Chris Gemson
Legal Director, Corporate
Chris is a Legal Director within our Corporate team. With over seven years experience in corporate law, Chris advises on a wide variety of corporate matters including mergers and acquisitions, exits, equity investments and debt investments. Chris acts for clients of all sizes – from international listed businesses, large privately owned companies, VC’s and PE houses to management teams and high net worth individuals. He acts for clients across a number of sectors and has strong experience in dealing with cross-border transactions across multiple jurisdictions.
Outside of work, Chris is a keen sportsman. You can often find him at Vicarage Road, supporting Watford. He also enjoys cycling, having previously cycled from London to Rome and London to Gibraltar and also having completed the Prudential Ride 100 London. Chris is a keen runner, having completed a number of half-marathons.
Experience
- Acting for BGF in its £8m investment and £3.5m follow-on investment into OSL.
- Acting for UK SaaS business on its $10.3m Series Seed round and $17.5m Series A round from west-coast US and European VC investors.
- £42 million re-finance for boutique hotel chain – advising a boutique hotel group on the refinance of Allied Irish Bank with National Westminster Bank involving a complex redemption procedure and extensive due diligence on the group’s property portfolio.
- Multi-million re-finance for leading manufacturing business – advising Amazon Filters, Europe’s leading manufacturer of bespoke filtration technology on a LMA based revolving facility and term loan facility to facilitate the exit of its incumbent private equity partner.
- Advising FCA regulated business, Buyline, on a substantial bespoke funding package from BCI Capital.
- Acting for management on the £13.5m sale to Ares-backed portfolio company.
- Acting for CBPE-backed The Key Group on its acquisition of October Resolutions Ltd.
- £9.2m sale of self-storage asset to Canadian private equity fund.
It is always a pleasure working with Chris, Liz and the team ,totally professional and customer focused , cannot fault them. Kenmore Group has worked in several commercial deals and continue to develop relationships within HC team in different departments including Private wealth, Property and HR.
Kennedy Sabapathy, CEO, Kenmore Group
The team at Herrington-Carmichael provide expert support which is calming when the pressure is on and always based on human connection. Most impressive is their ability to be responsive so that deals stay on track and schedule.
Stuart Crainer, Co-founder Thinkers50
Yavan, Chris and the rest of the team at Herrington Carmichael were a pleasure to work with and provided a professional, responsive and pragmatic approach. They distil comments and mark-ups into concise questions to allow us to make commercial decisions without being bogged down in legal jargon, which allows for a smooth, efficient transaction process. I’d happily recommend the team to any of my peers, and always enjoy working with HC on deals.
Liam Pursall, BGF
In our recent acquisition, Herrington Carmichael LLP displayed an exceptional blend of technical proficiency and business acumen. Their diligence, coupled with their unwavering commitment to our best interests, ensured a smooth transition even when facing unexpected challenges. It's not just their expertise, but also their approachability and ease of collaboration that stands out. I wholeheartedly recommend Herrington Carmichael to anyone seeking top-tier legal counsel with a clear understanding of commercial realities.
Roman Grigoriev, LonGrad
Yavan, Chris, and Liz are three of the most attentive, hands-on, and knowledgeable lawyers I have ever had the pleasure of working with. They were always available to answer my questions and provide me with excellent advice. They were also very proactive in managing my case and keeping me informed of its progress. I would highly recommend them to anyone in need of legal representation.
Richard Owen, Director, Cinch Self Storage
Having come to the decison to sell my family business which had been operating for over 70 years I was in need of professional help and reassurance along the way. Chris and Sophie led me step by step through the process, advising me and fighting my corner over warranties and indemnities. I can honestly say that I could not have managed or coped without thier help and I have been very satisified with the outcome. I would not hesitate to recommend their services.
Paul Elding, Sky
A sincere thank you to Yavan and the entire Herrington Carmichael team. You are an exceptionally committed group of individuals. Looking back, it’s impressive what we managed to accomplish over such a short period of time, dealing with a variety of issues that came up during the process. The amount of back and forth, especially over the last few days, has been dizzying and I can only imagine what was going on behind the scenes. Working with Yavan, Chris and Matt was a pleasure. Thanks to the three of you as well as the many others working behind the scenes
Amazon Filters
Best Law Firms 2024
Herrington Carmichael has once again been named in the Times Best Law Firms. We were first listed in 2023 and have once again made the Best Law Firms list for 2024.
