William Fry, Ireland’s leading corporate law firm, has won ‘European Corporate Deal of the Year’ at The Lawyer European Awards 2016. The ceremony took place last night at the Hilton, Bankside, London, where William Fry was presented with the award for the firm’s role as lead advisor to International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (IAG) on its acquisition of Aer Lingus Group plc (Aer Lingus) for €1.46bn.
The IAG/Aer Lingus acquisition was a landmark deal for the European aviation industry and of significant strategic importance to the Irish economy. It was one of the most sought after corporate acquisitions in the last number of years, as well as the biggest ever aviation transaction relating to an Irish airline and the largest transaction involving a European carrier in the last decade.
‘European Corporate Deal of the Year’ is a highly coveted award which recognises excellence and innovation in deal structuring, as well as excellence in client service. In winning the award, William Fry fought off competition from six other leading international law firms – Arthur Cox, DZP, Gómez-Acebo & Pombo, Herbert Smith Freehills, Pérez-Llorca and Wolf Theiss.
Commenting on the award, Bryan Bourke, Managing Partner at William Fry said, “We are delighted to win European Corporate Deal of the Year at the Lawyer European Awards 2016. It was very exciting to represent IAG in this landmark and complex deal. The award recognises William Fry’s position at the very top of the European M&A legal market. It is also testament to the depth of experience at the firm and our investment in hiring and retaining the very best people.
Now it its 22nd year, The Lawyer European Awards programme was the first initiative of its kind to reward and celebrate excellence across the European legal market. Each year entries are invited from independent law firms headquartered in Europe and global firms working within the European market.