Simon is the managing partner of our Scottish offices as well as leading the corporate team in Scotland.

He has considerable experience of a wide range of UK and cross-border corporate transactions including acquisitions and disposals (with a particular focus on private equity related transactions), fund raisings (both private and public), restructurings and reorganisations, and joint ventures. Simon is described as "very responsive and commercial" by UK Legal 500 and is recognised by Chambers and Partners UK as one of the leading individuals in Scotland for corporate finance.

Key experience:

• acting for the vendors on the disposal of MTEM Limited to Petroleum Geo-Services AS ($275m) - short-listed for "UK Deal of the Year" at the European Venture Capital Awards
• acting for Wireless Infrastructure Group Limited on the acquisition of Scottish and Southern Energy's wireless telecoms infrastructure business (£79m)
• acting for Royal Bank Investments Limited and the other vendors on the secondary buyout of Hydrasun Group (a leading provider of fluid connectors, hoses, fittings, instrumentation, process control products and associated services to the oil and gas industry) by Barclays Private Equity (£75.5m)
• acting for HSBC Private Equity on the institutional buy out of TD Group (consideration undisclosed)
• acting for Specialty Finance Trust on its equity and debt financing in the UK and Italy (€306m)
• acting for Poyry Energy AG on the cross-border acquisition of IGL Consultants Limited (consideration undisclosed)
• acting for Royal Bank of Scotland plc on the secondary buyout of Letts Filofax by Phoenix Private Equity from Dunedin Private Equity (£45m)
• acting for Royal Bank Investments Limited on its equity investment in and the debt refinancing of Fields and Towers Group Limited (£53m)
• acting for management on the buyout of BCW Group by Sovereign Private Equity (£28m)
• acting for MTEM Limited on its fund raising and spin out from the University of Edinburgh (£7.4m) - awarded "Small to Mid-size Deal of the Year" by Business Insider
• acting for a syndicate of investors comprising Energy Ventures, Chevron Technology and Hydro Technology Ventures on the spin out from QinetiQ and equity investments in Stingray Geophysical Limited (£7m)
• acting for Impress Holdings BV on the acquisition of Alcan Packaging Sutton Limited (consideration undisclosed)
• acting for Advantage Capital on the institutional buy-out of Butters Group, a leading UK supplier of house and garden plants (consideration undisclosed)
• acting for Energy Ventures on various equity investments including Arkex Limited (£5.5m), Pan Geo, Inc ($6m) and Sigma Subsea (consideration undisclosed)
• acting for Capita Group on various acquisitions and disposals
• acting for Cupa Pizarras on various acquisitions

"Partner" refers to a member of DLA Piper Scotland