Emma L. Flett
Overview
Emma L. Flett is a partner in Kirkland’s Technology & IP Transactions Practice and heads the London team. Emma's practice is focused on complex intellectual property and technology-related transactions, carve-outs and business separations and EU data protection.
Emma works closely with the firm wide Corporate Practice on a variety of transactions in which intellectual property, information technology and data privacy play a key role, including mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, private equity investments, financings and secured lending, bankruptcies and restructurings. Emma also assists clients in connection with joint ventures and strategic alliances; intellectual property and technology transfers and licences; service agreements (including transitional service arrangements); development and collaboration agreements; data transfer and sharing arrangements; and other commercial contracts (such as supply and distribution agreements).
Emma’s practice is varied and her experience covers the full spectrum of intellectual property and technology related work, from patents, data and designs, to trade marks, copyright and software, most notably in complex, high-value M&A transactions and private equity investments.
In addition, Emma counsels clients on data protection compliance (including with regard to the EU General Data Protection Regulation) and brings EU experience to Kirkland’s Cybersecurity & Data Privacy Practice. Prior to joining Kirkland, Emma was a lawyer at Clifford Chance LLP, London, where she also trained.
Experience
Representative Matters
Apax Partners on the acquisition of Kin and Carta.
Apollo on its recommended all-cash acquisition of The Restaurant Group.
Birkenstock Holding and its principal shareholder, L Catterton, on Birkenstock’s IPO.
Brookfield-backed Everise on its investment from Warburg Pincus.
Francisco Partners on the acquisition of The Weather Company from IBM.
Wheels Up in its strategic partnership with a consortium of investors led by Delta, Certares and Knighthead.
Beacon Rail on its acquisition of Mitsui Rail Capital Europe.
Crescent Point Capital on Ares Management Corporation’s acquisition of the Crescent Point Capital platform.
Gen II Fund Services on the acquisition of Crestbridge.
GTCR in its acquisition of a majority stake in Worldpay.
Bain Capital Insurance on the launch of Aptia and acquisitions from Mercer.
Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings in its sale of its Spanish and Italian businesses to JCDecaux.
Apex Group on the acquisition of various operating businesses of MJ Hudson Group plc.
Apex Group on the acquisition of Efficient Group.
Cvent in its $4.6 billion sale to Blackstone.
Francisco Partners in its $1.7 billion acquisition of Sumo Logic.
Allwyn AG, Europe’s leading lottery operator, on the acquisition of Camelot UK Lotteries Limited.
Victoria’s Secret & Co. in its acquisition of Adore Me, Inc., a digitally-native intimates brand.
Antin Infrastructure Partners on the acquisition of Wildstone.
Power Factors on the acquisition of Inaccess.
Platinum Equity on the acquisition of High Temperature Solutions Business.
Warburg Pincus on the formation of a $2.6 billion private equity fund focusing on financial services investments.
Silversmith Capital Partners on the $55 million growth investment in Gearset.
iCIMS, a portfolio of Vista Equity Partners, on the acquisition of Candidate.ID.
Bain Capital on the sale of Geometric Results, Inc. to PRO Unlimited.
Partners Group on the acquisition of Forterro, a leading pan-European software services provider.
Vista Equity Partners on the EU and UK data protection aspects of its acquisition, alongside Evergreen Coast Capital Corporation, of Citrix Systems, Inc. for approximately $16.5 billion.
GIC on its $525 million joint venture with Equinix to develop and operate two xScale™ data centres in South Korea.
Davies Group, a portfolio company of BC Partners, on the acquisition of global consulting firm Sionic Group from Livingbridge and management.
Consortium and KKR on the $15 billion all-cash acquisition of CyrusOne Inc. a premier global data centre REIT.
Vista Equity Partners and its portfolio company, Mindbody on the acquisition of ClassPass.
NortonLifeLock on its c.$25 billion combination with Avast.
Thoma Bravo on the strategic investment in Condeco, a global leader in workspace scheduling technology.
Blackstone and the consortium consisting of Scape Living and iQSA, on the £969 million recommended cash offer for GCP Student Living plc.
E2Open on the $1.7 billion acquisition of BluJay Solutions, a leading international cloud-based, logistics execution platform.
Thoma Bravo on the $12.3 billion acquisition of Proofpoint, Inc., a leading cybersecurity and compliance company.
Apex Fund Management, a Genstar portfolio company, on its acquisition of the FundRock Group.
The bidding consortium led by Advent, Cinven and the RAG-Stiftung on the acquisition of the elevator division of thyssenkrupp AG for €17.2 billion.
Blackstone on the £4.66 billion acquisition of iQ Student Accommodation.
Advanced, a portfolio company of BC Partners and Vista Equity Partners, on its acquisition of legal technology business Tikit Limited from BT.
Blackstone on the recommended £4.77 billion cash offer for Merlin Entertainments, a global leader in location-based, family entertainment.
An EQT-led consortium on the CHF 10.2 billion exclusive negotiations to acquire Nestlé Skin Health, a leading global skincare company.
GIC as part of a consortium acquiring a 55% a stake in the real estate assets of French multinational hotel group AccorHotels for approximately €4.4 billion.
Wyndham Worldwide Corporation, one of the largest global hospitality companies, on its agreement to sell its European vacation rental business to Platinum Equity for approximately US$1.3 billion.
Blackstone and Telereal Trillium on the £1.46 billion privatisation of Network Rail’s commercial estate.
BC Partners on its investment in Advanced, a provider of business software solutions.
Oakley Capital on the sale of WebPros to CVC.
Funds advised by Apax Partners on the acquisition of Genius Sports, a London based global leader in sport data technology, distribution and commercialisation services.
Bain Capital on its acquisition of DSM Sinochem Pharmaceuticals, a global leader in sustainable antibiotics, next-generation statins and anti-fungals.
Vista and its portfolio company Advanced on the acquisition of Docman, the market leading electronic document management, workflow and information sharing platform provider to primary and secondary care services.
CapVest Partners and Valeo Food Group on Valeo’s acquisition of the Tangerine Confectionery Group from Blackstone.
Law Business Research, a portfolio company of Levine Leichtman Capital Partners, on its acquisition of Globe Business Media Group.
EQT Partners on its sale of leading medical device company HTL-Strefa (‘HTL’) to Investindustrial.
Pamplona Capital Management on the sale of Partner in Pet Food (‘PPF’), a market-leading European pet food company headquartered in Hungary, to Cinven.
Vista Equity Partners on its acquisition of Allocate Software, a UK-based international leader in workforce management software for the healthcare sector.
GTCR on its £1.0 billion sale of Callcredit Information Group Limited to TransUnion.
Vector Capital on its investment in Cloudsense, a leading commerce software as a service provider with operations across the United States, Europe and Asia-Pacific.
Goldman Sachs, Park Square and NGA Human Resources on the sale of NGA’s UK mid-market and small and medium business divisions.
Global Logistics Properties (GLP) on its acquisition of European logistics business IDI Gazeley from Brookfield Asset Management for approximately US$2.8 billion. Gazeley is one of the leading owners and operators of logistics facilities in Europe with a portfolio of over 3 million sq metres in the UK, Germany, France and the Netherlands.
Apax Partners on its acquisition of a majority stake in matchesfashion.com, a UK-based luxury fashion brand.
Deere & Company (NYSE: DE) on the General Data Protection Regulation aspects of its acquisition of the Wirtgen Group, a manufacturer of road construction equipment, for approximately $5.2 billion.
Klockner Pentaplast, a global leader in packaging solutions, in its transformational acquisition of LINPAC.
CapVest Partners on its acquisition of Karro Food Group, a leading UK-based pork processing firm, from Endless LLP.
Bain Capital and Cinven on their EUR 5.3 billion joint public takeover offer for the German pharmaceutical company Stada Arzneimittel AG; to date the largest private equity transaction ever realized in the German market.
TDR Capital, Sun Capital and their portfolio company Keepmoat Limited on the sale of Keepmoat’s regeneration arm to energy and services provider ENGIE for £330 million.
Oaktree Capital Management on the carve out and sale of its UK student housing business to a consortium of GIC, Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, and global student accommodation firm GSA.
Solera Holdings Inc. on its acquisition of Autodata, a leading UK provider of digital technical solutions to the automotive industry.
Summit Partners on its sale of Peak Well Systems, a leading specialist in the development of well intervention solutions, to Schlumbeger.
Indigo Capital on its sale of Premier Research, a leading middle-market contract research organisation, to Metalmark Capital.
Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. on its acquisition of the outstanding capital stock of Cormorant Pharmaceuticals.
Levine Leichtman Capital Partners on its acquisition of GL Education.
EQT on its sale of Atos Medical to PAI Europe.
Media company backed by Kevin Mayer, Tom Staggs and Blackstone, on the acquisition of Moonbug Entertainment Ltd., with shows such as CoComelon, Blippi, and Little Baby Bum.
Shamrock Capital Advisers on its majority stake in Silvergate Media with intellectual property, library rights and digital capabilities, including for Octonauts and Peter Rabbit.
TPG Growth LLC on its acquisition of Frank Recruitment Group Limited.
Consumer products company in global payroll outsourcing transaction involving employees in more than 70 countries.
Master Services Agreement involving outsourcing of hosting and data centre services for a leading vendor of financial information products and services.
Vista Equity Partners on the £725 million take private of Advanced Computer Software Group plc.
Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan on the £365 million acquisition of Bridon Limited.
Solera Inc. on its £288m acquisition from Montagu of CAP Automotive, the UK’s leading provider of vehicle valuation data.
S. C. Johnson & Son Inc. on its acquisition of DEB Group.
Searchlight Capital Partners on its acquisition of Ocean Outdoor.
CDW Corporation on its acquisition of Kelway Limited.
Summit Partners on the acquisition of Independent Vetcare Holdings.
Agencyport Europe, a portfolio company of Thomas H. Lee Partners, on its £64 million sale of its European operations to Xchanging Plc.
Sun European Partners on its €400 million disposal of DBApparel, the designer and manufacturer of branded ladies and men’s intimate apparel, to HanesBrands Inc.
Consortium of Apollo, York, Oak Hill and Deutsche Bank on the financial restructuring of the Tragus restaurant group (the operator of UK restaurant brands Café Rouge, Bella Italia, Strada and others) and the sale of Strada restaurants to Sun Capital Partners.
Sun European Partners on its acquisition of the assets and business of Robertshaw (formerly, Invensys Appliance division), a global design, engineering and manufacturing company that sells product solutions to the white goods industry, from Schneider Electric.
Taminco Corporation on the acquisition of the formic acid business of Kemira Oyj.
GTCR in its acquisition of Callcredit Information Group Limited.
The Boeing Company on its acquisition of the assets and business of ETS Aviation Limited, a leading provider of fuel-efficiency management and analytics software.
TowerBrook in its acquisition of AIM Aviation Limited, a market leading designer and manufacturer of aircraft cabin interiors, from Lloyds Development Capital.
Francisco Partners on its sale of Masternaut to Summit Partners and FleetCor.
CapVest on Valeo Food’s acquisition of the Rowse honey business.
Trade Mark Licensing and Master Services Agreement for a global theme park brand.
Copyright infringement in the musical theatre space.
CCMP Capital Advisors on its acquisition of Pure Gym, the low-cost gym company.
ABRY Partners on its investment in Claranet.
Wyndham Worldwide on its $77 million acquisition of James Villas Holidays, a leading UK villa tour operator, from Vespa Capital.
Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan on the acquisition of Burton’s Biscuits.
Bain Capital £230 million acquisition of a majority stake in Plasma Resources UK Ltd.
Sun European Partners on its acquisition of the assets and business of Dreams plc, the United Kingdom’s largest beds retailer, by way of pre-pack administration.
New Mountain Capital on the £250 million acquisition of Alexander Mann.
KKR on the $1 billion acquisition of The Crosby Group.
GTCR on the acquisition of Premium Credit Limited, asset value $1.45 billion.
Avis Budget Inc. on its public acquisition of Avis Europe plc for $1 billion.
Sun European Partners on the secondary buy-out of European flexible packaging manufacturer, the Britton Group.
ABRY Partners on the acquisition of Basefarm AS.
Change Capital Partners investment in MacDuff Shellfish Limited.
Montagu on its acquisition of Clinisys from ECI Partners.
Albéa on its $459 million acquisition of Rexam plc’s personal care, cosmetics division.
Advice in relation to the IP collateral for a $2.1 billion loan for a leading telco company.
Disposal of a leading company in the lingerie and fashion business.
Vista Equity Partners in relation to its $2 billion take private of software company Misys plc.
Acquisition by a private equity client of PADI.
Disposal by TowerBrook Capital Partners of Jimmy Choo.
Sun Capital Partners on its acquisition of clothing brand, Scotch & Soda.
Bain Capital on its €2.3 billion acquisition of Securitas Direct.
Sun European Partners on the secondary buy-out of NextPharma Technologies Holding Limited, a global pharmaceutical outsourcing company.
Prior Experience
Clifford Chance LLP (London, UK)
- Associate, 2009–2010
- Trainee Solicitor, 2007–2009
More
Thought Leadership
Publications
Co-author, “Terminating the current status quo - is it finally judgment day for AI-derived patents?”, Computer and Telecommunications Law Review, 2022
Co-author, “The Final Piece to the Schrems II Puzzle? UK Parliament Approves New International Data Transfer Mechanisms, Plus Signs of a Breakthrough on Transatlantic Data Flows from the EU,” Kirkland Alert, April 2022
Co-author, “Lloyd v Google: Supreme Court Ruling Sheds Light on UK Data Protection “Class Actions”,” Computer and Telecommunications Law Review, 2022
“Cross-Border Transfers of Personal Data: The Post-Schrems II and Brexit Landscape Begins to Take Shape,” Kirkland & Ellis Alert, October 2021
“The Data Sharing Code: A gateway to good data sharing practice,” Computer and Telecommunications Law Review, October 2021
Co-author, “General Court Allows Guerlain’s Appeal,” Entertainment Law Review, October 2021
Co-author, “Digital Identity Systems Have Come of Age: The Information Commissioner’s Cautious Support of the Government’s Proposed UK Digital Identity and Attribute Framework,” Computer and Telecommunications Law Review, June 2021
Co-author, “Scott v LGBT Foundation Ltd: Do Phone Conversations Amount to "Processing" of Personal Data?”, Entertainment Law Review, 2020
Co-author, “Is Your Video Surveillance Legitimate under EU Data Protection Rules?”, Computer and Telecommunications Law Review, Volume 26, Issue 6, 2020
Co-author, “Schrems Strikes Again: EU–US Privacy Shield Suffers Same Fate as Its Predecessor”, Computer and Telecommunications Law Review, Volume 26, Issue 6, 2020
“Schrems Strikes Again: EU-US Privacy Shield Suffers Same Fate as its Predecessor,” Kirkland & Ellis Alert, August 2020
Co-author, “The legendairy case of the HALLOUMI trade mark: a successful appeal in the opposition to the BBQLOUMI trade mark”, Journal of Intellectual Property Law & Practice, Volume 15, No. 8, August 2020
Co-author, “Morrisons off the hook as employers welcome clarity on vicarious liability for data breach: WW Morrison Supermarkets plc v Various Claimants [2020] UKSC 12”, Journal of Intellectual Property Law & Practice, Volume 15, Issue 7, July 2020
Co-author, “European Commission and the EDPB Lay Out Framework for Privacy-Compliant Contact Tracing Apps”, Computer and Telecommunications Law Review, Volume 26, Issue 5, July 2020
Co-author, “Google LLC v CNIL—CJEU Rules on the Territorial Scope of the “Right to be Forgotten”,” Entertainment Law Review, Issue 2, 2020
Co-author, “Court of Appeal Furthers the UK’s Bid to be the SEPs Capital of Europe”, European Intellectual Property Law Review, Volume 41, Issue 6, 2019
Co-author, “SEPs Education: Court of Appeal Confirms its FRANDly Approach to Global SEP Licences”, European Intellectual Property Law Review, Volume 41, Issue 3, 2019
Co-author, “Data Protection on Both Sides of the Pond: GDPR v California’s Consumer Privacy Act”, Computer and Telecommunications Law Review, Volume 25, Issue 1, January 2019
“CJEU Brings AG Spunzar to Heel in Finding Louboutin Registration to be Valid”, Emma Flett and John Patten, Entertainment Law Review, Volume 9, Issue 7, September 2018
Co-author, “Third Time’s the Charm: Supreme Court Orders Luxury Watchmaker to Pay the Costs of Blocking Web Infringers”, Computer and Telecommunications Law Review, Volume 24, Issue 7, September 2018
Co-author, “Heads or Tails? Are Europe’s GDPR and China’s Cybersecurity Law Two Sides of the Same Coin?” China Business Law Journal, May 2018
“The GDPR - Coming Soon to an M&A Transaction Near You,” Kirkland & Ellis Alert, May 2018
Co-author, “The UK Data Protection Bill: Legislating for the Digital Age”, Digital Business Lawyer, November 2017
“David and Victoria have IP Office at Beck and Call for Children—Trade Marking the Kids’ Names puts Beckhams on Cruz Control for IP Protection”, Entertainment Law Review, Volume 28, Issue 7, September 2017, Emma L. Flett and Eleanor Harley. Following the recent registration by Posh and Becks of their children’s names as EU trade marks, and applications made by Beyoncé and Jay-Z to register the names of their new-born twins, this article considers the protection of celebrities’ names from a trade mark perspective, and the patchwork of more traditional IP rights that are also relied upon in the UK.
“Avoid the Worst, Put Data Security First! Warns the UK ICO”, CTLR, The Journal of e-Commerce, Technology and Communications, Sweet & Maxwell, Issue 6 2017, co-author with Joanna Balata. This article considers the recent decisions of the UK Information Commissioner to fine TalkTalk and Royal & Sun Alliance for serious data security breaches that compromised thousands of customer records, including financial data. The article compares the level of the fines in the light of the circumstances of each breach, and considers the likelihood of higher fines for similar breaches under the General Data Protection Regulation.
Co-author, “EU General Data Protection Regulation”, Kirkland & Ellis Alert, August 2017
Co-author, “eXtreme action against G-Force leaves them blushing in the locker room (the capitalised X is intentional)”, Journal of Intellectual Property Law and Practice, Volume 12, Issue 5, May 2017
Co-author, “Artificial Intelligence: Is Johnny 5 Alive? Key Bits and Bytes from the UK’s Robotics and Artificial Intelligence Inquiry”, Computer and Telecommunications Law Review, April 2017
Co-author, “What does Brexit mean for your organisation’s data protection?”, Bond.org.uk Brexit Blog, April 2017
Co-author, "Things That Go Bump in the Night: Confronting Data Protection Monsters in the M&A Closet," BNA's World Data Protection Report, Volume 16, Number 12, December 2016
Co-author, “Concrete Solution, or Are the Sands Still Shifting? European Data Protection Post-Schrems”, BNA's Privacy and Security Law Report and BNA's World Data Protection Report, Volume 16, Number 8, August 2016
Co-author, “More Armour Required Before Putting Down Our Guard? European Data Protection Supervisor Issues Opinion on Privacy Shield”, BNA’s World Data Protection Report, Volume 16, Number 6, June 2016
Co-author, “The U.K. Data Protection Dozen—ICO Publishes 12 Step Checklist to Prepare for GDPR”, BNA's World Data Protection Report, Volume 16, Number 4, April 2016
“Cristal, Anyone? Corks Go “Pop” for Louis Roederer”, Entertainment Law Review, Vol 27, Issue 3, March 2016
Co-author, “A Step in the Right Direction for Louboutin”, Journal of Intellectual Property Law & Practice, December 2015
Co-author, “A Grey Sky for Skype”, Entertainment Law Review, Volume 26, Issue 6, July 2015
Co-author, "Responses from Within the EEA and Beyond to the ECJ's Ruling on Safe Harbor: Shifting Sands"
Author, "Death Row and Data Protection: Subject Access Requests under U.K. Law, Interplay with Other Statutory Regimes and the Relevance of Motive", BNA’s World Data Protection Report, Volume 15, Number 4, April 2015
Co-author, "The U.K. Information Commissioner’s Office Report on ‘Big Data’ and Data Protection", BNA’s World Data Protection Report, Volume 14, Number 9, September 2014
"Banking on IP: A Call for Action From the UK Intellectual Property Office," Butterworths Journal of International Banking and Financial Law, May 2014
"Working in the Cloud: managing risk", Property Professional Magazine, March/April 2014, Issue 3
"The Silver Lining in Europe’s Cloud", Computer & Telecommunications Law Review, 2014 Volume 20, Issue 1
Co-author, "European Parliament Study on Cybercrime and Privacy in the Cloud Stresses the Need for Accountability", BNA's World Data Protection Report, Volume 13, Number 2, February 2013
"ACTA: The Anti-Counterfeiting Crack-Down", Entertainment Law Review, Volume 22, Issue 3, March 2011
Seminars
“EU Data Privacy: I almost wish I hadn’t gone down the rabbit hole—and yet—and yet—”, Speaker to Vista, August 2021
“EU Data Privacy: I almost wish I hadn’t gone down the rabbit hole—and yet—and yet—”, Sun Capital Advisors Meeting, July 2021
“GDPR in a Nutsell,” University of Cambridge Webinar, March 2021
“Protecting your most Critical Assets in Today’s Economic Environment: How Investors can Identify and Rapidly Respond to Cyber Risks”, Cyber M&A Webinar, June 2020
“Down the Rabbit Hole: the GDPR 18 Months On”, NYC, October 2019
“The Data Privacy Shake-Up", Stanford Law School, Stanford CA, May 2018.
“The Final Countdown...10 days to go!”, Kirkland & Ellis Technology & Law Seminar in Chicago IL, May 2018.
“GDPR: Impact Worldwide on Data Protection, Privacy, E-Discovery and Cybersecurity Conference”, Sandpiper Partners, New York and Chicago IL, April 2018.
“The GDPR: How Deep Does the Rabbit Hole Go?”, 2018 Vista Operational Excellence BPSS, Dallas TX, April 2018.
“Down the Rabbit Hole: The GDPR Through the Looking Glass”, Kirkland & Ellis Technology & Law Seminar in Chicago IL, May 2017.
“EU Data Protection Update”, 2017 Vista Operational Excellence BPSS in Dallas TX, March 2017.
“Newsflash: Data Protection Download from around the Globe”, Kirkland & Ellis Technology & Law Seminar in Chicago IL, May 2016.
“Can You Keep a Secret? Stronger Protection for Trade Secrets in Europe and Japan”, Kirkland & Ellis Technology & Law Seminar in Chicago IL, May 2015.
"Bring in the Clouds: Data Privacy, Security and Ethics Issues in Cloud Computing and Big Data”, Kirkland & Ellis Technology & Law Seminar in Chicago IL, May 2014.
Emma has also presented to and provided training for a variety of clients on the GDPR.
Press Coverage
Emma Flett commented on the UK privacy office’s increased enforcement penalties in “U.K. Privacy Fines Jump May Signal Move to New EU Regime”, by George Lynch, Bloomberg Law: Privacy & Data Security, Bloomberg News, 20 July 2017
Recognition
Pro Bono
Kirkland & Ellis LLP Pro Bono Service Award for Outstanding Service, every year from 2011 to date
Accolades
Recognised as a ‘Power Player: Cyber Security & Data Privacy 2022 - Distinguished Adviser’ by Financier Worldwide
Ranked Tier 1 in Legal 500 Technology Media and Telecoms - IP: Patents (contentious and non-contentious). Emma heads the non-contentious practice.
Memberships & Affiliations
Society for Computers and Law
International Association of Privacy Professionals
Emma is a member of the Firmwide Gender & Diversity Committee, the European Associate Review Committee, the Firmwide Pro Bono Committee, and London Office Operations Committee
Credentials
Admissions & Qualifications
- 2009, Admitted to Practice as a Solicitor of England and Wales
Education
- University of CambridgeM.A. (Cantab) (Law and Management)Hons.2008
- Oxford Institute of Legal PracticeLegal Practice Coursewith Distinction2006
- Judge Business School, University of CambridgeSecond Part II (Management)2005
- Christ's College, University of CambridgeB.A., Cantab (Law)Hons.2005