers, and the operators of exchanges (including in the crypto space). A great example of the type of work on offer here is the firms support of Intercontinental Stock Exchange’s (ICE) acquisition of NYSE Euronext (a smaller group of European clearing houses). This involved both structuring compliance plans in terms of the domestic European regulation, but also (given that ICE is a US business) US federal law en pointe. Katten’s stewardship, however, was able to get the deal over the line, and ICE has operated seamlessly in their European markets since. Third, its corporate tax practice. This is perhaps Katten’s advisory crown jewel, possessing a Band-1 rating across all major legal directories. The practice is headed by the force of nature that is Charlotte Sallabank. Unsatisfied by simply one attestation of her powers, she is ranked by ‘Tax Law’, ‘Chambers Europe’, ‘KPMG’s Handbook’, and the ‘Legal 500’ simultaneously as among the top tax practioners in the country. Interestingly, much of her work is done in a supporting capacity. Whereas most tax advisors are brought in to support the corporate engine of a firm, Sallabank and co are frequently instructed to deal specifically with the tax dimensions of a transaction for which another firm is handling the corporate heavy-lifting. In this way, the group functions as a sort of ‘barrister’-lite. An example of recent work in this respect includes tax support for an anonymous (though it is rumoured to be one of the largest around) blockchain developer in establishing its UK presence. What becomes clear from this survey is the centrality of a strong advisory core to Katten’s London presence. But that core – which has been built over decades – is not (generally) what is driving the firm’s impressive recent growth. And impressive it truly is. Since 2021, the firm has seen a 100% increase in revenue and a 75% increase in revenue per partner. Almost no other firm in the City can measure up to this growth rate. What accounts for this? Well, the answer may lie in a shift towards private funds work. This is support for setting up and operating collective investment vehicles run by and for sophisticated investors (including private equity funds, hedge funds, or similar). Growth in this area has been supercharged by timely partner acquisitions. Consider, for instance, the firms three-partner move for former Curtis-talent Thomas Laurer, Ryan Hansen, and Daniel Lewin.