Emmanuel Gutton, a well-known legal expert in Luxembourg who until recently served as deputy CEO at the Association of the Luxembourg Fund Industry (Alfi), has joined New York-headquartered law firm White & Case LLP as funds partner.
Gutton will advise on the creation, structuring and conversion of funds across a wide range of asset classes including private equity and real estate. The firm said he will also assist in setting-up and advising investment fund managers.
Gutton’s hire enables White & Case to meet growing demand for funds advice and to develop new opportunities in the Luxembourg market. He will collaborate with funds partner Arnaud Cagi-Nicolau in Luxembourg, being the largest investment fund centre in Europe and second globally after the US.
In 2020 Gutton joined Alfi as general counsel and director of legal and tax, and as deputy CEO. Previously, he held senior positions at Pictet Asset Management and at Luxembourg law firm Elvinger, Hoss & Prussen.
John Reiss, head of global M&A practice at White & Case, described Luxembourg as a crucial hub for fund formation, private equity, and mergers and acquisitions, with most global private equity investments structured there, and said Gutton’s expertise will enhance the firm’s advisory capabilities in this sector.
White & Case partner and vice chair Oliver Brettle said the firm has made “substantial” investments in its private equity and mergers and acquisitions business, two practices that have continued to grow globally in recent years.
“This expansion coupled with the opening of our Luxembourg office and the arrival of partner Arnaud Cagi-Nicolau in March 2022 has led to even greater need for specialist funds capabilities,” Brettle said in a statement.
Gutton’s addition follows on the arrival of funds partners Emily Brown and Lavanya Raghavan in London, Phillip Sacks in Dubai, Omar Hemady in Boston and Eriko Sakata in Tokyo. It “will further deepen our bench strength to meet that demand,“ Brettle said in a statement.