Julian Long

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (‘Freshfields’) is advising Aon plc (‘Aon’) on the sale of Willis Re and a set of Willis Towers Watson (‘WTW’) corporate risk and broking and health and benefits services to Arthur J. Gallagher & Co (‘Gallagher’). These businesses will be divested for a total consideration of US$3.57bn. The agreement resolves questions raised by the European Commission and is intended to address certain questions raised by regulators in certain other jurisdictions. Aon and Willis Towers Watson continue to work toward obtaining additional regulatory approval in all relevant jurisdictions, including the United States, where regulators are conducting an independent review of the Aon and WTW combination. “This agreement demonstrates strong momentum on the path to close our proposed combination with Willis Towers Watson,” said Greg Case, Aon’s CEO. “We’ve used this time to align our future leadership team around a one-firm culture that will create new opportunities for colleagues, accelerate innovation on behalf of clients and deliver shareholders the long-term value creation they have come to expect from our team.” The Freshfields team working with Aon General Counsel Darren Zeidel, VP & Global Chief Counsel Julie Cho and Chief Antitrust Counsel Elise Kirban and their team was led by: global transactions partners Julian Long, James Smethurst and George Swan; people and reward partner Andrew Murphy; and antitrust partners Martin McElwee, Laurent Garzaniti and Jennifer Mellott. About Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP is a global law firm with a long track record of successfully advising the world's leading national and multinational corporations and financial institutions on ground-breaking and business-critical challenges. Our team of more than 2,800 lawyers and other legal professionals delivers global results from our 28 offices worldwide. Our commitment, local and multinational expertise and business know-how means our clients can rely on us when it matters most.

May 13

1 min

Freshfields is advising Rentokil Initial, the world’s leading commercial pest control and hygiene services provider, on its $6.7bn acquisition of Terminix, a leading provider of residential and commercial termite and pest management services. The acquisition will be undertaken through a US statutory merger in which Terminix shareholders will receive cash and new Rentokil Initial ADRs listed on the New York Stock Exchange for each of their Terminix shares. The acquisition requires antitrust approvals and the approval of both sets of shareholders. The deal is expected to close in H2 2022. The transaction will bring together two leading brands to create the global leader in pest control and hygiene & wellbeing, and the leader in the pest control business in North America – the world’s largest pest control market. The Freshfields team working with Daragh Fagan – Group General Counsel - and Cate Sharp – Legal Director, M&A - is being led by partners Jennifer Bethlehem and Julian Long, supported by senior associate Rikin Morjaria, associates Katie Stenstrom and Madalena de Abreu, and trainees Helena Christensen and Miya Modhvadia. Antitrust advice was provided by partner Alastair Chapman and senior associate Harriet Drury. Tax advice was provided by partner Paul Davison, senior associate Samuel Withnall and associate Farhana Chowdhury. P&R advice was provided by partner David Mendel.

Dec 14

1 min

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (‘Freshfields’) is advising AVEVA Group plc (‘AVEVA’) on the recommended cash acquisition by Schneider Electric SE (‘Schneider’) of the entire issued, and to be issued, share capital of AVEVA not currently owned by Schneider. The acquisition values AVEVA at approximately £9,482 million on a fully diluted basis and is expected to become effective in the first quarter of 2023, subject to conditions including the receipt of AVEVA shareholder approval and foreign investment and regulatory approvals. The Freshfields team advising on the deal is being led by partners Natasha Good, Sundeep Kapila and Julian Long, alongside senior associate Meredith Bayley.

Sep 21

1 min

Freshfields conseille Sanofi dans le cadre de ses négociations exclusives avec CD&R pour la cession et l’acquisition potentielles d'une participation de contrôle de 50 % dans Opella, sa division santé grand public. Cette opération potentielle ouvre la voie à la création d'un nouveau leader indépendant dans le domaine de la santé grand public, et s’inscrit dans la stratégie de Sanofi de se concentrer sur les médicaments et les vaccins innovants. Sanofi resterait un actionnaire significatif, soutien d’Opella dans sa croissance future et son indépendance. La transaction envisagée reste soumise à la finalisation des accords définitifs et des processus sociaux appropriés, et aux approbations réglementaires usuelles. La finalisation de la transaction est prévue au plus tôt pour le deuxième trimestre 2025. La valorisation d'Opella est basée sur une valeur d'entreprise d'environ 16 milliards d'euros. Opella emploie plus de 11 000 personnes et opère dans 100 pays, au service de plus d'un demi-milliard de consommateurs dans le monde. Elle est la troisième entreprise mondiale sur le marché des produits en vente libre et des vitamines, minéraux et compléments alimentaires (OTC et VMS). L’équipe Freshfields, dirigée à Londres par Jennifer Bethlehem et Julian Long, associés, était coordonnée à Paris par Vincent Daniel-Mayeur (droit fiscal) et Julien Rebibo (corporate), associés. Aïleen Legré, counsel, Aia Eid et Côme Le Brun, collaborateurs, sont intervenus sur les aspects corporate. Louis-Antoine Jacquet, collaborateur, est intervenu sur les aspects de structuration et de droit fiscal. Charlotte Colin-Dubuisson et Jérôme Philippe, associés, sont intervenus avec Laure de Chalendar, collaboratrice senior, et Anaïs Jennepin, collaboratrice, sur les aspects de droit de la concurrence et de contrôle des investissements étrangers. Christel Cacioppo, associée, Elodie Favre-Thellmann, counsel, et Matthias Triolle, collaborateur, sont intervenus sur les aspects de droit social. Une équipe pluridisciplinaire est également intervenue aux États-Unis et en Allemagne.

Oct 23

1 min

Ten law firm partners have been identified as the top U.K. M&A lawyers based in London for 2025, according to a dataset produced by MergerLinks. Samuel Newhouse of Latham & Watkins topped the rankings, and was found to have led on M&A transactions last year with a combined deal value of £54.05 billion. Newhouse was part of the Latham team which advised on the merger of mining giants Anglo American and Teck—creating a $53 billion combined group. Notably, every lawyer on the MergerLinks list of the top ten practitioners is male. The online platform’s final list is based on the total value of M&A transactions announced last year, and considers only those in which the respective lawyers led teams in which their firm was the primary legal adviser. The list also features top names from Freshfields, Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom, Cravath Swaine & Moore, A&O Shearman and Slaughter and May. Freshfields partner Stephen Hewes was in second place on the list, having led on deals with a combined value of £21.9 billion, while Skadden partner Denis Klimentchenko was in third place with an equivalent figure of £15.8 billion. Freshfields' Hewes advised on CVC's acquisition of Smiths Detection from Smiths Group for £2 billion in December 2025, with Latham & Watkins also leading on the deal.

Mar 3

1 min