Valerio Fontanesi, head of the Italy Finance practice of Shearman & Sterling, was named "Leveraged Finance Lawyer of the Year" at the  Legalcommunity Finance Awards ceremony held in Milan on March 1, 2018.

The panel noted that “at the head of a department where Leveraged Finance is one of the leading ‘practices,’ Fontanesi played a key role in the most significant deal of 2017.”

Legalcommunity is a specialized trade journal, with wide distribution among law firms, corporations, banks and the finance community, covering the Italian legal market. The shortlist and the final award for each category were determined by Legalcommunity, together with a panel composed of general counsel of leading Italian companies, as well as professionals from the world of finance, business and communications.

Shearman & Sterling’s global Finance practice includes experienced lawyers around the world who execute transactions under New York, English, French, German and Italian law, often involving multiple facilities, instruments, currencies and jurisdictions. Key areas of focus include leveraged financing, investment-grade financing, asset-based lending, acquisition financings, complex debt restructurings and structured finance.