He was formerly a partner and vice chairman of the tax and benefits practice at Latham & Watkins. King & Spalding said one of the reasons it hired him is because of his experience in building European tax practices at this previous firms. It intends to do the same in its London, Frankfurt and Paris offices.
Friel's broad practice covers advising clients such as banks, private equity firms, creditor committees, sovereign wealth funds and high-net-worth individuals on complex, multi-jurisdictional tax planning matters, including cross-border mergers, disposals and acquisitions principally in the UK, US and Europe, tax-related financing and structuring and international structured finance transactions. Clients include SAB Miller, ITV, JPMorgan, Carlyle and the Qatar Investment Authority. Friel qualified as a chartered accountant before becoming a lawyer.
Kevin Conway and John Taylor are the other two partners in King & Spalding's tax practice in London.
