About
James has over 20 years post-qualification experience advising on all forms of finance transaction. He advises lenders, borrowers and other market participants on senior debt, mezzanine debt, equity investments, loan acquisitions, ‘loan on loan’ transactions and other forms of debt financing transactions, as well as loan restructurings and enforcements. His clients include banks and specialist lenders, debt funds, family offices, loan servicers, private equity funds, insolvency practitioners and corporates.
James has extensive expertise in advising on real estate debt financings, acting on both the ‘lender side’ and ‘borrower side’ of these transactions, working on transactions involving all types of real estate, both in the UK and overseas.
He has experience in both buying and selling performing and non-performing loans and loan portfolios and ‘working out’ non-performing loans and loan portfolios post-acquisition, including advising on restructuring and security enforcement strategies and working with clients to extract value from the acquired portfolio.
James has particular knowledge and experience of the evolving litigation funding market, advising and working with funders, insurers and other interested parties on the financing of disputes.
James is recognised in the Legal 500 for his real estate finance experience, where his client testimonials include:
- "James has great practical knowledge and is excellent at providing guidance as to how a difficult situation might play out. He is our first port of call in a contentious situation".
- "James has structured complex deals for us. He has excellent commercial awareness and is a trusted advisor to our business."
- "James is a very knowledgeable, approachable individual. He clearly engages the rest of his team on our transactions whilst taking the lead. He is pragmatic and commercial and a pleasure to work with."
James is admitted to practise in England and Wales.
Experience
- Advised Ingenious Real Estate Finance in relation to the financing of a c£105m PBSA scheme in Liverpool;
- Advised Mount Street Mortgage Servicing in connection with an acquisition of a c£300m non-performing loan portfolio, secured on UK shopping centres;
- Advised a UK family office in relation to the c£66m finance of its commercial property portfolio, held within a complex offshore structure;
- Advised a UK challenger bank in relation to the restructuring of a complex c£30m loan portfolio, secured over various commercial property assets across the UK;
- Advised Salix Finance Limited in relation to the development of numerous carbon saving finance initiatives, including the multi-billion pound Public Sector Decarbonisation Grant Scheme, as well as the £1.8bn Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund and Home Upgrade Grant Scheme;
- Advised Arbuthnot Latham Private Bank on a range of financings, including term loans and revolving credit facilities, across an array of sectors, including PBSA and residential portfolios;
- Advised a Singapore family office in relation to a ‘loan on loan’ secured over a c£175m UK property;
- Advised a build to rent developer in relation to the financing of multiple large ‘BTR’ schemes across the UK;
- Advised a litigation funder in relation to the provision of multiple debt facilities to facilitate the pursuit of litigation.
