Lawyers at Liverpool law firm Brabners have advised on mergers and acquisitions worth a total of £1.3bn so far in 2022. Tony McDonough reports

Liverpool law firm Brabners says it has advised on more than mergers and acquisitions so far in 2022. Total value of those deals is in excess of £1.3bn. It has a 40-strong M&A team based in Liverpool, Manchester and Preston.

This year Brabners, based at Exchange Flags, believes it can exceed the 139 transactions completed in 2021. They had a combined value of £1.3bn. In 2020, at the height of the pandemic, the team completed 46 transactions.

The firm recently launched a new office in Leeds. This included the appointment of new partners Marcus Armstrong and Chris Peace from Knights. This will expand its corporate offering to clients in Yorkshire.

Key deals so far this year include supporting the flotation of healthcare firm Probiotix and the sale of £110m-turnover BMW and Mini dealer Specialist Cars,. It also advised on Cole Waterhouse and Tonia Investment’s acquisition of a four-acre brownfield site.

READ MORE: Brabners appoints five new partners

With business owners increasingly implementing long-term succession plans, Brabners’ specialist team also continued to support the transition of a range of businesses to employee ownership.

These included Evolve Family Law. Also in the professional services sector, it furthered its relationship with Begbies Traynor. It supported the business recovery and advisory firm to acquire Budworth Hardcastle into its property division, Eddisons.

Mark Rathbone, head of corporate (Liverpool) at Brabners, said: “Deal activity has held up incredibly well throughout 2022, despite the level of uncertainty brought about by the war in Ukraine and inflation.

“While these issues are unlikely to be resolved with any great speed, the market’s resilience is evidence of the continued trend towards consolidation across a range of sectors. There is an appetite among investors to pay a premium for high-quality businesses that have traded well coming out of the pandemic.

“It’s been incredibly rewarding to see the high level of activity in our core market in the North. We’re looking forward to growing our sphere of influence as we work alongside Marcus and Chris to build out our offer in Leeds.”