Media Mentions
2008
Kate Learoyd was quoted in the March 2008 edition of International Financial Law Review in relation to a wave of litigation after the UK government announced emergency legislation to nationalize Northern Rock and leave shareholders with nothing. Ms Learoyd said, "Shareholders might argue that this was illegal expropriation – it could be quite controversial."
Kate Learoyd, Litigation - London, London, Trial
Kate Learoyd was quoted in the March 11 edition of International Financial Law Review in relation to the UK Government's expropriation of shares as it nationalized Northern Rock and how hedge funds and other institutional investors might react if banks respond with clearer divisions between their retail and wholesale operations. Ms Learoyd said, "Investment banks will want access to retail deposits but they will not want their shareholders exposed to the risk that control over the banks is lost in order to protect retail depositors. If you put structured finance lawyers in a room for long enough, they might find a way of achieving that!"
Kate Learoyd, Litigation - London, London, Trial
Kate Learoyd was quoted in the March 10 edition of Asset Securitization Report in relation to European investors showing signs of uneasiness regarding ABS-related losses, which has prompted UK law firms to consider bringing a number of European banks to court. Ms Learoyd said, "Major investment banks are usually reluctant to litigate against each other because of the numerous commercial relationships between them. Smaller banks and financial institutions are not as constrained."
Kate Learoyd, Litigation - London, London, Trial
Kate Learoyd was quoted in the February 1 issue of the International Law Firm Review on the UK Treasury Committee's plans to strip bank shareholders of their voting rights. The Committee wants to create a new banking authority that can nationalize shareholder votes if their bank is deemed to be heading for insolvency. Shareholder consent would not be necessary. Ms. Learoyd commented, "Shareholders might argue that this was illegal expropriation – it could be quite controversial." Commenting on banks responding with clearer divisions between their retail and wholesale operations, Ms. Learoyd said, "Investment banks will want access to retail deposits but they will not want their shareholders exposed to the risk that control over the bank is lost in order to protect retail depositors. If you put structured finance lawyers in a room for long enough, they might find a way of achieving that!"
2007
In the December issue of Legal Business, Juliet Blanch and Kate Learoyd were quoted in an article examining the prospect of litigation against financial institutions given the recent liquidity crisis. "I think most firms would consider defending a client in relation to a claim brought against it by an investment bank," Ms. Blanch said. "But I can also see circumstances in which a firm may start to take work on if they have a very close relationship with a key financial institution and that institution is one the firm knows they're never going to get work from on the transactional side." Ms. Learoyd remarked, "We have already seen different approaches in restructuring projects, where the investment banks pursue a non-contentious co-operative plan only to find that the smaller institutions, such as hedge funds, aren't willing to play along nicely."
