James Crooks

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Partner London
James Crooks is a partner in the London Finance Practice and a member of the Global Liability Management and Strategic Capital Solutions Team.

James advises private equity sponsors, corporate borrowers, credit funds and other financial institutions on complex financing transactions including leveraged financings, special situations, distressed transactions and broader capital solutions.

James has particular depth of experience advising clients across the sports, media and entertainment, financial services, insurance, healthcare, pharmaceutical and technology sectors, where he has represented leading market participants on many of the market's most innovative and high-profile transactions.

James is ranked in Chambers UK, Chambers Europe and Chambers Global for Leveraged Finance: Mid-Market, with clients describing him as "constructive, highly pragmatic and creative in his advice" and praising his "exceptional service" and "tailored, thoughtful advice". He has also been recognised in Tech Capital's Legal 50 and was previously named in The Lawyer's Hot 100.

Representative experience (including matters worked on prior to joining Weil) includes advising:

  • H.I.G. Capital and Polar Data Centers, a European developer, owner and operator of data centre infrastructure targeting high-performance computing applications, on Polar's successful raising of an €800 million senior secured Nordic bond, a landmark transaction that set a new record for deal size in the Nordic bond market.
  • H.I.G. Bayside Capital on the refinancing of Lifeways Group.
  • The Carlyle Group's Global Opportunistic Credit platform on the successful exit of its investment in Amber River.
  • SINGU, a leading European provider of commercial real estate management software, on the strategic investment by K1 Investment Management, LLC, and combination with Micad.
  • Adapa on its successful financial restructuring.
  • Clearlake Capital Group, L.P. on its acquisition of Chelsea Football Club and related affiliates in a consortium co-led with Todd Boehly, Chairman and CEO of Eldridge.
  • H.I.G. Capital and PolarDC Group Limited on the structuring and first-phase financing of a multi-phase project to deliver a leading data centre designed for High-Performance Computing (HPC) applications in Norway.
  • J.C. Flowers & Co., a private investment firm dedicated to investing in the financial services industry, on its acquisition of Pepper Advantage.
  • Great Hill Partners on the sale of BigChange, a leading field service management software company, to Simpro Group.
  • Funds managed by affiliates of Apollo Global Management, Inc. on the sale of Summit Leasing, a leasing company in Slovenia and Croatia.
  • Pictet Alternative Advisors on its acquisition of Technology Services Group Limited.
  • Carlyle on a financing and investment into a UK sponsor-backed financial services business.
  • Great Hill Partners on its strategic majority investment in a newly formed organisation comprising existing client Vivup, a leading provider of health and well-being benefits (having worked on the group's initial management buy out with Omni Partners and ongoing debt financing arrangements), and Perkbox, an award-winning global benefits and reward platform, which will combine to offer a market-leading solution for the UK's public and private employee benefits sectors.
  • Francisco Partners on the leveraged financing for the acquisition of Macrobond, a leading provider of economic and financial intelligence software.
  • Bilkul Football on its acquisition of West Bromwich Albion Football Club.
  • KKR on its majority acquisition of Biosynth Carbosynth, a Swiss life sciences reagents and custom synthesis and manufacturing services company.
  • KKR on its acquisition of Argenta, a leading animal pharmaceutical research and manufacturing company.
  • Travelex on its financial and operational restructuring.
  • Famar on the successful restructuring, recapitalization and strengthening of its capital structure.
  • Bain Capital and IMCD on IMCD's €400 million post IPO debt refinancing.
  • CVC Capital Partners and Parex on the financing, including a €100 million super senior revolving credit facility and €550 million floating rate senior secured high-yield bonds due 2021, of CVC's acquisition of Parex.
  • CVC Capital Partners and ista on the financing, including €1.6 billion senior facilities and the offering by ista of €350 million 5% senior secured notes due 2020 and €525 million 6.875% senior subordinated notes due 2021, of the acquisition of ista by CVC Capital Partners.
  • HIG Capital and Freedom Finance on the SEK 350 million unitranche financing of its acquisition of Freedom Finance.
  • Sun European Partners on the acquisition/bridge financing (by Bank of Montreal) of various portfolio companies.
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