TOGETHER WITH

Table of Contents

• EDITOR’S RAMBLE 🗣

• FEATURED REPORT 📰

• IN OTHER NEWS 🗞

• AROUND THE WEB 🌐

• STUFF THAT MIGHT HELP YOU 👌

EDITOR’S RAMBLE 🗣

Private equity is a huge topic in the City right now — and loads of you tell me you want to understand it better.

Not in a “what is PE?” kind of way (you can Google that).

But more in-depth — like what lawyers actually do when establishing a private equity fund, and what trainees actually do when they’re working on this.

It’s importance since it’s what you’ll be doing during your training contract (and beyond).

So this week, we’ve partnered with Fried Frank to show you just that.

They’ve helped set up and fundraise for a massive tech-focused PE fund, and we got to sit down with the lawyers who worked on it (trainees included) to share what went on behind the scenes.

We can’t make these articles without a law firm’s input — they help us include real-world insight that give you information to write better applications and prep for interviews with more confidence.

So let me know — are these articles useful in improving your confidence when applying to law firms?

If the answer’s yes, we’ll make some more.

- Idin

P.S. Fried Frank’s training contract applications are open — apply here.

FEATURED REPORT 📰

💻 How Fried Frank launched a €266m tech-focused private equity fund

What’s going on here?

Fried Frank helped set up a €266 million private equity fund called Kennet VI. The fund is run by Kennet Partners, a growth-focused private equity firm that invests in software and tech-enabled businesses across Europe and the US.

What is a private equity (PE) fund?

A private equity fund is a pool of money raised from investors to buy and grow private companies. It’s managed by a General Partner (or GP) — in this case, Kennet — who picks the companies, helps them grow, and decides when to sell them.

The investors, called Limited Partners (or LPs), provide the money but don’t manage the fund. They rely on the GP to invest it and (hopefully) make enough profits to share when companies are sold.

We’ll explain who the LPs of this fund are later.

What companies will Kennet VI invest in?

Kennet VI will invest in fast-growing B2B (business-to-business) software companies — think: a company that sells accounting tools for large corporations. Each investment will range from around €10 million to €25 million.

And Kennet VI aims to be the first major outside investor in these companies. That means the businesses are usually still founder-owned, and growth potential is high. It also means Kennet can play a key role in shaping the company’s future — helping it scale faster, professionalise its operations, and prepare for an “exit event”.

Who’s invested in Kennet VI?

The key investors (or LPs) in Kennet VI are:

• a French public investment bank

• a UK government-backed investor

• a publicly listed investment manager

What kind of fund is Kennet VI?

Kennet VI is structured as an alternative investment fund (AIF) — a type of investment fund consisting of two investor-facing vehicles, one of which is domiciled in Luxembourg and the other in the UK.

Luxembourg is one of the most popular places in the world to set up investment funds. Why? Because it offers flexible rules and fast setup, which is perfect for funds that invest in things like startups and private companies.

AIFs are designed for professional investors and don’t need approval from Luxembourg’s financial regulator before launching.

In short: it’s a smart option to combine speed, flexibility, and tax efficiency — all things that matter in the world of private equity.

What was Fried Frank’s role in the fund?

Fried Frank acted for both Kennet (the fund manager) and Edmond de Rothschild (a private banking group with whom Kennet has a strategic partnership) in setting up Kennet VI.

How Fried Frank assisted Kennet: Setting up the fund involved preparing key legal documents and guiding the process, which can take years because of the negotiations involved. Fried Frank’s work included:

• 📢 Private Placement Memorandum (PPM): This is the fund’s marketing document, shared with potential investors. Fried Frank drafted the legal sections with input from local counsel in Luxembourg and France, including the disclaimers, and reviewed the parts covering how the fund would manage capital and charge fees.

• 🤝 Limited Partnership Agreement (LPA): This sets out the roles, rights, and responsibilities of the manager and investors. Fried Frank drafted the LPA based on the terms of the predecessor fund (Kennet V), updating to bring the terms in line with current market standards. The firm also helped negotiate these terms with investors.

• 🧾 Subscription Agreement: This document sets out the terms for investors subscribing for interests in the fund. It also gathers important information from investors to ensure that Kennet is able to comply with its regulatory obligations. Fried Frank made sure it aligned with the LPA and the broader fund structure.

How it assisted Edmond de Rothschild: Fried Frank also advised Edmond de Rothschild, which set up a vehicle to act as a cornerstone investor in the fund and helped raise money by introducing the fund to Edmond de Rothschild’s private banking clients.

What were the roles of the Fried Frank trainees?

There were several Fried Frank trainees involved during the establishment and fundraising of the fund (over a period of several years) — here’s how they helped keep things moving smoothly.

• 📋 Managing the document checklist: The trainees were responsible for managing the list of everything that needed to be drafted and signed to set up the fund, and kept this updated to ensure everything was progressing as planned.

• 📝 Drafting supporting documents: While the senior lawyers handled the main documents (like the LPA), trainees prepared first drafts of board minutes, side letters (which document extra rights promised to specific investors beyond what’s already included in the LPA) and other supporting materials.

• 🔍 AML/KYC support: They assisted the fund administrator with ‘Know Your Customer’ checks on the investors to comply with anti-money laundering regulations to check that sources of funds were legitimate.

The trainees were an important point of contact between the Fried Frank team and the clients, keeping them updated on the fund’s progress.

What made Fried Frank the right choice for Kennet?

Fried Frank has a strong reputation in the investment funds space, representing fund managers globally.

They’re known for building tailored fund structures — even complex ones — and doing it quickly. This made them a good fit for Kennet.

Fried Frank’s wide experience and strong US and global presence means its lawyers understand the market and what terms are customary for private equity funds. That’s because they’ve worked on many funds from the early fundraising stage, so they understand what investors and sponsors look for.

Interested in a training contract at Fried Frank?

IN OTHER NEWS 🗞

• 🎮 Microsoft has dropped Simpson Thacher for Jenner & Block in its Activision Blizzard case. The case looks at whether the way Microsoft got approval for the merger was legal (we wrote about it here). Both firms were previously targeted by Trump’s executive orders. Simpson Thacher responded by promising $125 million in free legal work for causes approved by the government. Jenner & Block fought the order in court. Microsoft hasn’t said why they made the switch, but some think clients might prefer firms that push back against political pressure.

• 🚻 The recent Supreme Court ruling has left UK employers confused about trans rights at work. The court said “sex” under the Equality Act means biological sex, not gender identity. Before this, most businesses let staff use toilets that matched their gender identity. But new guidance says employers must offer single-sex toilets and only provide mixed options for trans people “where possible”. The unclear rules are making businesses worry they could face legal trouble no matter what approach they take.

• ⚖️ A group of lawyers who left big firms over Trump’s executive orders have joined a new firm: Lowell & Associates. The firm was started by Abbe Lowell, a high-profile defence lawyer who’s worked with both Ivanka Trump and Hunter Biden. Two former Winston & Strawn lawyers and two ex-Skadden lawyers — including one whose viral LinkedIn post criticised Skadden’s stance — have followed him. The firm plans to defend people, companies, and nonprofits facing what it sees as political investigations and government overreach.

• 📉 BCLP is planning to cut 8% of its back-office staff as part of a push to modernise the business. The firm says it’s investing in tech and digital tools to improve how it works and support future growth. It’s offering enhanced redundancy packages to those affected and says the move is about becoming more efficient and focused.

AROUND THE WEB 🌐

• 🕵️‍♀️ Intriguing: BBC uses AI to offer writing classes taught by Agatha Christie

• 🎨 Oops: A child in the Netherlands scratched a $56 million Rothko painting during an unguarded museum moment

• 🐾 Adorable: The worlds tallest dog Reggie and smallest dog Pearl became instant friends at their Ohio playdate despite a 90cm height difference

  

STUFF THAT MIGHT HELP YOU 👌

• 📹️ Free application help: If you're applying to commercial law firms, check out my YouTube channel for actionable tips and an insight into the lifestyle of a commercial lawyer in London.