RedSea Law Firm

02Contracting & Negotiations

A transaction, from term sheet to completion

Deal structuring, contract drafting, negotiation, joint ventures, financing and security, and the post-completion filings people forget.

Typically 6–20 weeksProject or retainer

A transaction, from mandate to the tail

The stages after completion are the ones that get missed, and they carry statutory deadlines.

01Mandate and conflicts

Instructions confirmed, conflicts cleared, and your role in the deal defined.

daysWe do this
02Structuring

Tax, exchange control, foreign ownership limits, and what a change of control does to any sector licence.

1–3 weeksWe do this
03Term sheet

Heads of terms, and which provisions bind — exclusivity, costs, confidentiality, governing law.

1–3 weeksWe do this
04Due diligence

Scope agreed, data room opened, request list issued, red-flag report delivered.

3–8 weeksWe do this
05Documentation

First draft, then negotiation rounds. The number of rounds is the best predictor of over-run.

4–10 weeksWe do this
06Regulatory consents

Change-of-control approval from the Central Bank or the NCA, and foreign investment registration.

6–16 weeksThe regulator
07Signing

Execution versions, signature pages held to order, warranties brought down.

1 weekWe do this
08Conditions precedent

Tracked item by item against a longstop date — the single most important date on the deal.

4–12 weeksYou do this
09Completion

Funds flow, deliverables exchanged, board meetings held, escrow released.

1 weekWe do this
10Post-completion

Registration of transfers, statutory registers updated, share certificates, charge registrations. These carry statutory deadlines and are the classic missed one.

2–6 weeksWe do this
11The tail

Escrow release, warranty claim period, restrictive covenants — each diarised before the file closes.

months to yearsWe do this

Before we start

What we need from you.

  • The entity's constitutional documents and registration
  • Who is authorised to instruct us, and evidence of that authority
  • Identity and ownership up to the ultimate beneficial owner
  • Any prior correspondence with the regulator, including file references
  • The commercial deadline you are working to, and what drives it

Also within this work

  • Deal structuring and term sheet advisory
  • Contract drafting and review
  • Commercial negotiations
  • Mergers and acquisitions
  • Joint ventures and shareholder agreements
  • Financing and security agreements
  • Employment contracts and HR frameworks
  • Intellectual property registration and protection
  • Foreign investment registration

Speak to the partner who would run this.

A partner reads every matter, and a partner will answer.

Speak to the firm