K&L Gates adds Matthew Watts as partner in Sydney

K&L Gates adds Matthew Watts as partner in Sydney

He was serving as a general counsel at the funds' management company Maple-Brown Abbott

Global law firm K&L Gates has strengthened its asset management and investment funds practice with the reappointment of Matthew Watts as a partner in Sydney.

Watts has extensive experience in private practice and in-house, advising on investment fund formation, capital raising, mergers and acquisitions, financial services regulation, and Australian corporate law.

Earlier he was working with Maple-Brown Abbott - a funds management company where he was the General Counsel. Before that, Watts held the role of Executive Legal Counsel at global asset manager First Sentier Investors.

Nick Nichola, the Australia managing partner at K&L Gates said: "We are pleased to welcome Watts back to K&L Gates as a partner in our growing asset management and investment funds team. He is the 10th new partner we have announced in Australia since the start of December. He is joining a team that is doing fantastic work in what are rapidly developing areas of law that are in high demand from our clients."

Michael Caccese, the global asset management and investment funds practice area leader remarked, "Watts returns to K&L Gates after spending more than four years in-house working closely with the Boards and senior management on key business initiatives. He brings to the firm and our clients a wealth of experience advising internal stakeholders on local and offshore fund establishment and restructuring, asset acquisitions, and the implementation of regulatory changes, including design and distribution obligations, breach reporting and changes to the Australian fee disclosure regime."