IFLR 1000
The Guide to the World's Leading Financial Law Firms

Thommessen is consistently rated as one of the top three firms for capital markets. "In my opinion Thommessen might have the best capital markets team at the moment, they have the three top lawyers; you can't find a better team in Oslo," says a client. "It is probably the firm we see in the most deals," says a competitor.

The three partners who are so widely recommended are Kim Dobrowen, Anders Arnkværn and Hans Cappelen Arnesen, who heads the practice. The firm also recently promoted Lars Eirik Røsås to the partnership and he has been active on a number of high profile deals. Peers and clients also singled out Sverre Tyrhaug.

Arnkværn advised on two large rights issues, a €1.27 billion rights issue for Norsk Hydro working alongside international counsel Latham & Watkins in July 2010, and a €501 million rights issue for Renewable Energy Corporation, where he advised joint global coordinators and bookrunners DnB Nor Markets, Nordea Markets and SEB Enskilda.

Arnesen and Røsås acted on one of the key IPOs of the year, advising a syndicate including Goldman Sachs International, Merrill Lynch International and DnB NOR Markets among others on Gjensidige Forsikring's €1.36 billion IPO on the Oslo Stock Exchange. It was the largest IPO for a number of years.

Dobrowen also assisted on the corporate restructuring of the shipping group Wilh.Wilhelmsen with a listing of its shipping and logistics subsidiary on the Oslo exchange. Rune Solberg also led on a notable transaction advising joint global coordinators and bookrunners, DnB Nor Markets, Nordea Markets, SEB Enskilda, for Dockwise's rights issue (which raised $100 million).

Thommessen is arguably leading the pack at the moment in corporate finance in terms of the reach and quality of its reputation. The banking team, led by Hans Haugstad, is no exception. One client also comments that the firm "coordinates very well with international foreign law firms".

"If you can get him," says a client, "I would say [Haugstad] is probably the best guy in Oslo with respect to finance, he is knowledgeable, efficient, very good on the commercial side of matters, very good at finding solutions and solving problems, and therefore a good guy to have on your side". "Private equity, real estate, all kinds of financing other than ship financing, very active and very good," says a competitor of Haugstad.

Thommessen has a good restructuring practice led by Jo Rodin and is also very active in ship finance. Siri Wennevik is the public-private partnership expert with experience in road project PPPs and PPP wind farms, working with partner Berit Stokke.

Haugstad led on a number of large financings, including advising (with Allen & Overy on US and Singapore law) a syndicate led by DnB NOR Bank and Eksportfinans on one of the largest finance deals done under Norwegian law in recent years. The syndicate agreed a €1.27 billion revolving facility and export term facilities of €165 million to the Renewable Energy Corporation.

Haugstad also advised a syndicate of banks on refinancing a $200 million export facility and €191 million revolving facility to Cermaq and a DnB NOR Bank led syndicate on a refinancing of a €600 million revolving credit facility to Marine Harvest.

Wennevik acted for a syndicate led by Nordea Bank Norge on a $60 million credit facility to Eitzen Ethylene Carriers and others, and for Havila Shipping on facilities totalling $67 million.

Thommessen is arguably one of the top two firms at the moment for M&A. It handled one of the deal highlights for the year, the first large acquisition in Norway by a state-owned Chinese company, and gets consistently high reviews.

It has one the biggest corporate teams but, according to client, a "very high availability of the senior personnel". "Even if they have a large team of associates the senior partner is always available, flexible and dedicated," says the client, "and they have a lot of experience on the corporate side and relevant capacity, for example in financing, tax and various industries; a very holistic firm".

Kim Dobrowen and Kjersti Ringdal advised Orkla on its sale of Elkem to China Bluestar Group for $2 billion, the first investment by a state-owned Chinese buyer in a major Norwegian industrial enterprise. Elkem produces metals and materials including silicon, ferrosilicon alloys, carbon and microsilica and has over 2500 employees across Europe.

Anders Arnkværn, Sverre Tyrhaug and new partner Lars Eirik Røsås worked with Latham & Watkins to assist Norsk Hydro (NHY) on the €3.69 billion acquisition of the aluminum operations of Vale, making NHY a major player in aluminium production and adding 3600 staff to its books. The deal included a rights issue and share issue.

Another standout deal saw Hans Cappelen Arnesen represent BW Offshore on the $500 million sale of its technology division APL (Advanced Production & Loading) to National Oilwell Varco. Thommessen was drafted in on of northern Europe's largest real estate deals, with Ervin Auren advising Norwegian Property on the €381 million sale of Norgani Hotels, comprising 73 hotels, to Eiendomsspar, Pandox and others.