Italian Finance

The Italian practice of Orrick's Structured Finance Group comprises a team of Italy qualified lawyers based in Rome, Milan and London who have the experience to provide clients with a comprehensive range of domestic and international legal services required to complete sophisticated finance transactions. We work together as strategic advisors to help our clients achieve their goals by learning their business and financial objectives and combining this knowledge with a valuable combination of legal experience and business know-how to solve our clients' most complex challenges. In the competitive Italian marketplace for legal services, Orrick is distinguished by the commitment to provide consistently outstanding service to clients. (Please view a list of representative Italian Finance transactions.)

Practice Rankings

Chambers Global 2008 and Chambers Europe 2008 ranked Orrick Italy as follows:

Ranked in Band 2 in Capital Markets: Debt - Italy

• The Firm: "Orrick's Italian presence is spread between offices in Rome and Milan, where this 'small and efficient' outfit is based. One partner and 14 other lawyers handle debt capital markets mandates, and clients declare themselves happy with the team of 'professional, skilled and prepared young people.'"
• The Lawyers: "Patrizio Messina 'maintains excellent relations with clients and is proactive in find solutions.' He is based at the Rome office and is head of the Italian finance practice."

Ranked in Band 2 in Capital Markets: Securitisation - Italy

• The Firm: "Orrick's Italian offices are peopled with 'young lawyers, who are full of vitality, very active and who try to meet my needs every time.' Clients also appreciate that the firm can offer both full-service support through its other practices, and the supports of its international network for cross-border deals. Securitisation is one of the many talents of its banking and finance team, which consists of one partner and 14 other lawyers. Together, they handle securitisation, debt capital markets and straight financing."
• The Lawyers: "Rome-based Patrizio Messina is singled out for his 'balanced and analytical approach to matters.' Clients believe he is has 'a business sensibility, is co-operative in negotiations and is always able to give suggestions on structuring.' He is noted for his work in public finance, mortgage-related securities and repackagings."

Legal 500 EMEA 2008 ranked Orrick Italy as follows:

Ranked in Band 2 in Capital Markets: Debt

• The Firm: "Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe's shining light Patrizio Messina has 'a first-class reputation' in the world of securitisations involving public entities, residential and commercial mortgages, and infrastructure and healthcare receivables. Clients include Société Générale and Dresdner Bank."

Ranked in Band 3 in Banking and Finance

• "Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe is singled our for its leveraged finance practice and its burgeoning distressed assets capability. The firm represented the Benetton Group on high-value credit facilities and assisted a Syndicate of banks with short term lending. Public finance expert Patrizio Messina comes highly recommended."

Key Practice Areas

Our structured finance lawyers are focused on advising clients in four primary areas:

• Leveraged Finance
• Debt Capital Markets
• Principal Finance
• Securitisation and Structured Finance

Leveraged Finance

Orrick's Italian practice represents major commercial domestic and international banks, finance companies and institutional investors on all types of leveraged finance transactions, including bridge loans, medium- and long- term loans, syndicated and non-syndicated loans, multi-tranche borrowings, real estate loans, acquisition financings, capital lines, warehouse lending facilities and participations, credit enhancements and letters of credit. Our leveraged finance lawyers also draw upon an exceptionally deep background in lending and bank regulation.

Debt Capital Markets

Our Italian Finance team covers the entire spectrum of debt capital markets instruments, from traditional financings to structured finance, hedging and derivatives. Our lawyers represent corporate issuers, private equity funds and financial institutions in secured and unsecured debt transactions, both investment grade and high yield offerings, in the public and private markets. Our clients include financial institutions in their capacity as arrangers, underwriters, book-runners and investors, and companies in their capacity as issuers in connection with domestic and cross-border transactions.

Principal Finance

Orrick's Italian structured finance lawyers have extensive experience advising domestic and international investment banks, commercial banks, lending banks and other financial intermediaries participating in innovative financing solutions for public and private businesses of all sizes. Orrick lawyers help to structure complex risk-financing transactions for equity and debt investors, mezzanine lenders, project developers, fund sponsors, asset traders and lease portfolio managers. We assist our clients as they deploy capital in sophisticated transactions with co-investors or in conjunction with a syndication.

Securitisation and Structured Finance

Orrick's Italian practice lawyers have extensive experience in the field of securitization and are known as pioneering lawyers who have been active in the structured finance market long before the enactment of the Italian securitisation law in 1999. Orrick lawyers have structured many transactions that have established creative benchmarks in the Italian securitisation market, including first-of-their-kind transactions involving public entities (as originators or assigned debtors), funded and un-funded synthetic securitisations, and repackaging transactions involving asset backed securities, commercial and residential mortgage backed securities and collateralized debt obligations.