Prime Highlights:
- McDermott Will & Schulte strengthens its London office by hiring Owen Jones, a real estate finance expert from Tristan Capital Partners.
- Jones’s expertise in complex real estate loans and cross-border investments will enhance the firm’s services for clients across Europe.
Key Facts:
- Before joining McDermott, Owen Jones spent five years at Tristan Capital Partners and was promoted to executive director after 18 months.
- He previously worked in BCLP’s real estate finance team, including a secondment at La Salle Investment Management, and began his career at Eversheds Sutherland.
Key Background:
McDermott Will & Schulte has hired Owen Jones, a real estate finance expert from Tristan Capital Partners, as a partner in its London office to grow the firm’s work in Europe.
Jones has a lot of experience managing complex real estate loans and investments in the UK and Europe. He specializes in senior and mezzanine financing, development funding, and loan restructuring, helping both institutional investors and lenders, including cross-border deals.
Before joining McDermott, Jones worked at Tristan Capital Partners for five years, where he was promoted to executive director after just 18 months. Before joining Tristan Capital, he worked in BCLP’s real estate finance team and spent some time at La Salle Investment Management. He started his career at Eversheds Sutherland, where he completed his training and qualification.
Harris Siskind, global head of McDermott’s transactions practice, said that Jones is a skilled and practical lawyer. His addition will make the firm’s real estate services in London stronger and better for clients worldwide. He also noted that Jones joins a team that has grown strategically in recent years, following the addition of partners Darren Rogers, Devina Rana, and Neeraj Tah.
The appointment forms part of a broader talent expansion following the recent merger of McDermott Will & Emery and Schulte Roth & Zabel. The merger, which officially went live last month, created a $2.8 billion law firm and significantly increased the firm’s London presence, adding 24 lawyers to its 90-strong team in the City, including more than 30 partners.
Aymen Mahmoud, managing partner of the London office, said that Jones’s skills and enthusiasm will bring fresh ideas to real estate finance and greatly improve the services offered to clients. Jens Ortmanns, head of McDermott’s global real estate practice, added that Jones’s expertise and established relationships will strengthen the firm’s cross-border platform and deliver value to clients.
Jones’s move comes amid wider competition in the London legal market, with other firms, such as Reed Smith, also making senior hires in transactional practices.
