Investment Funds: Europe

Team-driven results for funds in Europe and beyond

Dechert features an industry-leading group of experienced lawyers who focus on the structuring, establishment, approval, taxation, distribution and management of European-domiciled investment funds. This group, which is completely integrated across our offices, helps our clients achieve their business objectives while maintaining regulatory compliance wherever they do business.

Our investment fund lawyers provide “jurisdiction neutral” structuring advice to our clients globally by drawing on talent in our offices in Dubai, Dublin, London, Luxembourg, Munich, Paris, Singapore, and the United States. Chambers 2024 ranks Dechert as a leading firm for investment funds in Ireland, Luxembourg, Germany, the United States and the United Kingdom. Chambers 2024 also ranks Dechert as a leading firm for investment funds in the Asia-Pacific and the Middle East.

We advise across the full range of asset classes, strategies and product structures. We also offer full-service U.S. capability from London, assisting European-based clients in accessing and raising capital in the United States.

The practice is highly innovative best evidenced by our leading position in developing new alternative investment fund products (e.g., the first master feeder structures offered in the non-U.S. market and now our leading position in developing cutting edge structures in the rapidly growing credit and debt sector) and cutting edge FinTech legal solutions.

Legal services relating to investment funds

Our lawyers advise on a full spectrum of legal services, including:

Fund Formation – organizing alternative investment funds in jurisdictions around the world; organizing UCITS and non-UCITS in Luxembourg, Ireland and the UK; structuring open-end and closed-end retail and institutional funds; advising on structured products, including ETFs, ETCs and ETNs.
Cross-Border Guidance and Local Counsel – advising on cross-border financial services globally; serving as local counsel to UCITS in the UK, Ireland, Luxembourg, Belgium, France and Germany; liaising on clients’ behalf with regulators all over the world.
Distribution and Marketing – helping clients distribute investment funds of all types in the European Union, North America, Latin America, Middle East and Asia (leveraging Dechert's World Compass and World Passport resources); advising with respect to structuring and coordinating global distribution by negotiating third-party distribution agreements; assisting with cross-border mergers, product rationalization, and re-domiciling of investment funds.
Operations and Compliance – assisting with day-to-day legal, operational, administration and company secretarial issues relating to investment funds; advising on anti-money laundering issues; providing counsel on compliance procedures and corporate governance.

Team-driven results for funds in Europe and beyond

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Dechert lawyers are thought leaders in a continuing period of regulatory change, building and sharing their deep knowledge on such topics as MiFID II, the Senior Managers and Certification Regime, AIFMD, EMIR, remuneration, Dodd-Frank and UCITS (including UCITS V).

Our firm has representatives on numerous working experts groups of the Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA), Irish Funds, Association of the Luxembourg Fund Industry (ALFI) and the UK Investment Association. Dechert also is an associate member of the European Fund and Asset Management Association (EFAMA) as well as being involved with all other major asset management membership bodies across Europe.

In early 2019, we hosted what is now the largest funds industry conference outside the U.S., our 8th Annual Funds Congress, held in central London. For further information, please visit fundscongress.com.

Each year we present an extensive program of topical update seminars for the asset management industry. Recently, we hosted a series of seminars relating to MiFID II, Luxembourg-related topics, Irish fund issues, and the implications of Brexit for the asset management industry globally.