Milbank LLP is pleased to announce that the very experienced finance lawyer David Gartside will be joining the firm’s Project, Energy & Infrastructure Finance Group, and will be located in the firm’s Seoul office. Mr. Gartside advises Korean (and other Asian-based) sponsors, utilities, contractors, commercial lenders, infrastructure funds, export credit agencies, multilateral agencies and development banks on a wide range of energy and infrastructure transactions around the world.
Mr. Gartside will be based in the firm’s Seoul office, where he will lead the firm’s Korea practice. With close to two decades of experience, and has worked on a number of landmark transactions involving the oil/gas, power and transportation infrastructure industries.
“David is a very distinguished lawyer with extensive experience in energy and infrastructure financings, and is well known and respected in the Korean market,” said David Zemans, head of Milbank’s Asia Practice. “Seoul is a key hub for finance in Asia and David’s experience in the region will serve our clients extremely well.”
“Outbound Korean investment is a tremendously important driver for global infrastructure and energy investment,” added Dan Bartfeld, head of Milbank’s Global Project, Energy and Infrastructure Finance Group. “David will further enhance our market-leading legal team in project development, M&A and financing transactions in the infrastructure and energy sectors.”
One of the first US law firms to establish an Asia-based practice in the mid-1970s, Milbank has a long history of doing business in Korea. With a deep bench of partners across Finance, M&A, Corporate and Financial Restructuring practices, Milbank represents leading international and Korean corporations, financial institutions and government agencies on a wide variety of project finance, M&A and private equity investments, and disputes, as well as cutting-edge aviation and transportation finance. The firm is known for its involvement in large transactions with support from official export-credit agencies such as the Export-Import Bank of Korea (K-Exim) and the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation (K-sure). With offices in Beijing, Hong Kong, Seoul, Singapore and Tokyo, coupled with the firm’s practices covering Australia, India, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand–the firm has one of the strongest Asia-Pacific platforms.
“Milbank has significant resources and a formidable team in the Asia-Pacific region and momentum behind its strategy. I was attracted to the firm’s vision to continue to build one of the leading project finance practices in Korea and pan-Asia and am excited to contribute to the firm’s ongoing success in Asia,” said Mr. Gartside.
Mr. Gartside joins Milbank from Sidley Austin. He has been based in Asia for 15 years, including in Seoul previously, where he was the first foreign lawyer to be seconded to Korea Eximbank. He earned his B.A. degree (Hons) from Fitzwilliam College-University of Cambridge and his law degree from the College of Law of England and Wales.
Ranked as a leading lawyer in the 2018 edition of Chambers Asia-Pacific, clients acknowledged David as a “strong finance lawyer” who is “good to work with” and “regularly instructed on power and oil and gas mandates, including ECA backed financings.” He is also recognized as a “Recommended” partner by Legal 500 Asia Pacific 2016-2018.
