Funds Management
Clayton Utz has one of the largest integrated funds management groups in Australia comprising lawyers with specialist expertise across all areas relevant to the establishment, structuring and operation of domestic and cross-border investment funds.
As a single team we can draw upon a huge pool of corporate knowledge of domestic and international fund structures to provide robust legal solutions considered from all angles. Our advice is underpinned by a deep understanding of the regulatory, policy and industry issues impacting the broader funds industry.
The Funds Group at Clayton Utz is a fully integrated national team of lawyers with a dedicated focus on domestic and international funds work. We offer a complete service for all types of collective investment vehicles and managed fund products across all asset classes, including structured products and alternative investments (including property and infrastructure).
We deliver practical, strategic, commercial and innovative advice to leading national and international participants within the financial services industry including responsible entities, fund and investment managers, investment advisers, sovereign wealth funds sponsors, trustees, custodians and service providers and scheme financiers.
The team provides a complete service, including advice on:
- initial strategic planning and tax structuring (including for complex cross-border transactions including Islamic finance and investment transactions and stapled structures);
- capital raising for listed, retail and wholesale vehicles;
- asset portfolio acquisition and disposal (with particular capability in alternative asset classes such as property, infrastructure, hedge funds and structured products);
- merger, restructure and takeover of funds;
- fund governance issues;
- financial services regulation implications for fund manufacturers, distributors and platforms (including licensing, disclosure and sales and marketing activities) and dealings with the regulators, for example ASIC, APRA, ASX and FIRB;
- fund remediation and compensation projects;
- Shariah compliant finance and investment transactions and structured products, including investment management structures (Mudaraba), deferred purchase agreements (Murabaha), asset leasing (Ijara), partnership structures (Musharaka) as well as Islamic bonds (Sukuks) under a sale and lease back arrangement (Sukuk al Ijara), and can arrange for Shariah certification through our affiliations with Islamic consultants and their Shariah scholars; and
- influencing regulatory and industry outcomes through our understanding of, and working relationships with, key industry bodies including the Investment and Financial Services Association, the Australian Financial Markets Association and the Alternative Investments Management Association.
We offer first tier transactional capabilities and the seamless management of cross-jurisdictional advice in conjunction with best of breed local law firms around the globe.