LAWYER
Nick Tomlinson
Partner | London
Nick Tomlinson

Nick Tomlinson is a private equity and corporate partner in Dechert’s London office who brings more than two decades of experience in UK and cross-border private equity, M&A, growth capital and joint venture transactions. He is highly valued for his strategic insight and track record in managing intricate deals.

Dual-qualified in England & Wales and New York, Mr. Tomlinson has extensive experience leading complex deal teams and advising top-tier private equity firms, sovereign wealth funds and major corporations across numerous sectors including financial services, business services, healthcare, technology, digital infrastructure, education, consumer, media, entertainment and sports.

Mr. Tomlinson is recognized by The Legal 500 UK for Private Equity and M&A: Upper Mid-Market and Premium Deals, as well as for Private Equity Transactions: High-Value Deals (£500M+) and Industry Focus-TMT. He is recognized as one of The 2025 Lawdragon 500 Leading Global Entertainment, Sports & Media lawyers as was named on Hollywood Reporter’s annual list of Top Deal Makers of 2024. He is also highly regarded by IFLR1000 for M&A and Private Equity. Mr. Tomlinson is the lead author of the Thomson Reuters Practical Law publication “Private equity in the UK (England and Wales): Overview” (November 2023).
 

 

Sports, Media & Entertainment

  • RedBird IMI on its $1.5 billion acquisition of TV and film producer All3 Media from Warner Bros Discovery and Liberty Global.
  • Red Bird and Otro Capital on their 24% investment into Alpine Racing, a leading Formula 1 team.
  • Legends Hospitality on its acquisition of International Stadia Group (ISG), a London-based sports and entertainment company.
  • AT&T alongside WarnerMedia in the $1.4 billion sale of Playdemic, Ltd., the mobile games studio responsible for Golf Clash, to Electronic Arts.
  • Initial Capital on the sale of its minority preferred investment in Hutch Games, a motor sports gaming studio, to MTG.
  • Initial Capital on the sale of its minority preferred investment in Space Ape, a social and mobile gaming studio, to Supercell.
  • Hutch Games, a mobile video game developer and publisher, on its Series B preferred stock capital raising.
  • NetEase on its Series B investment into Improbable Worlds.

Financial Services

  • Investcorp on its strategic acquisition of 3iDM, a CLO and credit investment company with $12bn assets under management from 3i Group plc.
  • Anthos Capital on its Series C investment into Railsr, an embedded finance platform.
  • A global financial services company on two potential European large-cap acquisitions.

Healthcare & Education

  • KKR on its acquisition of Clinisupplies, a UK manufacturer and distributor of healthcare products.
  • AGIC Capital on the sale of global medical laser business Fotona to Vitruvian Partners and subsequent co-investment.
  • Safanad on the control investment into UK care home provider HC-One and the related management incentivisation plan.
  • Baker Bros as lead investor in the Series C financing of Immunocore, a clinical-stage T cell receptor biotechnology company.
    • Investcorp on its co-investment with TPG's global impact The Rise Fund to acquire Outcomes First Group (OFG), a UK Special Education Needs (SEN) provider, from Stirling Square Capital.
      • Blackstone, Fajr and Mumtalakat on its sale of its stake in GEMS Education to CVC Capital
      • Investcorp on the sale of portfolio company, GL Education Group, a provider of pupil and school assessment solutions for schools, to Levine Leichtman Capital Partners.

      Digital Infrastructure

      • Novator Capital and Verne Global, an Icelandic colocation data center campus, on the sale of Verne to Digital 9 Infrastructure plc (D9), a digital infrastructure investment trust.
      • Verne Global, an Icelandic colocation data center campus, in connection with its 2020 Series D capital raise; and with a warrant issuance.
      • Zayo Group on its acquisition of Viatel's pan European dark fiber infrastructure and enterprise businesses.
      • Zayo Group on its acquisition of Geo Networks, operator of high-capacity fiber network in the UK.

      Digital & Consumer

      • Platinum Equity and its portfolio company Cision US Inc. on its $450 million acquisition of Brandwatch, a global leader in digital consumer intelligence and social media listening.
      • Investcorp on its acquisition of Investis Digital, a provider of digital corporate communications and marketing services, from ECI Partners and a group of minority investors through an auction process.
      • CITIC Capital on the carve-out from Euromoney plc of ISI Emerging Markets Group, the leading provider of macroeconomic, business and industry intelligence on global emerging markets, and the subsequent sale to Montagu Private Equity.
      • L Catterton and global fitness and lifestyle brand Sweaty Betty on the sale of Sweaty Betty to Wolverine Worldwide, Inc. through an auction process.

      *Includes matters handled at Dechert or prior to joining the firm.

      • Private Equity Transactions: High-Value Deals (£500M+), Legal 500 UK, 2025
      • Industry Focus – TMT, Legal 500 UK, 2025
      • Highly Regarded: Private Equity, IFLR1000 UK 
      • Highly Regarded: M&A, IFLR100 UK 
      • Named on the Hollywood Reporter’s annual list of Top Dealmakers of 2024
      • Recognized as one of eleven UK based lawyers on The 2025 Lawdragon 500 Leading Global Entertainment, Sports & Media lawyers
      • “Private equity in the UK (England and Wales): Overview”, Thomson Reuters Practical Law, 2023
      Services Industries
        • University of Nottingham, LL.B. (Hons), 1996
        • The College of Law, Chester, LPC, 1997
        • England and Wales
        • New York