Our lawyers have contributed to the following global, regional and local awards obtained by our teams.

2026 & 2025 Paris Rankings:

Chambers & Partners France

• 25 practices ranked (including 10 in Band 1)

Chambers & Partners Global

• 12 practices ranked (including 6 in Band 1)

Legal 500 EMEA

• 25 practices ranked (including 14 in Tier 1)

IFLR 1000

• 6 practices in Band 1
• 4 practices in Band 2

In 2025, our Paris office contributed to the following awards:

Chambers France Awards

• Project Finance Team of the Year

IFLR Europe Awards

• Specialist Award: Digital Finance
• Team of the Year: M&A

Other awards and recognitions

• Ranked 1st in France in the M&A League rankings by transaction value: Mergermarket global and regional M&A rankings for the 2025 financial year
• Team of the Year: Securitisation and Structured Finance
• IFLR Africa Awards:
  • International Law Firm of the Year
  • Team of the Year: Energy

In 2024, 2023, 2017, 2016, 2015 and 2014 respectively, we were awarded 'France Law Firm of the Year' at the IFLR Europe Awards. In 2021 and 2018, we were also awarded 'France Law Firm of the Year' at the Chambers Europe Awards for Excellence.

Our Paris office is also proud to have contributed to the Firm's winning of the IFLR European Award 'International Law Firm of the Year' in 2024 and 2023, and 'Europe-wide Law Firm of the Year' at the Chambers Europe Awards in 2023 & 2021.

Corporate M&A and Private Equity:

• Advising Airbus on signing MoU with Thales and Leonardo to create a European leader in the space sector.

• Advising EQT, through its EQT Transition Infrastructure strategy, on its entry into exclusive negotiations with the founders of Waga Energy and certain historical shareholders (Starquest Capital, Tertium, Noria, SWEN Impact Fund for Transition and ALIAD) to acquire a majority stake in Waga Energy and launch a mandatory tender offer for 100% of the company followed, if legal conditions are met, by a squeeze-out.

• Advising Crédit Agricole S.A. on the acquisition by Crédit Agricole S.A. of Santander’s 30.5% stake in CACEIS, its asset servicing provider. Following completion of the transaction, Crédit Agricole S.A. controls 100% of the share capital of CACEIS.

• Advising Proudreed on the conditional sale of an industrial asset portfolio to Blackstone.

• Advising Brookfield in the context of the largest public M&A transaction on the French market for the year 2024 consisting in the contemplated acquisition by Brookfield of a majority block of shares in Neoen from Impala, Fonds Stratégique de Participations, the CEO of Neoen and other minority shareholders, to be followed by a mandatory simplified cash tender offer.
• Advising BNP Paribas on the exclusive negotiations between Arval and Mercedes-Benz Group for the acquisition of Athlon.

• Advising Mannai Corporation on the sale of Damas jewellery to Titan.

• Advising EDF power solutions and Maple Power on BW Ideol Projects Company’s entry into the share capital of the Méditerranée Grand Large floating offshore wind farm.

Fund Formation:

• Advising Ardabelle Capital on closely linked workstreams, namely (i) the establishment of the GP, (ii) the structuring and negotiation of the GP stake by TPG and (iii) the fundraising of the first vintage flagship fund.

• Advising companies of the Peugeot Invest group in connection with the sale on the secondary market of their shares of investment funds in which Peugeot Invest holds an investment.

• Advising Ardian Expansion on the establishment of its first private equity continuation fund dedicated to the acquisition of Syclef, a leading European company specialising in the installation and maintenance of refrigeration and air conditioning systems.

Banking & Project Finance:

• Advising the Lenders, including local and international financial institutions JP Morgan, U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), HSBC, KfW IPEX-Bank, Proparco, Deutsche Investitions – und Entwicklungsgesellschaft (German Investment Corporation) and Akbank, on the financing of Enerjisa Enerji Üretim A.Ş. (Enerjisa Üretim) in the amount of US$1.012 billion.

• Advising the Lenders on the financing of the 1.1GW Suez Wind Farm in Egypt, the largest single-contracted wind farm in the Middle East. ACWA Power, leader in energy transition, in consortium with HAU Energy, a subsidiary of Hassan Allam Utilities, and their financiers have achieved the dry financial close for the largest single-contracted wind farm in the Middle East.

• Advising Hôtels de Paris on the financial restructuring of their debt by Bain private credit.

• Advising Proxima, the first independent high-speed train operator in France, on the conclusion of contracts for the supply and maintenance of its high-speed trains with Alstom, and on the financing of this investment.

Administrative & Public Law:

• Advising the Société du Canal Seine-Nord Europe which was awarded the design-build contract for sector 6 of the Canal Seine-Nord Europe to the Canalieau consortium, led by Bouygues Travaux Publics.
• The conclusion of this contract highlights the relevance of the design-build contract model, which Clifford Chance has been supporting public purchasers with since 2019. This model enabled the Société du Canal Seine-Nord Europe to simultaneously award the design (studies) and construction (execution of works) of a 1,330-meter-long and 45-meter-wide canal bridge, which will cross the Somme valley and its outer harbors, for a total of €440 million. The structure is expected to be operational by the end of 2032.

Financial Services Regulatory:

• Advising Crédit Agricole S.A. on the acquisition of Santander’s 30.5% stake in CACEIS. Crédit Agricole S.A. will now control 100% of the share capital of CACEIS. This deal is strategic to Crédit Agricole S.A., who confirms its priority to continue strengthening CACEIS' position as a major European asset servicing player, supporting its clients’ business development objectives.

• Advising SIX Group AG in its acquisition of the Aquis Exchange plc group, including its wholly own subsidiary, Aquis Exchange Europe.

• Advising LCH S.A. on the drafting of the rules governing clearing services for Bitcoin index futures and options contracts traded on a UK digital asset derivatives trading venue approved as a multilateral trading facility.

Capital Markets ECM:

• Advising NSIG Sunrise and BofA Securities on the accelerated bookbuild offering of ordinary shares in the capital of French company Soitec, a leading designer and manufacturer of semiconductor materials, listed on Euronext Paris.
• Advising to BofA Securities and Goldman Sachs as solicitation agents on the successful consent solicitation of Orange in relation to the amendment of certain outstanding SEC-registered notes in the context of Orange's delisting of its shares and deregistration in the US.

• Advising a syndicate of underwriters, comprising J.P. Morgan, Morgan Stanley, BNP PARIBAS, Goldman Sachs and ING on the €300 million equity issuance by CTP N.V., Europe's largest publicly listed industrial developer by gross leasable area.

Capital Markets DCM:

• Advising the dealer managers, and the lead managers involved in the tender offer and the new issue. In the context of this transaction, EDF repurchased €498.7 million of its €1 billion reset perpetual subordinated notes with a first redemption on 22 January 2026 and £621.3 million of its £1.250 billion reset perpetual subordinated notes with a first redemption on 29 January 2026, which are admitted to trading on the regulated market of Euronext Paris.
• Advising on the first issuance of digitally native notes by Caisse des dépôts et consignations completed in the context of the Eurosystem's exploratory works.

• Advising Banque Ouest Africaine de Développement (BOAD) on its U.S.$500 million Rule 144A/Reg S Hybrid Sustainable 8.200% Notes due 2055.

Structured Finance:

• Advising BNP Paribas and Morgan Stanley in relation to a structured disposal for Wendel SE of an approx. €830 million, 6.7% stake in Bureau Veritas SA (a leading provider of inspection and certification services listed on Euronext Paris).

• Advising the Consortium comprising CCF and Rothesay, a major player in the UK pension insurance market, on the completion of the acquisition from HSBC Continental Europe of a €6.7 billion portfolio of French home loans. This is the biggest portfolio sale in France.

• Advising BPCE on their new ABCP conduit name “Portdalon” with a maximum issuance amount of EUR 10,000,000,000.00 under an ECP Issuance Programme governed by English law and a NEU CP Issuance Programme governed by French law. This is the first French ABCP Conduit since the setting-up of Satellite by CIC (which was also advised by Clifford Paris) in 2019, including a number of new and/or structured features.

Dispute Resolution: Commercial Litigation:

• Representing the LFP (French Professional Football League) in various disputes regarding, inter alia, the TV broadcasting rights of the Ligue 1 championship.

• Representing Electrolux, a preeminent Swedish household appliances manufacturer and distributor, in the context of a follow-on claim initiated by Casino Group, a foremost international retailer, further to a decision of French Competition Authority imposing a €189 million fine in total on the members of the household appliances cartel (including Electrolux).
• Advising Saint-Gobain and several of its French and foreign subsidiaries in Greece, Italy and Kuwait in relation with pre-litigation and cross-border disputes with their key commercial partners and clients.

Antitrust:

• Advising Twitch and Tiktok regarding the FCA sector inquiry into online video content creation.
• Advising Dovista regarding the antitrust aspects of their contemplated acquisition of Tryba, a market leader in the sale of vertical windows in France.
• Advising Hitachi Rail on the merger control aspects of its acquisition of Thales' Ground Transportation Systems (GTS) business, concluded for over EUR 1.5 billion and the subsequent divestment of part of Hitachi Rail's French, German and UK business to Mermec.
• Advising Brookfield Corporation on the antitrust, merger control, and FDI aspects of its contemplated acquisition of 100% of the shareholding of Neoen through the acquisition of 53.32% from Impala.

White-Collar Crime & Compliance:

• Advising Technip Energies in a criminal investigation by the French PNF into alleged corruption tied to West African projects from 2008–2012, which was successfully resolved through a €208 million CJIP, though execution and payments are still pending.
• Played a lead role in helping Airbus secure a landmark global resolution in 2020 involving French, UK, and US authorities over bribery and ITAR-related issues, followed by a second CJIP in 2022 addressing earlier intermediary practices. The firm continues to represent Airbus in ongoing appeal proceedings related to this second CJIP.
• Advising Exclusive Networks in the context of an ongoing criminal investigation into alleged wrongdoings in the context of their Asian activities disclosed to the Parquet National Financier by a whistle-blower.
• Advising Airbus on complex cross-border compliance and strategic risk matters, including EU sanctions, whistleblower claims, regulatory filings, and post-settlement obligations tied to the 2020 agreements with French, UK, and US authorities. Recent work also involved guidance on the French Blocking Statute and coordination with government authorities.
• Advising clients, mainly asset management companies and investment companies, as part of ESG/Compliance due diligence in the context of mergers and acquisitions deals.
• Advising clients with cross-border investigations into potential human rights-related issues.

Arbitration:

• Advising NHIndustries SAS on reaching an amicable settlement with the Norwegian Government, resolving all disputes related to the Norwegian NH90 programme.
• Engaged in 2021 as counsel to Avima Iron Ore Limited, Greyridge Ltd and Avima Fer Congo in a high-profile, bet-the-company ICC arbitration recently initiated against the Republic of Congo following the revocation of Avima's mining license on spurious grounds. The license was handed over to an unknown operator called Sangha Mining Development Sasu in November 2020.
• Acting in an ICSID arbitration started by Odebrecht Latinvest S.à.r.l. against the Republic of Peru in relation to the termination of a concession contract to build and operate a pipeline for the transport of natural gas in the South of Peru. This concession was a major project intended to become a critical component of Peru's energy infrastructure.
• Engaged in July 2025 by Australia-listed mining companies Celamin Ltd and Phosco Ltd in a high-profile, bet-the-company ICC arbitration initiated in June 2025 by Celamin's former joint venture partner, Tunisian Mining Services SARL.

Restructuring & Insolvency:

• Advising Emil Frey France on the sale of Aurilis Group (Flauraud) to FairCap.

• Advising Flexis on its acquisition by Renault Group.

• Advising Macnica, Inc. (Macnica), the Japanese technology solutions provider, in the M&A transaction in France regarding their French subsidiary historically known as NAVYA (key player in the self-driving industry), including the exit of Gaussin and the new JV with NTTW.

• Advising Interpath on the acquisition of the restructuring business unit of KPMG France by Interpath Advisory and also on the acquisition of Kerkhoff in Germany.

• Advising HyVia (a joint venture in the hydrogen industry between Renault and Plug Power) on the reorg of Hyvia organized within an in-Court insolvency proceedings (redressement judiciaire) in December 2024.

Employment:

• Providing legal advice to Software AG on the complex and long-term restructuring of its operations in Europe.

• Advising the Schaeffler Group in the context of disputes lodged by 339 former employees of Continental France before the Civil Court of Compiegne in order to trigger the civil liability of four companies of the Schaeffler Group and obtain damages due to the closure of the production plant of Continental France located in Clairoix which has allegedly been decided by the four Schaeffler companies as shareholders of the Continental group.

• Advising FreeNow (Your Now Group) in the implementation of a European reorganisation of its activities (mobility services) across multiple countries, where all Clifford Chance offices worked closely together to present a joint and uniform approach to the restructuring process.

Real Estate:

• Advising AccorInvest on an asset exchange transaction with Covivio Hotels with a view to reorganising the ownership of the premises and business concerns of some of their hotels.

• Advising CBRE Investment Management and Virtuo Industrial Property on the sale of a logistics portfolio of approximately 190,000 sqm in France.

• Advising Morgan Stanley Real Estate on the acquisition from Amundi of the Pullman Tour Eiffel 5* hotel in Paris (both real estate and hotel business).

Tax:

• Advising Atos on the tax aspects of its financial restructuring.
• Advising Vauban Infra Fibre, one of France's largest independent digital infrastructure platform, on the structuring of the minority equity investment of sovereign fund GIC into the digital infrastructure platform (stake of c. 25% of Vauban Infra Fibre's equity).

Sport:

• Advising the French Tennis Federation (FFT) in the context of the sale of the French TV rights of the Roland Garros Grand Slam tournament (Editions 2024 to 2027).
• Advised LFP Media, the commercial subsidiary of LFP, jointly controlled by LFP and CVC Partners, in relation to the sale of the broadcasting rights of the Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 championships for the seasons 2024/2025 onwards.

• Advises LFP Media, the commercial subsidiary of Ligue de Football Professionnel, on the creation and structuring of its dedicated channel for the broadcasting of Ligue 1 from seasons 2025/2026 onwards ("Ligue 1 +").

Data Privacy & IT:

• Advising Honda Motor Europe (French branch) on all the data protection issues that arise in the context of their day-to-day activities.

• Advising Legrand on the global launch and implementation of its “Eliot” connected home and security product programme, working for more than five years with the central project team to design the legal strategy and address complex issues arising from worldwide deployment, including conflicting regulations, data-processing challenges and novel legal questions linked to connected devices.

• Advising DoorFeed in the context of the deployment of a pioneering technology-driven platform that supports institutional real estate investors by combining advanced tech solutions with operational services. Our engagement focuses on several critical areas: the handling of very large data sets within a highly innovative technological ecosystem; the framing of investors' rights on the platform; and the structuring of relationships with key stakeholders, including investors, services providers and real estate professionals.

Healthcare Life Sciences:

• Advising Chinese companies of the MGI group, the main challenger in the field of genetic sequencing, regarding a dispute against the market leader, Illumina Cambridge.
• Advising Teva on all EU antitrust investigations concerning them, both with respect to allegations of abuse of dominance and anticompetitive agreements, which are currently pending before the EU courts.
• Representing and assisting Pfizer in individual employment litigations lodged by current or former employees concerning various claims for notably discrimination, equal treatment, inexcusable negligence of the employer, back pay, requalification of fixed-term employment and interim contracts into permanent employment contracts, unfair dismissal (personal or economic grounds), including the representation of Pfizer before French judicial Courts (Labor or Social Security Courts) (analysis, preparation and pleading of the cases) and the negotiation and preparation of settlement agreements.

Aviation:

• Advising Airbus on its entry into exclusive negotiations with Air France-KLM and for the creation of a joint venture dedicated to maintenance services for Airbus A350 equipment.
• Acting for Airbus, Safran, Thales, Dassault, KNDS, MBDA and Naval Group as sellers on the sale of their shares into Sofema to Groupe ADIT and advising on the sale by Sofema on its shareholding in DCI to Groupe ADIT.
• Accompanying Airbus Defence and Space in the context of a major project involving the conclusion of an agreement, with the Polish Armament Agency, for the supply of two Earth observation satellites and related services.

Clifford Chance's Paris office is renowned as one of the strongest international firms in the French market. It attracts a high-calibre client base through its market-leading position in various transactional and contentious areas and has notable appeal for handling cross-border matters. While offering a distinguished and comprehensive service, the practice is most highly rated in banking, capital markets, litigation and corporate compliance.

The law firm's thriving hub in Paris fulfils an important role in the firm's wider international strength. It is an important location for the firm's African expertise and it is particularly well equipped to lead pan-European cross-border matters, as well as in a global context. A broad range of clients refer to the firm's international capabilities in Paris and value both the team's role as French counsel on inbound work and its strength in managing outbound mandates.

"Clifford Chance has a very good network of local counsel, international expertise and very good contacts. "

"The firm is efficiently managed through its other offices."

"Clifford Chance has a very international team."

Chambers Global 2025 – France: International & Cross-Border Capabilities Department – Band 1