Shoosmiths corporate team has advised LDC on its investment to support the £17.8m management buyout of GMG Property Services, the UK's leading provider of software services to estate agents.
Shoosmiths partner, Sean Wright, led the team with support from associate Tim Moss and solicitor Emma Livesey. Partner Rebecca Mauleverer and solicitor Cole Stacey provided banking support.
The deal, in which the business will be rebranded as 'The Property Software Group', sees LDC take a significant stake in the business, alongside the incumbent management team led by Chief Executive Mark Goddard.
Wright said: "We were delighted to have been involved in this LDC investment as well as a number of other projects with LDC over the last few months. Given the quality of the management team, and the fact that it is a market leading business, we have no doubt it will be a resounding success."
Established in 2007, the business has an annual turnover in excess of £10m and employs more than 170 people across its network of UK operations in York, Redruth, Luton and Wolverhampton.
LDC's investment will provide the opportunity to accelerate recent organic growth of the business as well as supporting the management team's buy and build strategy. It also enables the Guardian Media Group to exit the business.
The deal forms part of LDC's continuing strategy to invest in leading regional mid-market business whilst backing high calibre management teams.
Shoosmiths national corporate team, which is based in seven UK locations, was named 'Law Firm of the Year' at the prestigious national M&A awards, 2013. Its private equity specialists are experienced in advising both institutional investors and management teams on a wide variety of private equity transactions.
The firm was also recently ranked number one in the national category of the Legal Week Client Satisfaction Report 2013.