Dickinson Gleeson has advised LSE-listed Land Securities Group plc on its £332.5 million acquisition of a portfolio of three outlet centres from Hermes Investment Management.
The portfolio comprises Freeport Braintree in Essex, Clarks Village in Street, Somerset and J32 in Castleford, Yorkshire, and generates annualised net rental income of £21.6 million. The acquisition establishes Land Securities as the leading owner-manager of outlets in the UK.
The properties were held through a complex ownership structure and the acquisition was structured as a purchase of units in two Jersey Property Unit Trusts. Dickinson Gleeson also advised on the restructuring of the acquired group soon after completion of the purchase.
Dickinson Gleeson worked alongside English lawyers Eversheds-Sutherland. Mourant Ozannes acted for Hermes Investment Management Limited, alongside BLP.
Edward Scott, Corporate Partner at Dickinson Gleeson, said: “We are delighted to have helped blue-chip client Land Securities with this important acquisition. We have completed a number of large UK real estate transactions in the ten months since I joined Dickinson Gleeson. This JPUT transaction demonstrated the advantages of our partner-led approach which enables us to respond quickly on large, complex and fast-moving real estate deals.”
James Dickinson, Senior Partner, said: “Our successful involvement in this transaction shows that in the corporate arena, as well as in the litigation and trust advisory spaces, we are working on and executing matters of the highest quality.”