Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP continues the expansion of its structured finance and specialty finance and tax and ERISA practices with the addition of David Klass as a partner in the firm’s London office. Klass brings more than 15 years of experience advising on a wide range of tax issues and transactions, particularly those with an international element. Prior to joining Hunton Andrews Kurth, Klass was a partner with the London office of international law firm Gide Loyrette Nouel headquartered in Paris.
Klass has extensive experience advising clients on the tax aspects of cross-border mergers and acquisitions, structured finance transactions (advising both asset originators and arrangers), as well as the UK and international tax aspects of corporate group reorganizations. Most recently, he advised a major international pharmaceuticals producer in a European trade receivables securitization, and also advised several European multinationals on the UK tax aspects of their UK energy projects. He also advised French state railway SNCF on the merger of its interest in the Eurostar link between Paris, London and Brussels into a single joint venture company.
“David brings significant experience with UK tax aspects of corporate and structured finance transactions and is particularly well known for his insights into tax developments in the UK related to Brexit,” said Cecelia Philipps Horner, who co-heads the firm’s Tax and ERISA team. “He will be a great addition to our firm’s London office, which is located at the heart of one of the world’s major financial and transactional centers.”
The addition of Klass follows the firm’s addition of Angus Duncan in 2018 to spearhead the expansion of its market-leading structured finance and specialty finance practices in London, and Klass expects to play a key role.
“I am excited to join a practice known for its innovative approach to structuring corporate transactions, particularly cross-border transactions,” Klass said. “It is an extraordinarily talented group of lawyers, and I look forward to continuing to grow the practice in the UK.”
A graduate of Oxford University and the College of Law in London, Klass has authored numerous articles in prestigious tax publications such as Tax Notes International and the Tax Journal (the UK’s leading publication for tax professionals), and is a regular contributor of content and comment to LexisNexis and Practical Law Company.
Hunton Andrews Kurth is a long-standing market leader in structured finance and securitization. For more than 30 years, it has represented clients in connection with mortgage-backed and asset-backed securities offerings and other structured financing matters. The practice is the vanguard of the development of securitization and structured finance techniques, having represented the issuer of the first REMIC program backed by the full faith and credit of the United States, the first auto loan synthetic securitization transaction, the first RMBS structure involving the issuance of floating-rate securities, the first securitization of re-performing FHA and VA loans, the first master trust servicer advance securitization structure in 2002, and the groundbreaking first GSE/Agency credit risk transfer issuances in 2013.
Source: www.huntonak.com
