Christiana O'Connell-Schizas | People

Biography

Christiana joined Baker McKenzie in 2014 and leads the Saudi Employment & Compensation team. She actively advises both Saudi Arabian and foreign clients on strategic employment law matters including restructurings, mergers and acquisitions and outsourcings in addition to day-to-day employment law support such as employment contracts, internal policies, terminations, Saudization and nationalization requirements.

Christiana has also worked at Baker McKenzie’s Bahrain and London offices.

Representative Legal Matters

Acting for the Public Investment Fund ("PIF") in its joint venture with AeroFarms, a US-based commercial market leader in vertical farming, to establish a company in Riyadh to build and operate indoor vertical farms in Saudi Arabia and the wider Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Christiana advised and negotiated the Secondment Agreement to second AeroFarms employees to the joint venture to develop the joint venture's core business expertise.
Advising Emerson on contributing its industrial software businesses together with USD 6 billion in cash to AspenTech in return for a 55% stake in the new AspenTech business. Employees in the relevant businesses spread across 37 jurisdictions, including Saudi where Christiana advised on the transfer of employees (benefits, end of service, Saudization, etc.), and negotiated the relevant employee transfer documentation.
Acting for AbbVie on the transfer and integration of employees (among other employment matters) in Saudi Arabia in relation to the acquisition of Allergan in a global cash and stock transaction for an equity value of approximately USD 63 billion (based on the closing price of AbbVie's common stock of USD 78.45 on 24 June 2019). The integration in Saudi Arabia is expected to complete in early 2021.
Acting for Takeda on the transfer and integration of employees (among other employment matters) in Saudi Arabia in relation to its GBP 46 billion-acquisition of Shire. The merge has created a global, value-based, research and development-driven biopharmaceutical leader headquartered in Japan, making the 237-year-old drug company one of the world’s ten biggest pharmaceutical companies. The integration in Saudi Arabia is expected to complete in early 2021.
Acting for Merck on the transfer of employees (among other employment matters) in Saudi Arabia in relation its spin-off to form a new USD 6.5 billion firm focused on women's health. The spin-off in Saudi Arabia is expected to complete by mid-2021.
Acting for GlaxoSmithKline on the transfer and integration of employees (among other employment matters) in Saudi Arabia in relation to its joint venture with Pfizer whereby the firms combined their consumer healthcare businesses into one firm with annual sales of USD 12.7 billion.
Acting for Rhône Capital and its affiliated portfolio company, Wellbore Integrity Solutions (WIS), on the Saudi employment matters in relation to their acquisition of Schlumberger's fishing, manufacturing and tubulars businesses establishing a standalone oilfield services enterprise through the purchase of assets and operating under this WIS brand. The transaction was valued at approximately USD 400 million and closed on 31 December 2019.
Advising Mohamed Yousuf Naghi Motors Company Ltd in (i) the acquisition of all assets from Al Jazirah Vehicles Agencies Company in connection with the Ford and Lincoln distributorship in the Western and South regions of Saudi Arabia and (ii) the negotiation and execution of the distribution arrangements with Ford and Lincoln in these regions.
Advising Emerson Electric on employment matters in relation to the non-US aspects of its USD 3.2 billion acquisition of global manufacturing company Pentair's Valves & Controls business.
Advising SUEZ on corporate and employment matters in relation to its USD 3.4 billion acquisition of GE Water & Process Technologies from General Electric Company which involved approximately 110 jurisdictions worldwide.
Advising world-renowned football players on their transfer to Saudi football clubs and associated move to the Kingdom.

Professional Associations and Memberships

Solicitors Regulation Authority, England and Wales

Admissions

Saudi Arabia - Registered Legal Consultant
England & Wales~United Kingdom (2016)

Education

Association for Research into Crimes against Art (Postgraduate Diploma in Art Crime and Cultural Heritage Protection)
University of Law (Legal Practice Course)
University of Kent (LLB Hons)

Languages

English
Greek

Previous Offices

Bahrain
London