Skaddens represented Centro Properties Group as well in the transaction. Partners who worked on the deal included: John Rayis and David Polster (tax, Chicago), Rick Madden (corporate, Los Angeles), Harvey Uris (real estate, New York), Barnet Phillips, IV (tax, New York), and David Polster (tax, Chicago).

The law firm also represented Time Warner Inc. and its subsidiary AOL Europe Services SARL (Luxembourg) with the tax aspects of AOL Europe’s US$855 million ($1.1 billion) sale of AOL Germany to Telecom Italia S.p.A. Partners involved included Hans-Georg Berg, tax partner and corporate partner Matthias Horbach, both in Frankfurt.

As well, Skaddens represented The Berkeley Group Holdings plc, a real estate developer, in its US$360 ($478) million acquisition of the outstanding 50 per cent stake of St. James Group Ltd., a construction company, that Berkeley Group did not already own from its joint venture partner RWE Thames Water, a water and waste management company. All three companies are located in the UK.

JONES DAY advised Fang Brothers Investments Limited on the HK$1.4 billion ($238.7 million) sale by its subsidiary CS Investments of a 50 per cent interest in Time Supermarket Limited to Wumart Stores Inc, Beijing’s largest supermarket chain.

Under the agreement, Wumart will pay HK$570.9 million ($97.3 million) in cash and 24.8 million of new H shares, which represent 7.5 per cent of its “expanded” share capital.

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Times operates 45 superstores in eastern China

“This transaction is among many M&A deals in China this year. I foresee continued increase in M&A activities in China, as a growing number of Chinese companies look to acquire foreign assets and more and more foreign investors test China’s investment waters,” commented Carson Wen, lead partner on the deal.