Wedlake Bell makes major hire to Corporate team

Wedlake Bell, the City law firm has made a major hire to its Corporate team, appointing Shapna Roy, specialist in major infrastructure projects in the international and domestic markets.

Shapna joins from Amey plc where she was Senior Legal Counsel in the Group Legal department. Before that she spent nearly 12 years at Lovells (now Hogan Lovells) where she was Of Counsel in their Infrastructure and Project Finance department.

Shapna's expertise includes advising on complex, major infrastructure projects and project finance deals across a broad range of sectors including aerospace, defence, roads, airports, ports, waste, healthcare, rail and the media. She has vast experience of advising the various parties to a project finance deal, such as sponsors, senior lenders, contractors and public sector authorities.

Some notable projects on which Shapna has advised include:

• the £2.7 billion Birmingham Highways PFI Project which reached financial close on 6 May 2010;

• the £3.4 billion Skynet 5 PFI Project procured by the UK MoD;

• the 99 kilometre Vancouver to Whistler PPP Project;

• the relocation of some of the BBC's core facilities to Salford;

• the redevelopment of Broadcasting House;

• significant DBFO Roads Projects in the Republic of Ireland;

• a Pan African Satellite Project procured on a project financed basis;

• the North South Highway Project in Malaysia;

• Chek Lap Kok Airport, Hong Kong; and

• 300 kilometre North South Pipeline Project, Botswana.

Wedlake Bell explains that Shapna will assume the official title of Projects Partner in the Corporate Team.

Philip Matthews, Managing Partner at Wedlake Bell comments: "We are delighted to welcome Shapna to the team. Her extensive Projects background will be a new addition to the Corporate team and will prove a very valuable asset to their overall offering."

"We look forward to tackling some important, high profile infrastructure projects with Shapna's wealth of expertise on board."

Comments Philip Matthews: "The appointment of Shapna, who will become a Partner, extends our recent success in attracting high quality recruits to join us, in conjunction with our commitment to rewarding our own talented solicitors from within the firm."