Christophe Garaud
Partner, Corporate & Financial Services
Christophe Garaud is a partner in the Corporate & Financial Services Department of Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP in Paris. He specializes in private equity and mergers and acquisitions transactions across multiple industries. He is actively involved in representing private equity funds in their acquisitions, build-ups and dispositions of targets for both public and private companies both in France and internationally.
Christophe has acted on some of the most significant transactions closed in France.
Christophe Garaud has been recognized by Chambers Global and several other professional guides including Legal 500 as one of the leading partners practicing in Private Equity (High-End Capability). Christophe is ranked by Chambers France 2025 in Band 2, where a client noted that, "He is absolutely excellent and has an outstanding mix of skills in terms of law and business aspects" and “Christophe is a very good adviser in the sense that he will really help you negotiate and focus on the wider issues. He understands the client's positioning and it helps you to think out of the box; he also offers nice solutions that accommodate both the seller and the buyer. Finally, he is very calm, very experienced of course, and so confident; he won't let you panic."
Christophe has also been recognized again by Best Lawyers in 2024 for Corporate, Leveraged Buyouts and Mergers and Acquisitions.
Experience
-
Sagard on the sale of its majority stake in Sterimed Group and its reinvestment in the company as part of a management-led consortium
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PAI Partners on the acquisition of a majority stake in Alvest, the leading global provider of airport ground support equipment.
- Ekkio Capital, Montefiore Investment and the management of Paris Expérience Group (PEG) on the sale of PEG to Groupe ADP.
- EMG, a portfolio company of PAI Partners, on its combination with Gravity Media, creating one of the world’s largest broadcast technology and production companies.
- Oak Nation, a subsidiary of the Charlois Group, in the acquisition of Kelvin Cooperage.
- Ekkio Capital on the sale of its majority stake in Groupe Thoiry to Kartesia.
- PAI Partners in connection with its $3,3 billion acquisition of Tropicana, Naked and Other Select Juice Brands Across North America and Europe from PepsiCo, the leading US-based global food, snack and beverage corporation. (2022)
- Latour Capital in connection with the sale of Atlasformen, the European leader in multi-channel sales of men’s outdoor clothing, to Motion Equity Partners. (2022)
- Latour Capital on the acquisition of Doreau, Charente manufacturer of barrels and large containers for wines and spirits.
- Ardian on the acquisition of Groupe RG, the specialist leader distributor of personal protective equipment in France.
- Ekkio Capital on the sale of Laboratoires Audevard to Lim Group, a French corporation consisting of companies exclusively dedicated to the equine sector.
Credentials
Education
New York University School of Law, LL.M., 1994 Université Paris II - Panthéon-Assas, LL.M., 1992 Université Paris II - Panthéon-Assas, J.D., 1990