About
- The firm WQ is a leading Bermuda law firm that has earned an international reputation for providing high-calibre legal services. WQ is dedicated to providing clients with timely, sophisticated and solution-driven legal advice and is known for delivering a personalised and efficient legal service, geared to working to agreed timetables and budgets. WQ achieves a high standard of professionalism by listening to client needs and understanding client requirements. We recognise the vital importance of establishing close and continuing business relationships with our clients and throughout our firm’s history, have forged valuable networks with other legal professionals in the US, UK, Europe, and Asia. WQ offers an all-inclusive service to clients, utilising the firm’s associated services companies, including WQ International Ltd. and M Q Services Ltd., which provides a full range of corporate, administrative and registered office and agent services; Harbour Financial Services Limited, which provides fund administration, investor relation, financial accounting, and independent director services; and Winchester Global Trust Company Limited, which provides trust and private client services. Directors of the firm are actively involved in many professional organisations, including the Bermuda Bar Association, Restructuring and Insolvency Specialist Association (RISA), and the International Bar Association (IBA). ### Areas of practice Corporate and commercial WQ’s lawyers have extensive experience advising leading financial institutions, public companies, funds, private equity firms and large private companies on a broad range of corporate and financial transactions. ### WQ has expertise advising on - (a) primary (IPO) and secondary equity and debt offerings of private and public companies; - (b) banking and structured finance; - (c) investment and private equity funds; - (d) insurance and reinsurance; - (e) cross-border mergers, acquisitions, disposals and re-domestications; - (f) shipping and aviation; - (g) infrastructure projects; - (h) trusts and private client; - (i) insolvency and restructuring; - (j) regulation and compliance; and (k) intellectual property and e-commerce. Litigation WQ litigators regularly appear in leading decisions before the Bermuda courts. WQ advises on international commercial disputes, insurance and reinsurance matters, officer liability claims, shareholder disputes, trust/trustee disputes, employment and immigration matters and general family law. Real estate WQ has one of the leading real estate practices in Bermuda. Our lawyers provide innovative and practical legal advice to a broad range of industry participants. We regularly act for lenders, developers and equity investors in all major real estate product areas, including office, commercial, industrial, multi-family and hospitality. WQ’s lawyers have extensive experience advising on the acquisition, development, management and disposal of real estate, including leases, sale-leasebacks, market standard and complex financings, and restructurings. Private client WQ regularly acts for trustees, beneficiaries and settlors, as well as protectors and enforcers, and has considerable experience advising international corporate clients on insurance trusts, special purpose trusts, pension trusts, unit trusts and employee benefit trusts. WQ also advises charities, foundations, families and high-net-worth individuals on investment structures, international estate planning and private trust company arrangements. ### Languages - English - French - German - Portuguese - Turkish ### Staffing Figures - 20 Number of lawyers - 65 Total staff
Office locations
Hamilton
Hamilton
Wakefield Quin Victoria Place 31 Victoria Street Hamilton Hm10 Hamilton Bermuda
Practice areas
Lawyers in this office
Alex Evans
Alex is an Associate in the Corporate Department and his practice includes all aspects of corporate and commercial law. Alex has experience advising a broad range of clients, from start-ups and entrepreneurs to multi-national corporations, in a wide variety of sectors. · Corporate / M&A
Celia Tuzo
Associate · Real Estate
Debby Correia
Debby Correia is an Associate and divides her time within the Litigation, Private Client and Property Departments. Debby’s practice covers estate administration, debt recovery, enforcement of court orders, personal injury, medical negligence, Mental Health Act receiverships, liquidations, land licence immigration applications, fractional acquisitions of real estate, conveyances, mortgages, and sale and purchase transactions. · Litigation
Erik Gotfredsen
Erik Gotfredsen is a Director, Senior Counsel and the Chief Executive Officer of Wakefield Quin Limited and has been internationally recognised by Chambers Global and The Legal 500 as one of Bermuda’s leading corporate lawyers. Erik’s practice spans a broad range of sophisticated finance and capital market transactions with an emphasis on debt and equity offerings, banking and financial services, structured and project finance, secured lending, mergers and acquisitions and reorganizations. Erik has significant experience advising on joint ventures, partnerships, asset and fund management and regulatory compliance. In addition, Erik has an active general corporate practice, including advising on the establishment of companies in Bermuda, and is routinely instructed by a large number of leading international banks, financial institutions, public companies, private equity firms and onshore law firms. · Corporate / M&A
Ian Stone
Ian Stone is a Director and Senior Counsel in the Corporate Department of Wakefield Quin Limited and has been with Wakefield Quin Limited since 2004. His areas of experience include IPO’s, public company and capital markets transactions, advising on offshore corporate and partnership structures, project financing, banking transactions, acquisitions and mergers, insurance and reinsurance law, group restructuring and general corporate work. · Corporate / M&A
Jemima Fearnside
Jemima (known informally as Jemma) is a Senior Counsel in the Corporate Department at Wakefield Quin Limited and joined the firm in March 2012. · Corporate / M&A
Johann Oosthuizen
Johann Oosthuizen joined Wakefield Quin Limited in January 2014 as an Associate in the Corporate Department. His areas of practice include corporate and commercial law specialising in mergers and acquisitions, general corporate transactional as well as commercial property matters. Johann has more than a decade of experience advising corporate and trust clients on a wide range of commercial and regulatory matters. This includes the area of corporate finance, where he represents developers, retailers and banks advising them on loan and related security transactions. · Corporate / M&A
Katrina Dickson
Katrina is a Property Attorney & Barrister · Real Estate
Larina Kenny
Larina is an Associate in the Corporate Department and her areas of practice include acting on a wide range of banking and financial transactions for Irish and international financial and corporate institutions. She advises both lenders and borrowers on credit facilities and on security and enforcement issues. Larina also has extensive experience reviewing and advising on non-performing loan portfolios and has acted for purchasers, sellers and financiers of these assets. · Banking & Finance
Michelle Stone
Michelle Stone is Head of the Property Department at Wakefield Quin Limited. Michelle specialises in both commercial and residential property law, with particular emphasis on assisting property developers, local and non-Bermudian clients acquiring high end residential property and/or fractional interests in developments linked to hotels, bank security and dealing with the property requirements of the hotel sector. · Real Estate
Nicholas Hoskins
Nicholas Hoskins is a Senior Counsel and Managing Director of Wakefield Quin Limited. He works in the Corporate, Trusts and Financial Services Department practising in the areas of general corporate, commercial, transactional and Trusts as well as private client work. · Corporate / M&A
Richard Horseman
Richard Horseman is a Director and Senior Counsel in the Litigation Department Richard practises both criminal and civil litigation and is an experienced trial lawyer. Richard has significant experience advising clients in the following areas: contract and commercial disputes, shareholder and employment disputes, judicial review and administrative law claims, human rights claims, personal injury claims including road traffic claims and conditions of employment claims, trust and estate/probate litigation and administration, and criminal litigation. With two decades of litigation experience, Richard has conducted several high profile cases including one of Bermuda's largest personal injury judgments, in 2016. Richard is Head of the firm’s estate administration practice, practising probate and trust law, and has considerable experience advising on estate planning. · Litigation
Roderick Forrest
Rod Forrest is a Director and Senior Counsel in the Corporate Department and has been with Wakefield Quin Limited (and its predecessor firm M.L.H. Quin & Co.) since 1996. His areas of practice include investment funds, securities and capital markets, private equity structures, partnerships and banking as well as more general corporate transactional work and trusts. In his work in the area of investment funds Rod provides services to clients ranging from world leading hedge fund groups to single manager start-up funds. He is recommended for his work in a number of journals and publications, including Chambers & Partners and Practical Law Company. · Investment Funds
Scott Swainson
Scott Swainson is a Senior Counsel in the Property Department of Wakefield Quin Limited. Scott regularly advises both local and non-Bermudian clients on sophisticated commercial and residential property transactions. Scott provides property-related advice to banks and other commercial lenders, as well as to hotel and condominium developers and investors. · Real Estate
Wendell Hollis
Senior Counsel · Corporate / M&A