Norton Rose Fulbright (NRF) fielded a cross-border team for one of the largest Australian hotel mergers and acquisitions deals of 2017.
The global firm acted as the legal adviser to Savills, on behalf of Japanese hotel chain Prince Hotels, which has acquired the Staywell Hospitality Group portfolio for $50m. Staywell operates 18 hotels and has another 12 in development.
Prince Hotels will establish a wholly owned Australian subsidiary, which will acquire all shares of all 22 companies operating under the Staywell Hospitality Group. Expected to close in October, the purchase supports the global growth plan of Seibu Holdings, the owner of Prince Hotels.
“This deal reflects a trend towards global consolidation in the hotels industry and is one of the biggest hotel M&A deals seen in Australia,” said NRF lead partner Tom Young.
Young’s team in Brisbane, which includes special counsel Julie Brown and lawyer Daniel Popple, led the due diligence work for the deal. The team worked with other NRF colleagues in Australia, London, Dubai, Singapore, Beijing, Hong Kong, Bangkok, and Jakarta.
Contract and negotiation work was undertaken by Brisbane M&A partner Marshall Bromwich. Georgina Hey, Sydney intellectual property partner, handled due diligence of complex cross-border IP rights for the deal. Martin Osborne, Brisbane partner and NRF’s Australian head of employment and labour, and senior associate Bronwyn Hammond handled employment contracts.
The firms team in Australia also included partners Rebecca Hoare, Matthew Derrick, Cameron Thomson, Raymond Lou, Christine Small, Brett Solomon, and Andrea Rezos; special counsel Guy Albeck; senior associate Ben Pierce; associates Lauran Van Stekelenburg and Ashvini Thilakeswaran; and lawyer Daniel Popple.
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