With three partners, two directors and eight lawyers, Wragge & Co has a strong team dedicated to asset finance work. Led by Paula Laird, praised for her "commerciality and attentiveness" (Legal 500 2011), the team has established a reputation as a distinctive force in a competitive market.

This reputation is based on a blend of technical legal skills, experience and always focusing on the commercial realities of a situation. A former head of legal services at Lloyds TSB Asset Finance, Paula has been in the client's position, and this perspective inspires the team's approach.

The team's work covers all elements of asset based finance, including invoice and receivables finance, aircraft finance, securitisation, equipment finance, leasing, syndicated asset based lending facilities and cross-border transactions. It acts for both lenders and borrowers.

This expertise is attracting opportunities for the team to show what it can do. Last year it has advised on public-to-private transactions for Lloyds TSB and GE Commercial Finance, securing a recommendation for its "invaluable" assistance and guidance "on what proved to be a very complex transaction". It has handled asset-backed acquisitions, MBIs and multi-million pound pan-European asset based transactions, in countries such as Germany, France, Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Austria and Switzerland.

The team handles standalone deals or as part of a wider team, adding its expertise on PFI, aviation, rail and energy-related work. Corporate, regulatory and antitrust experts are on hand to advise lenders and borrowers on related issues such as licensing, regulatory and competition matters.

For more on asset finance, contact partner Paula Laird (paula_laird@wragge.com).