BCLP and Mayer Brown Advise on £380m Sale of 25 Cabot Square, Canary Wharf

Global law firm Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP (BCLP) has advised HGR Liquidating Trust (formerly Hines Global REIT) on its sale of two Luxembourg companies owning the 17-story office building at 25 Cabot Square in Canary Wharf, London E14 to Link Real Estate Investment Trust for £380 million. Link, a Hong Kong SAR-listed REIT managed by Link Asset Management Limited, was advised by Mayer Brown. The sale has been agreed and is expected to complete on Aug. 25.

This is the largest single asset office deal in London this year.

The building, known as “The Cabot,” is Morgan Stanley’s European headquarters in London and comprises 481,605-square-feet of recently refurbished office space. Designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, the Class A property was completed in 1991 as part of the first phase of the Canary Wharf development.

The multidisciplinary BCLP team acting for Global REIT Cabot Square Holdco S.à r.l. (the seller) was led by Partners Emma Le Wita, Adam Bogdanor and Chris de Pury, working with Associate Director Laura Patao-Caminas, Associate Elizabeth Wong and Trainee Solicitor Oliver Cross (Corporate), Associate Daniel Burnand (Real Estate), and Partner Elizabeth Bradley, Senior Associate Andy West and Associate George Croft (Tax).

HGR was assisted by the London capital markets team of Cushman & Wakefield. K&L Gates (Emma Maher) assisted HGR on US legal matters.

The Mayer Brown team acting for Link was led by Chris Harvey and Neil Evans and included Counsel Robert Patterson, Senior Associates Erin Brayshaw, Annabel Ersser, Danielle Gerber and Sarah Rochelle and Associate Hollie Norman (Real Estate) and Senior Associate Josh Reynolds and Associate Zayn Khan.