Emma Cleveland founded Cleveland & Co in 2012 with a vision to change the shape of legal services provision, and provide clients with high-quality effective advice. With over 20 years’ legal experience working with blue chip firms within the investment management sector, she is well-placed to do so.
A tri-qualified lawyer, Emma’s is recognised as a leading solicitor in the financial services industry where her noteworthy career spans four continents. Her broad-based expertise covers all areas of investment management: front office, middle and back office, business development, risk, compliance and legal. Emma has played a key role in building new legal departments, creating and implementing global policies and managing international teams – expertise and experience which are invaluable to clients!
Since Cleveland & Co’s inception, Emma has been a forerunner for numerous industry awards, including being named Boutique Lawyer of the year and has most recently been shortlisted for Legal Advisor of the year in the 2021 Women in Finance awards.
As CEO, Emma provides leadership and vision for how Cleveland & Co serves its 200 international clients which have a combined AUM in excess of £8.7 trillion and range from boutique investment firms to leading funds and banks. Emma’s forethought, work ethic and energy set the pace for a brand new way of doing business in law. Along with her innovation in the sector, Emma is paving the way for women across the industry building a successful business which has reached an entrepreneurial milestone that only 0.5% of all women in the UK are likely to achieve. Emma’s dedication, drive and superstar success is what makes Cleveland & Co the incredible company is it today.
When she is not blazing a new trail, working with clients, expanding Cleveland & Co’s global team or championing Diversity & Inclusion, Emma loves spending time with her husband, two daughters and golden doodle Snowball.
- 2021 Women in Finance awards – Legal Advisor of the Year (Shortlisted)
- 2019 British Legal Awards – Women in Law Award (Finalist)
- 2018 Women in Finance Awards – Legal Advisor of the Year (Finalist)
- 2017 Women in Investment Awards – Mentor of the Year (Finalist)
- 2017 Women in Investment Awards – Team Leader of the Year (Finalist)
- 2017 Women in Law Awards – Boutique Lawyer of the Year (Winner)
Emma has a strong track record across the investment management industry globally, working with a cross section of industry professionals from Portfolio Managers through to CEOs, in EMEA, Asia Pacific and North America. She has significant technical skills in:
- ACD Arrangements
- Administration
- AIFs
- Appointed Representative Arrangements
- Broker agreements
- CISs
- Commercial Contracts
- Corporate Finance
- Corporate Restructuring
- Corporate Sponsorship
- Custody
- Distribution
- Hedge Funds
- HR and Employment
- ICAV
- Institutional
- Intra-group Agreements
- Introducer Arrangements
- Joint Venture
- Listed Investment Companies
- M&A
- Outsourcing
- Pooled pension funds
- Private equity
- Real estate
- Regulation including: Competition Law, Listing Rules, MiFID II, Research Payments, Securities Lending, Service Agreements, SICAV, Sponsorship Arrangements, Transition management, UCITS and non-UCITS.
- Aviva Investors: advised on all aspects of investment management agreements for major clients, including structuring the overall portfolios of up to £250bn. Some were highly complex: with 140+ portfolios and various overlay strategies with separate/interdependent guidelines.
- Canada Life Investments: advised on all aspects of fund distribution via all European platform providers, including drafting and negotiating agreements across 20 service providers.
- Columbia Threadneedle: advised on listed investment company launch, including drafting, review and negotiation of all fund documentation such as the offering memorandum and all agreements.
- Invesco Asset Management: advised on all aspects of building the investment legal team including drafting templates, negotiation guides and procedures, and training across EMEA.
- Investment Association: act as General Counsel and advise on industry documentation, guidance and regulatory issues.
- LaSalle Investment Management: undertook the complete review of all of real estate private equity funds, producing an extensive summary of all key terms of the underlying fund documentation.
- Rede Partners: act as General Counsel and advised on the placement of various private equity funds including Apax France XI, HgCapital 8, PAI Europe VI and Summa Equity I for Rede Partners.
- Round Hill Capital: advised on all aspects of the asset and property management joint venture transaction between Round Hill and Starwood worth £120 million.
- Investment Association 2010 IMA Technical Committee
- Law Society of England and Wales
- Law Society of Ireland
- Law Society of New South Wales Australia
- Association of Women Solicitors
- 30% Club
- NSW Practice Management Course
- Qualified as a Solicitor in England & Wales, Ireland and New South Wales Australia
- Bachelors degree in Commerce majoring in Finance (University of Wollongong)
- Honours Degree in Law (University of Wollongong)
- Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice (College of Law, Sydney)
- Graduate Certificate in Applied Finance and Investment (Financial Services Institute of Australia)
- Qualified Lawyers Transfer Test (College of Law England and Wales)
- Influencing, Persuading & Negotiating (Cambridge Legal Summer School)
- Non-Executive Director Training (Institute of Directors)
Emma Cleveland founded Cleveland & Co in 2012 with a vision to change the shape of legal services provision, and provide clients with high-quality effective advice. With over 20 years’ experience in the investment management sector, working with blue chips such as AIG, Threadneedle, Russell Investments and Aviva Investors, she is well-placed to do so.
A tri-qualified lawyer, whose noteworthy career began in litigation at the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, her broad-based expertise covers all areas of investment management: front office, middle and back office, business development, risk, compliance and legal. Emma has also played a key role in building new legal departments, creating and implementing global policies and managing international teams.
As CEO, Emma provides leadership and vision for how Cleveland & Co serves its 180+ international clients which have a combined AUM of over £4 trillion. Emma’s forethought, work ethic and energy has set the pace for a brand new way of doing business in law. Along with her innovation in the sector, Emma is paving the way for women across the industry building a successful business which has reached an entrepreneurial milestone that only 0.5% of all women in the UK are likely to achieve. Emma’s dedication, drive and superstar success is what makes Cleveland & Co the incredible company is it today.
When she is not blazing a new trail, winning new clients, opening new offices around the world or championing Diversity & Inclusion, Emma loves spending time with her husband, two daughters and golden doodle Snowball.
Emma has a strong track record across the investment management industry globally, working with a cross section of industry professionals from Portfolio Managers through to CEOs, in EMEA, Asia Pacific and North America. She has significant technical skills in:
- ACD Arrangements
- Administration
- AIFs
- Appointed Representative Arrangements
- Broker agreements
- CISs
- Commercial Contracts
- Corporate Finance
- Corporate Restructuring
- Corporate Sponsorship
- Custody
- Distribution
- Hedge Funds
- HR and Employment
- ICAV
- Institutional
- Intra-group Agreements
- Introducer Arrangements
- Joint Venture
- Listed Investment Companies
- M&A
- Outsourcing
- Pooled pension funds
- Private equity
- Real estate
- Regulation, including: MiFID II, Listing Rules, Competition Law
- Research Payments
- Securities Lending
- Service Agreements
- SICAV
- Sponsorship Arrangements
- Transition management
- UCITS and non-UCITS
Qualified in England & Wales, Ireland and NSW Australia
- Investment Association: act as General Counsel and advise on industry documentation, guidance and regulatory issues.
- Invesco Asset Management: advised on all aspects of building the investment legal team including drafting templates, negotiation guides and procedures, and training across EMEA.
- Canada Life Investments: advised on all aspects of fund distribution via all European platform providers, including drafting and negotiating agreements across 20 service providers.
- LaSalle Investment Management: undertook the complete review of all of real estate private equity funds, producing an extensive summary of all key terms of the underlying fund documentation.
- Columbia Threadneedle: advised on listed investment company launch, including drafting, review and negotiation of all fund documentation such as the offering memorandum and all agreements.
- Aviva Investors: advised on all aspects of investment management agreements for major clients, including structuring the overall portfolios of up to £250bn. Some were highly complex: with 140+ portfolios and various overlay strategies with separate/interdependent guidelines.
- Round Hill Capital: advised on all aspects of the asset and property management joint venture transaction between Round Hill and Starwood worth £120 million.
- Rede Partners: act as General Counsel and advised on the placement of various private equity funds including Apax France XI, HgCapital 8, PAI Europe VI and Summa Equity I for Rede Partners.
- Investment Association 2010 IMA Technical Committee
- Law Society of England and Wales
- Law Society of Ireland
- Law Society of New South Wales Australia
- Association of Women Solicitors
- 30% Club
- Bachelors degree in Commerce majoring in Finance (University of Wollongong)
- Honours Degree in Law (University of Wollongong)
- Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice (College of Law, Sydney)
- Graduate Certificate in Applied Finance and Investment (Financial Services Institute of Australia)
- Qualified Lawyers Transfer Test (College of Law England and Wales)
- Influencing, Persuading & Negotiating (Cambridge Legal Summer School)
- Non-Executive Director Training (Institute of Directors)
