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Testimonial

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    “Stefan is excellent at synthesising volumes of information, identifying the key points and delivering commercial solutions. He is highly responsive and extremely efficient.”

    Jon Isaacs, Finance Director

  • “I have worked with Stefan on a number of matters over the years. He is commercially savvy, is constantly testing the case from all angles, and really knows how to interrogate the underlying data. A great asset to have on your side.”

    Watson Pringle, Barrister

  • “I worked with Stefan as the Senior Non-executive director of a listed group for a number of years. I found him to be commercial yet detailed in his approach.  He dealt with a huge array of issues and situations from litigation to regulatory investigations to disposals with efficiency and utmost integrity.”

    Lord Howard

E: sborson@mccarthydenning.com
T: +44 (0) 20 3926 9900

Related Expertise

Stefan Borson

Partner, Head of Sport

25 years advisory and executive experience combining a commercial approach to complex corporate matters and legal disputes with forensic understanding of the financials. 

What we say about Stefan

Stefan Borson is an experienced and award-winning General Counsel, adviser and CEO with more than 25 years’ experience across legal, finance and operational roles. He specialises in complex corporate, regulatory and governance matters – often in high profile or distressed contexts. He is known for combining deep technical understanding with commercial and strategic insight. Stefan’s experience in corporate finance and in the C-suite means he is a lawyer who understands both numbers and the fine print of financial statements and spreadsheets.

Stefan acts for individuals, public and private companies and family offices on transactions, investigations and strategic projects where legal, financial and reputational issues intersect. In sport, he has advised on a number of Premier League and EFL takeovers (buy and sell side) and numerous gaming companies. He is a well-known football finance and regulatory expert and regularly appears on TalkSport, BBC, ITV News, and in The Times, The Guardian and international media analysing issues relating to club ownership, financial performance, domestic and UEFA financial fair play and governance.

Stefan advises clubs, owners, officers, investors, and connected parties on the full range of issues the IFR creates. That includes licence applications and ongoing compliance, preparing for and responding to information requests, ownership and officer suitability applications and reviews, heritage approvals, administrator appointment applications, and disputes that arise from IFR decisions. Stefan also advise on transactions where IFR exposure needs to be understood and priced before the deal is done. If you want to understand your position under the new regime, get in touch.

Stefan has deep expertise in resolving commercial disputes, in particular, those involving warranty claims and allegations of misrepresentation – he understands litigation from the client’s perspective.

Before joining McCarthy Denning, Stefan held senior positions including General Counsel and CEO of Watchstone Group plc, where he led major restructurings, litigation, disposals and investigations following regulatory scrutiny. He also spent five years as CEO of an advertising and media business. He has spent much of his career in or advising listed companies on the London Stock Exchange and AIM.

He trained at Addleshaw Goddard and worked in corporate finance and restructuring with Investec and other financial institutions. Stefan was Legal Week General Counsel of the Year 2015, a member of The Lawyer Hot 100 list 2017 and shortlisted for The Lawyer In-house Counsel of the Year 2016.

 

Highlights

  • He led the turnaround of one of the highest-profile listed situations in the UK; managed complex stakeholder, regulatory and media engagements across multiple jurisdictions.
  • He led the £650 million sale of Quindell’s professional services business to Slater & Gordon and numerous UK and North American disposals, returning over £500 million to shareholders through multiple court-approved capital returns.
  • He has extensive experience acting for companies and individuals managing and defending investigations and enquiries involving the SFO, FCA, FRC and ICAEW.
  • Has led the defence of various buyer claims for breach of warranty and fraudulent misrepresentation.
  • Directed and defended major claims including audit negligence and shareholder class actions and has deep expertise in forensic and financial disputes.
  • Advises boards on IPO readiness, equity story development and adviser engagement.
  • Advised on multiple Premier League and EFL club takeovers and bids (buy and sell side) and for a range of technology, leisure and gaming companies on M&A and regulatory matters.
  • Senior corporate finance experience at Investec Investment Banking (16 M&A transactions worth $1.5 billion, $3 billion of equity fundraisings including seven IPOs).
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