Harald Hellebust leads Wiersholm’s M&A practice and has extensive experience in M&A, advising both private equity funds and industrial players. He is regularly used as lead counsel in large and complex transactions in the Nordic market. He also sometimes acts as an arbitrator in M&A disputes, and he is admitted to the Supreme Court. He is one of the most sought after M&A lawyers in Norway. In his deals, he develops advanced negotiation and auction strategies tailored to securing a deal for his clients at the right commercial and legal terms. In addition to heading up the transaction department, Harald also leads the firm’s private equity sector group.
Harald is a sought-after speaker, including at the annual corporate law conference in Sandefjord. He is also a regular contributor to the Wiersholm Summer School. He holds annual lectures on contract law and offers courses on assignment techniques that are highly popular among law students.
Harald has been ranked as one of Norway’s leading experts in acquisitions and mergers by renowned ranking agencies Chambers and Partners, Legal 500, and in the annual lawyer survey by Finansavisen.
Awards, Work experience, Memberships and Education
- Highly regarded, IFLR1000, Private equity, 2024
- Hall of Fame, Leading Individuals, Commercial, Corporate and M&A, 2024
- Band 1, Chambers Europe, Corporate/M&A, 2024
- Band 1, Chambers Global, Corporate/M&A, 2024
- Band 1, Chambers Global, Corporate/M&A, 2023
- Band 1, Chambers Europe, Corporate/M&A, 2023
- Highly regarded, IFLR1000, Corporate M&A and Private equity, 2023
- 2023
- 2nd place, Advokatundersøkelsen, Finansavisen, Mergers and acquisitions, 2023
- Leading individuals, Legal 500, Commercial, Corporate and M&A , 2022
- Band 1, Chambers Global, Corporate M&A – Norway, 2022
- Leading individuals, Legal 500, Commercial, corporate and M&A, 2021
- Band 1, Chambers Global, Corporate/M&A – Norway, 2021
- Leading individuals, Legal 500, Commercial, Corporate and M&A, 2020
- Band 2, Chambers Europe, Corporate/M&A, 2020
- Partner, Wiersholm, 2010
- Partner, DLA Piper/DLA Nordic, 2005
- Lawyer, Lindh Stabell Horten DA, 2002
- Associate, Lindh Stabell Horten DA, 2000
- Chairman of the Board, Wiersholm, 2023
- Cand. Jur., University of Oslo, 2000
Selected projects
Assisted the shareholders in Norkart AS on the sale of all shares to Ferd AS
Assisted Sector Alarm in relation to a sale of 30% of the company's shares to KKR
Assisted the shareholders in Montel AS on the sale of all shares to Riverside
Assisted Norsk Hydro in the establishment of a joint venture with Elkem and Altor Vianode
Assisted the shareholders in Green Resources AS with the sale of all shares to British Investment International
Assisted SoftBank i connection with the acquisition of 13.3 % in Oda, formerly Kolonial.no
Assistance to CapMan and the other shareholders of The North Alliance AS, a pan-Scandinavian design, communication and technology agency with offices in Stockholm, Copenhagen, Oslo, Krakow, Chicago and Los Angeles, in connection with the sale of The North Alliance AS to Nordvestor. Wiersholm assisted CapMan in all aspects of the transaction. The assistance included inter alia preparations for cross-border due diligences, advice on the structuring of the transaction, drafting and negotiating transaction agreements, advise in connection with the W&I insurance, and advise on the structuring of the reinvestments. A large number of management sellers reinvesting large portions of their shareholding made the process particularly challenging.
Assisted the shareholders in Norkart AS on the sale of all company shares to Ferd AS. Norkart offers solutions within municipal engineering, mapping and real estate information to the public and private sector and has over 330 Norwegian municipalities as customers. An interdisciplinary team from Wiersholm has assisted the shareholders in Norkart throughout the sales process.
Assistance to Geomatikk Holding AS in connection with the sale of all the shares in the company. Geomatikk is a tech-enabled services champion, managing critical ‘check-before-you-dig’ safety assessments to network owners, contractors and consulting engineers within Norway, Sweden and Finland. Hg will support Geomatikk with its extensive experience in scaling tech champions across Europe. Hg will become the majority investor, with founders and management remaining as significant investors in the business. The full terms of the transaction are not disclosed and closing is subject to obtaining relevant regulatory approvals.