Brunswick strengthens its regulatory, competition and foreign investment practices with the appointment of John Davies.
14 February 2019 - Brunswick Group, a global advisory firm specializing in critical issues and corporate relations, is pleased to announce that John Davies will join the firm as a Senior Advisor based in London and Brussels. John joins Brunswick from Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer where he is a senior partner in its antitrust, competition and trade group, of which he was formerly global head. John works out of both Brussels and London and served as Managing Partner for Freshfields’ Brussels office for ten years, which he founded in 1989. He was also a leader of the firm’s public interest and foreign investment practice.
John will focus on further developing Brunswick’s leading antitrust and foreign investment practices, drawing on his deep understanding of competition and regulatory intervention in Europe and elsewhere, and his experience advising high-profile clients across different industries and jurisdictions. John will also work with teams globally providing senior counsel to clients on regulatory challenges in the context of cross-border transactions. He will start with the firm later in the year.
Neal Wolin, Chief Executive Officer, said: “John is one of the leading and most accomplished lawyers in his field and is a terrific addition to Brunswick. As he retires from legal practice, his experience will strengthen our public affairs capabilities, and will elevate our ability to advise clients on cross-border international transactions, antitrust, competition and regulatory matters and help them navigate the ever-complex environment.”
John Davies said: ”The increase in government intervention in deal-making is a real phenomenon. The interface between the public affairs and legal issues can be a critical factor in securing a successful outcome. Joining Brunswick is an exciting opportunity for me to continue to help clients manage those challenges - but through a public affairs lens.”
About John Davies
John Davies is retiring from Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, where he is a partner in its antitrust, competition and trade group, and is former global head of the group. John’s practice focuses on competition and regulatory matters predominantly in Europe, but also internationally. His clients cross industries and jurisdictions and rely on his ability to co-ordinate a multijurisdictional defence before different authorities in major transactions and investigations. He works out of both the Brussels and London offices.
John founded the Freshfields Brussels office in 1989 and served as managing partner for 10 years. Prior to Freshfields, John worked as a case officer in the European Commission's Directorate-General for Competition.
His recent deal experience includes advising Comcast on its bid for Sky TV in Europe and the global assets of 21st Century Fox, and AB InBev’s acquisition of SABMiller both of which matters involved significant regulatory issues. He also represented a major investment bank during its successful defence of two European Commission investigations into alleged infringements in the credit default swaps market.
John is a visiting senior fellow at King's College, University of London, and is a nongovernmental adviser to the International Competition Network (ICN). He is also Chairman on UKLegalFuture and a member of the task force of the American Bar Association on public interest in merger control. For the past 20 years, he has been the consulting editor on the leading publication on merger control, Getting the Deal Through: Merger Control. He was voted Antitrust Lawyer of the Year 2016 by Global Competition Review.
About Brunswick Group
Brunswick Group LLP is an advisory firm specializing in critical issues and corporate relations. Founded in 1987, Brunswick is an organically grown, private partnership with 23 offices around the world. For more information, visit: www.brunswickgroup.com.
Contact
UK Managing Partner
+44 (0) 20 7396 7442
ssporborg@brunswickgroup.com