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Clifford Chance

Clifford Chance
Sarah Thomas

Sarah Thomas

Counsel

Counsel
Sarah Thomas

Sarah Thomas specialises in all aspects of direct and indirect equity investment in real estate, including acquisitions and disposals of private companies, unit trusts, partnerships and real estate assets, development projects, joint ventures, major lettings (landlord and occupier), asset management, hotels, including acquisitions, developments and operating arrangements.

Sarah's clients include investors, investment banks, developers, opportunity funds and hotel operators.

  • L&Q on the acquisition of Gallagher Estates for an enterprise value of £505m. The deal is the largest land transaction undertaken by any housing association and places L&Q, a charitable housing association committed to solving the UK housing crisis, as one of the leading developers of new homes across the UK
  • Hammerson plc on its acquisition of the remaining 40% interest in the English Limited Partnership owning the Highcross Shopping Centre, Leicester, from its joint venture partner BIS (Postal Services Company Act 2011) Company Ltd (formerly the Royal Mail Pension Plan)
  • Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts on several of their hotels, including their development agreement, pre-let, fit-out and operating lease of their hotel comprising 18 floors of “The Shard”
  • The developer, a joint venture between Lend Lease and Quintain, on all aspects of the redevelopment of the Greenwich Peninsula (including the O2), one of the UK’s largest regeneration programmes

News and client work

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Contact details

Career and qualifications

  • Manchester University B.A. (Hons.) 1993
  • Admitted as a solicitor in England & Wales 1998
  • Joined Clifford Chance 2000
  • Partner since 2006
  • Counsel since 2010

Awards and citations

  • Ranked as a Notable Practitioner for Real estate acquisitions by IFLR1000
  • ‘Sarah Thomas has been an outstanding professional who is able to get to the crux of the issues and explain them in an easy to understand language.’
    Legal 500 2021