General Electric launches European M&A panel

General Electric (GE) has launched its first ever European M&A panel, handing coveted places to Allen & Overy, Ashurst, Weil Gotshal & Manges, Slaughter and May and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.

The panel will oversee GE’s major corporate deals in Europe, and is part of a worldwide push to reduce the firms that the company works with. Earlier this year GE slimmed down its US roster by 44 firms.

GE head of legal for European M&A Ben O'Halloran said: "The firms are GE's preferred firms to act as lead corporate counsel on M&A transactions. On any particular transaction, we may work with other firms where additional specialist expertise is required, such as on intellectual property, environmental, tax or competition matters."

GE has previously worked with most of the five firms on its European M&A panel. Weil Gotshal & Manges is a key advisor to the company in the US. Slaughter and May has been chosen along with and its best-friend firms
including Bredin Prat, Hengeler Mueller and Bonelli Erede Pappalardo.

The new M&A panel will be reviewed in 2011.

The company is also in the process of reviewing its local panels in all of the European jurisdictions in which it conducts business, including France, Germany, Spain, Netherlands and Belgium.