Akin Gump gets Europe's 'Rising Star' as new partner

Akin Gump gets Europe's 'Rising Star' as new partner

Clare Cottle to join the firm's London office as a new finance partner and add value to its financial restructuring and finance practices

Akin Gump, one of America's top law firms, has announced the appointment of award-winning lawyer Clare Cottle as its new finance partner in the firm's London office.

Clare was named winner of Euromoney's Rising Star Awards Europe 2020 for Restructuring and Insolvency.

She advises on the finance aspects of cross-border and domestic financial restructurings, special situations funding and complex direct loans. She represents credit funds, institutional investors, private equity funds and portfolio companies in a wide range of financings, including debt restructurings, direct loans, leveraged buyouts, securitisations and bank/bond structures.

Clare is the 11th partner to join the global law firm's London office since 2019, putting the focus on Akin Gump's determination to further strengthen its practices in the United Kingdom.

"Clare's financing experience, market knowledge and client base align perfectly with our London financial restructuring and finance practices," commented Akin Gump chairperson Kim Koopersmith.

"She will complement our market-leading buy-side finance and financial restructurings teams, and I am delighted she will be joining the firm," Koopersmith added.

Clare Cottle will join Akin Gump from Weil, Gotshal & Manges, where she is a partner.

Tom O'Connor, finance partner in Akin Gump's London office, added: "Clare's skill set is exactly what is needed to further the existing bench depth of the firm's finance and financial restructuring teams. Her breadth of knowledge and ability to provide clients with solutions to highly complex challenges will add significant value."

Clare holds a BA Honours degree in Modern History from Oxford University and has an LLM in Corporate Law from Nottingham Law School.