Global Transport

The gunnercooke Global Transport Team comprises leading lawyers specializing in the transportation industry whose expertise lies in representing clients on a wide range of transportation-related matters.

Summary

Transportation is an ever-evolving industry with continually changing needs, and gunnercooke is ideally positioned to service it. We proudly deliver on a deep understanding of the unique requirements of businesses and individuals in the transportation industry and has the capability to navigate clearly through both planned and unforeseen situations—crucial to serving our clients in this sector. The gunnercooke Global Transport team has decades of experience in handling transportation matters, including finance and transactional matters, regulatory matters, insurance matters, and liability and disputes.

The gunnercooke Global Transport team, in addition to its aviation specialism, has extensive experience in the marine and shipping industries, offering a comprehensive range of legal services to a diverse clientele. Our maritime lawyers have a deep understanding of the market and handle a wide range of shipping-related matters. The team has an established reputation providing general corporate advice to key international players on all aspects of the marine and shipping industries, including fleet-management issues, mergers, sales, acquisitions, charters and franchised vessel arrangements, refinancing, and restructuring. Our maritime team also advises on a wide range of commercial marine contracts, including bareboat, time and voyage charters, port-handling and cargo-disbursement arrangements, supply agreements with third-party providers, and provision-of-service, franchise, and dispute agreements.

The gunnercooke Global Transport marine and shipping regulatory team advises on all aspects of marine and shipping regulation. Our lawyers monitor and liaise with marine and shipping registries and other governments, authorities, and local regulatory bodies worldwide, the International Maritime Organization and Seafarers. We advise on the ever-increasing volume of regulation brought into force and likely to affect our marine clients in relation to climate and emission controls, international employment, and rights of way. Our team represents clients facing enforcement action—potential or actual—by regulatory authorities arising from breaches of regulations and potentially leading to investigations and criminal prosecutions. Our team also assists clients where they require upstream lobbying of future proposed regulations and provides advice and material to them.

We represent all types of vessel owners, charterers, managers, operators, crews, pilots, manufacturers, and suppliers, as well as ports, marinas, banks, lessors, finance companies, and all types of marine service companies, in a wide variety of claims, disputes, and other problems requiring resolution worldwide, whether through arbitration, litigation, or mediation, and works with other counsel, experts, and specialists as needed. Our team provides specialist assistance and advice in relation to ancillary questions arising from disputes, such as charterparty, demurrage, cabotage, employment questions, and company, corporate, and other commercial and regulatory issues.

Our lawyers have a wealth of experience in dealing with a broad spectrum of domestic and international rail issues. They are adept at managing significant rail matters globally. Our legal expertise covers all facets of the rail industry, enabling us to offer our clients commercially focused, practical, and creative guidance and assistance. The specialist rail team has deep experience in both light- and heavy-rail projects, advising, in respect of the planning, design, supply, and installation of first-in-class energy- and fuel-efficiency modifications to traction systems. Our team also advises on the financing of investments such as overhaul, refurbishment, and modifications to rolling stock on lease and advises on amendments, restructurings, and various other related.

The team also work together with the gunnercooke Intellectual Property team to deal with issues arising from the protection, exportation, and enforcement of intellectual property rights, including patent, copyright, trademark, trade names, trade secrets, confidentiality, and database issues.

The aviation team at gunnercooke boasts expansive international expertise catering to diverse stakeholders involved in aircraft, helicopter, engine, and spare parts financing, leasing, and trading. Our lawyers possess profound insights gained from facilitating and guiding aircraft finance deals across multiple global jurisdictions. With presence in the UK and Germany in addition to the US, and reinforced by agile assistance from gunnercooke’s corporate and bankruptcy practices, our aviation team is primed to address our clients’ varied requirements efficiently.

We offer comprehensive guidance to clients around the globe on matters concerning the sale, purchase, ownership, management, lease, maintenance, modification, and disposal of aircraft, engines, and parts. Our clientele encompasses aircraft, engine, and part owners, lessors, managers and servicers, vendors, and maintenance facilities, as well as domestic and international airlines and other significant entities within the aviation sector.

Our lawyers possess extensive knowledge of the constantly evolving structures and products utilized in the industry. We specialize in delivering pragmatic resolutions to intricate challenges and reconciling conflicting positions for our clients, and we take pride in their responsiveness to clients in a dynamic environment where transactions often involve parties located across numerous conflicting time zones.

gunnercooke’s aviation team collaborate with aircraft and engine owners, lessors, managers and servicers, domestic and international airlines, manufacturers, maintenance providers, and financiers to structure and close acquisitions and sales of commercial aircraft and engines and other aviation-related equipment, including portfolio transactions, and facilitate long-term agreements, including new equipment purchase agreements, operating and finance leases, sale and leasebacks, servicing arrangements, secured and unsecured financing, and portfolio sales and acquisitions, encompassing both domestic and cross-border transactions, as well as technical arrangements such as storage, general maintenance, and passenger-to-freighter conversion agreements. We also advise on other commercial contracts, including fleet-hour agreements, ground-handling arrangements, supply agreements with third-party providers, provision-of-service agreements, franchise agreements, outsourcing mobile and application technology, and sponsorship, marketing, and advertising agreements.

The team also handle claims, disputes, and document preparation involving a variety of general aviation aircraft from executive jets and helicopters to leisure flying in microlight aircraft and gliders and including unstaffed aircraft (drones). We also advise on all aspects of emerging aviation regulation and certification of new electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) technology and acts for a world-leading manufacturer and operator of eVTOL air taxi and air cargo aircraft designed to transform urban passenger and cargo flight and to reduce carbon emissions.

gunnercooke represent airlines, aircraft operators, pilots, manufacturers and suppliers, airports, banks, lessors, and finance companies on a wide variety of claims, disputes, and problems requiring resolution. This may be through litigation, arbitration, or mediation, in which, as required, our team works with experts and specialists. We provide assistance and advice in relation to ancillary questions arising from disputes, such as employment questions, company, corporate, and commercial matters, and property and planning issues.

The transport and aviation team has an established reputation in the aviation industry representing commercial aircraft lessors and airlines in all aspects of corporate transactions, including mergers, sales and acquisitions, franchised airline arrangements, codeshares, alliances, and other joint-venture agreements, slot sales, refinancing, and restructuring. We have an in-depth knowledge of advising and assisting startup aviation and aircraft companies and have advised on all aspects of startup operations for international owners and operators with regard to company formation, aircraft registration, licensing, aircraft registration, and trust deeds.

Our advice encompasses:

• Commercial, Business, and Private Aviation
• Passenger and Freighter Aircraft and Conversions
• Aircraft and Engine Lease Portfolio Sales and Acquisitions
• Aircraft and Engine Operating and Finance Leases
• Aircraft and Engine Sale and Leaseback Transactions
• Aircraft and Engine Manufacturer Purchase Agreements
• Progress Payment Financings
• Secured and Unsecured Financing of Aircraft, Engines, and Spare Parts
• Aircraft Charter
• Aircraft and Engine Maintenance Agreements
• Aviation Regulation, Enforcement, and Prosecution
• Aviation Insurance Disputes
• Aviation Litigation, Arbitration, and Mediation
• Aircraft and Engine Consignment and Part-Out

In addition to aviation matters, the gunnercooke Global Transport Team handles:

• Maritime and Shipping
• Heavy and Light Rail
• Forwarding and Logistics
• Fuel Supply
• Ports, Harbors, and Airports
• Highways
• Credit and Financing
• Tax
• General Corporate and Mergers and Acquisitions
• Intellectual Property
• Risk Management and Claims Handling
• Product and Premises Liabilities