hospitality and leisure

HOSPITALITY AND LEISURE
An overview of our global practice
03 | Real Estate in Germany
OVERVIEW
DLA Piper is a leading global law firm for the hospitality and leisure sector.
We are one of the world’s largest law firms, with more than 77 offices in
31 countries. We were one of the first firms to develop a dedicated global
Hospitality and Leisure sector. We have over 200 lawyers with a proven track
record in the sector advising businesses on a diverse range of issues.
Our knowledge and experience enable us to identify trends, create solutions
and be consummate business advisors for our clients. We know the sector,
the key players and the business and legal concerns in the market.
We act for a broad spectrum of clients in the sector, including leading global,
regional and national hotel and resort businesses; leisure and sports operators;
on-line gaming and gambling establishments; hospitality and catering operations,
and for the organisers and associated developers of major sporting events,
including the Olympic Games and Commonwealth Games.
By aligning the breadth and depth of our key practice areas to the specific needs
of the sector, we have the requisite focus and experience to provide first-class
service to clients in their local and international investments and operations.
We provide a genuine one-stop-shop for the hospitality and leisure sector.
Every legal skill is available to you, from acquisitions and franchising to employment
and intellectual property. In short, we are one global team with no borders,
providing a real advantage to you.
02 | Hospitality and Leisure
Selected Global Credentials
Our clients include:
■■
Accor
■■
Blackstone Group
■■
Burger King Corporation
■■
Capital Partners
■■
Compass Group
■■
Cornerstone Real Estate Advisers LLC
■■
Extreme Hotels
■■
Fairmont Raffles International
■■
Formula One Administration
■■
Halcyon Hotels and Resorts
■■
Hard Rock Café
■■
Hilton Worldwide
■■
Hyatt International
■■
InterContinental Hotels Group
■■
Interstate Hotels & Resorts
■■
Marriott International
■■
Morgans Hotels Group
■■
NH Hoteles
■■
Olympic Delivery Authority
■■
The PGA European Tour
■■
Rezidor Hotels Group
■■
Sochi 2014 Olympic Authority
■■
Starwood Hotels and Resorts
■■
Station Casinos Inc.
■■
Wells Fargo Capital Finance
■■
Wyndham Hotel Group
Development, Acquisition and Disposition
■■
■■
■■
■■
■■
■■
Representing Blackstone Group and its affiliates
in the US on more than 30 portfolio and single-asset
dispositions in over 15 states. Most recently, we
represented Blackstone in the sale of The Georgetown
Inn in Washington, DC.
Advising worldwide hotel operator and franchisor
Marriott International on the US$47.5 million sale
of JW Marriott Hotel Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, to
an affiliate of US hospitality real estate company
Host Hotels & Resorts.*
Acting for the Public Investment Corporation
(representing the Government Employees Pension Fund)
in a joint venture on the acquisition of the iconic V&A
Waterfront development in Cape Town. The deal has
been valued at $1.2 billion, the largest single asset real
estate transaction to date in South Africa.*
Acting for a SPV established by a high net worth
individual on the acquisition of a portfolio of hotels
located across seven key European cities operated by
InterContinental Hotels Group.
Acting for Halcyon Hotels and Resorts and
Patron Capital on the acquisition of a portfolio of
seven luxury family hotels from the Von Essen Group,
in administration, and the businesses and assets of those
hotels. We also advised on the funding aspects of the deal.
Representing developers and operators in management
contract negotiations for more than two dozen four-star
internationally branded business hotels in Russia.
www.dlapiper.com | 03
■■
Advising a major casino and hotel operator on its
joint venture arrangements and bid for each of two
integrated resort and casino projects in Singapore.
Corporate, Joint Ventures and Funds
■■
Management Agreements and Operations
■■
■■
■■
■■
■■
Advising a leading US luxury hotel operator on its
management services in China’s real estate market
and reviewing certain key regulations regarding
the restrictions on overseas companies entering the
Chinese property market.
■■
Representing a joint venture hotel owner in the
negotiation and structuring of a hotel management
agreement with Aimbridge Hospitality for the 489-room
Sheraton Safari Hotel and Suites in Orlando, Florida.
Advising a major international hotel operator on the
termination of management agreements in North Africa,
following sanctions being imposed against the
Libyan Government under Gaddafi’s rule.
Advising TUI Travel PLC in the antitrust
pre-investigation of its tour operators before the Turkish
Competition Authority in relation to claims on exclusive
tour operator contracts with Turkish hoteliers as a result of
which the case did not proceed into investigation stage.
Advising Capital Partners on the development,
negotiation and structuring of hotel and resort contracts
under the Ritz Carlton (3), Canyon Ranch, Mandarin
Oriental (2), Six Senses and Marriott Residences
brands in Russia, Kazakhstan and Turkey.
■■
■■
■■
Advising a leading US international hotel and resort
group on the negotiation of a joint venture agreement
in Thailand with a major regional hotel, spa, restaurant
and nightclub owner/operator and advising the new
joint venture entity on the establishment of its luxury
resort fractional ownership programme and ongoing
related corporate, employment and tax issues in
Thailand.
Acting as independent legal adviser to a special
committee of non-management directors of
Las Vegas Sands Corp. who evaluated the
Sheldon G. Adelson family’s investment of US$1 billion
in the company’s equity securities.
Representing Shell Vacations, a timesharing company,
in connection with York Capital’s purchase of two of
Shell’s lending facilities from GMAC, including tax,
finance and lending, due diligence and negotiation of
control and related equity-based issues.
Representing InterContinental Hotels Group in a joint
venture to develop 20 Russian regional midscale hotels.
Finance and Restructuring
■■
04 | Hospitality and Leisure
Representing InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG)
in the formation of a joint venture with Brack Real
Estate Group to develop a mixed-use project on the
Lower East Side of Manhattan in New York that will be
anchored by IHG’s Hotel Indigo.
Advising the Bank of China on its US$3.5 billion
refinancing of the Venetian Macau casino resort.
We previously represented Bank of Nova Scotia as
administrative agent in the US$2.5 billion financing
of the Venetian Macau project.
■■
■■
■■
Advising a banking consortium on the refinancing of a
hotel portfolio consisting of twelve four-star hotels in
the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland and
the Russian Federation. Our work included a review of the
due diligence undertaken by the borrowers, structuring
the transaction, drafting and negotiating the finance
documentation and advising on establishing security.
Representing Alternative Hotel Group in relation to
the restructuring of its portfolio as a consequence of
the restructuring of the Group’s £1.7 billion debt and
equity arrangements with Lloyds Banking Group,
which included one of the largest debt-for-equity
swaps in British corporate history.
Advising Macquarie Bank on the £626 million
refinancing of Moto Hospitality Group, the UK’s largest
motorway service area operator. The refinancing was
via £450 million of new bank debt and £176 million
high-yield bonds, enabling Moto to take fresh debt
under a syndicated facility under HSBC.
Franchise, Outsourcing and Commercial
Agreements
■■
■■
■■
■■
■■
Representing Wyndham Worldwide as outside
franchise counsel in its international expansion,
including most recently its expansion into Latin America
(including Mexico and Venezuela), including licensing,
joint venture and management transactions.
Advising both British Airways and Virgin Atlantic
(separately) on global catering outsourcing agreements.
Advising Maxim’s Caterers, Hong Kong’s largest
food services company, on merchandising agreements,
co-branding and promotion agreements in Hong Kong,
Macau and South China, and also in obtaining new
rights in Western China.
Advertising and Brand
■■
■■
■■
■■
Representing Hyatt Hotels Corporation as lead global
outside intellectual property counsel, including the
management of its global IP portfolio and advising
the company on strategic matters related to the worldwide
protection of its marks on the Internet and in other new
media. We have successfully resolved a number of
contentious trademark matters in the US, China, India,
Korea, the Middle East, Latin America and Europe.
Advising Savoy Hotel Group on the management of its
global trade mark portfolio and infringement issues.
Advising a global hotel operator on advertising law issues,
including responding to ASA complaints.
Acting for the Maybourne Hotel Group on online brand
protection and trademark infringement issues.
Major Sporting Events
■■
■■
■■
Advising the Olympic Delivery Authority with regard
to infrastructural arrangements for the London 2012
Olympics.
Acting for Glasgow City Council and the Organising
Committee on their host city bid for the Glasgow
2014 Commonwealth Games and their subsequent
arrangements for the Games.
Acting for the three largest developers of facilities for
the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, including advising
and negotiating and drafting more than 30 hotel and
branded residence management agreements for these
developments.
Acting for TUI Travel Plc in relation to its outsourcing
of desktop IT services to Dell in a pan-European deal
valued at £140 million.
Representing Alshaya Group in negotiation of
joint venture and franchise agreements for multiple
Starbucks, PinkBerry and Kidzania outlets in Russia.
www.dlapiper.com | 05
ABOUT US
DLA Piper is a global law firm with lawyers across Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East and the United States.
From the quality of our legal advice and business insight to the efficiency of our legal teams, we believe that when it
comes to the way we serve and interact with our clients, everything matters.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
To learn more about DLA Piper, visit www.dlapiper.com or contact:
Sandra Kellman
Partner, Global Co-chair and
Head of Hospitality & Leisure Group US
T +1 312 368 4082
M +1 312 543 2036
sandra.kellman@dlapiper.com
Karen Friebe
Partner, Global Co-chair and Head of
Hospitality & Leisure Group EMEA
T +44 (0)20 7796 6155
M +44 (0)7971 142359
karen.friebe@dlapiper.com
* Includes DLA Piper Group Firm experience. DLA Piper Group is an alliance of independent law firms with exclusive agreements with DLA Piper. All the members of
the alliance work together to provide comprehensive and coordinated legal service to clients, locally and globally.
If you have finished with this document, please pass it on to other interested parties or recycle it, thank you.
www.dlapiper.com
DLA Piper is a global law firm operating through various separate and distinct legal entities.
Further details of these entities can be found at www.dlapiper.com
Copyright © 2012 DLA Piper. All rights reserved. | MAR12 | 2197816