White & Case Ranked Top Legal Adviser for Activism in Europe and in Asia for 2020

Global law firm White & Case LLP has achieved a unique ranking as the leading legal adviser for shareholder activism in the Bloomberg Activism Adviser Rankings for FY 2020, including the following:

• #1 international legal adviser to activists globally
• #1 legal adviser to both activists and public companies in Europe
• #1 legal adviser to both activists and (by volume) public companies in Asia Pacific

White & Case has maintained its exclusive position of being the only legal adviser to be ranked #1 on both the activist and the company sides of campaigns, reflecting White & Case's uniquely balanced activism practice.

"We expect that 2021 will be the year in which activism reemerges as a key driver of corporate activity, with many companies considering an M&A solution as they look to move beyond the impact of the pandemic and the rise in SPACs offering companies and shareholders an additional option in an M&A process," said Patrick Sarch (London), Partner and co-head of White & Case's Activism Practice. "We expect to see a rise in engagement in the coming months and are helping companies to prepare for this, with a new focus on a sustainability and diversity agenda together with wider ESG issues. Our UK, US and global presence, advising both issuers and investors, puts us in a unique position and allows us to provide our clients with a rounded view." 

"These rankings are an incredible achievement and recognize the quality and global footprint of our leading global Shareholder Activism practice," said Tom Matthews (London), Partner and co-head of the Activism Practice. "We increased market share during a more difficult market in 2020, working on a number of high profile and cutting-edge deals. We pride ourselves in being able to develop innovative and bespoke solutions for our clients." 

"After the US, Japan saw the second highest volume of activist campaigns in 2020," said Nels Hansen, Partner, Activism Practice – Asia. "Although the number of new campaigns dropped, there continues to be a significant number of long-running campaigns which feature prominently in the media. Absent of an unexpected change in the market, we would expect robust activity to continue throughout 2021." 

"Activity in France was up significantly in 2020, with a number of high profile campaigns breaking new ground in shareholder relations and corporate governance in France," said Diane Lamarche, Partner, Activism Practice – France. "This, combined with a renewed regulatory focus, means that 2021 is likely to prove to be another very active and interesting year." 

Bloomberg Activism Adviser Rankings is a leading publication of Activism advisory rankings. The rankings represent the top financial, legal, IR and proxy solicitor advisors in the global shareholder activism market.