Welcome to the latest edition of the Burness Paull Restructuring & Insolvency team’s newsletter.
Today marks the start of Burness Paull’s new financial year, and the end of our team’s busiest financial year ever.
Lots of our work last year involved a number of large, long-running and complex instructions in the oil and gas sector or its supply chain. Advising Wood Group on its acquisition by Sidara and Waldorf and Petrofac on their major restructurings are a few of the mandates in which we have recently been involved.
However, many other sectors are facing challenges too and it remains a volatile economic environment, characterised by geopolitical uncertainty, higher operating expenses, skills shortages, low consumer confidence, and new threats. We spent the beginning of 2026 on hospitality instructions, acting for Innis & Gunn and their administrators, and also for the successful bidders of Brewdog.
The insights we have produced below examine some of the issues we are seeing from our position in the market, as we support our clients to navigate this rapidly evolving landscape. If you would like to discuss any of the themes we cover, please get it in touch.
We do also have some team news we would like to share.
Firstly, we are saying goodbye to Gary Moffat, who retired at the end of March after an exceptional legal career – more than 30 years of which was with Burness Paull! We will miss Gary so much but are excited for him enjoying his retirement.
We are really thrilled to announce the well-deserved promotion of Fiona Carlin to the partnership. Fiona has made such a huge contribution since she joined us in 2023 and we are so excited that she is stepping up to help lead our team and client offering. We are also happy to let you know that Alex Fagerson and Stephanie Cowie have been promoted to associate and Mairead Smith has been promoted to senior solicitor.
Finally, in February we welcomed Louise Laing to our team. Louise is a well-known face in the Scottish corporate restructuring world as a top class lawyer, who will add further strength and depth to our team.
We look forward to catching up with you all soon. In the meantime, we hope you find the pieces below insightful.
Michael Thomson
HEAD OF RESTRUCTURING & INSOLVENCY
Blogs
Burness Paull announces five new partners
Burness Paull has promoted five of its lawyers to partner as the firm recognises commitment to excellent client service, continues to invest in developing talent and readies itself for further growth.
Demographic changes threaten business financial distress | The Herald
Writing in The Herald, Michael Thomson explores some of the issues businesses may need to consider as the population continues to undergo significant demographic change.
Keeping law up to date with cryptocurrencies
Fiona Carlin on how the law copes with a fast-changing area of investment.
A business’s people are its greatest asset – and one of its biggest risks
Employees are a business’s greatest asset but can become a major risk if talent is lost, disengaged, or hard to replace.
Comment | What To Expect if the AI Bubble Bursts
In this contributed article for DIGIT, Michael Thomson explores growing concerns that the AI investment surge may be inflating a financial bubble – and what businesses should do now to prepare for potential market turbulence.
CMA opens first consumer law investigations under new DMCC enforcement powers
We explore the Competition and Markets Authority’s investigations launched under the Digital Markets, Competition & Consumers Act 2024, which target 8 businesses for suspected consumer law violations.
Burness Paull has a standout practice. They have a professional, thoughtful team that embodies the mantle of trusted adviser. They often feel like an extension of our own team.
Chambers 2026 | Restructuring & Insolvency
What makes the team at Burness Paull LLP stand out is the quality which they have at every level. The corporate side of the insolvency and corporate recovery team has a wealth of experience.
Legal 500 2026 | Insolvency & Corporate Recovery
Teamsheet
Michael Thomson
Head of Restructuring & Insolvency
Restructuring & Insolvency
Julie Greig
Director
Contentious Restructuring & Insolvency
Claire McKellar
Knowledge & Development Lawyer
Restructuring & Insolvency
Louise Laing
Senior Associate
Restructuring & Insolvency
Steven Chesney
Senior Associate
Contentious Restructuring & Insolvency
