Premium Legal Support for Institutional Investors
Elevate Your Legal Strategy Today
When you partner with Cleveland & Co you gain more than just legal support. You gain a strategic ally.
A trusted partner in the investment management industry
Fixed Income Fund Manager
Team Size: 40 employees globally.
In-house legal team: 0
Client Requirement
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- Full outsourced legal coverage.
- Relative value bond strategy and derivatives overlay.
- Fund structures in Cayman, Australia and Irish UCITS.
- Ability to understand their business model and Regulated in Australia, US and UK regimes.
- Legal risk management for BAU and regulatory issues. Reduce their external legal spend and streamline external legal support.
- Covering: implementation of regulation e.g. initial margin project, IMA’s, ISDAs, general commercial work.
Benefits Delivered
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- Ownership and driving of legal projects and managing all relevant counterparties and stakeholders.
- Within budget delivery of legal projects, supporting bottom line financial management.
- Multiple jurisdictions covered under one retainer.
- Delivered a centralised legal risk management function reporting into COO.
Global Asset Management Company
Team Size: 8000+ globally.
In-house legal team: 50+
Client Requirement
- On-tap specialist legal support for complex matters e.g. IMA and distribution agreements.
- Provision of bespoke training on IMAs and IMA negotiations.
- Review and update core templates (related to regulated services; distribution, platform agreements, broker terms) to ensure consistency across group entities.
- Regulatory advice related to regulatory change.
Benefits Delivered
- Ownership and driving of legal projects and managing all relevant counterparties and stakeholders.
- Within budget delivery of legal projects, supporting bottom line financial management
- Multiple jurisdictions covered under one retainer.
- Delivered a centralised legal risk management function reporting into COO.
UK Investments Industry Association
Team Size: 51-200 employees globally
In-house legal team: 0
Client Requirement
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- Legal support across all departments, balancing interests of the association along with membership needs.
- Complete integration with the broader team to participate in strategic and business initiatives and pre-empt legal requirements with respect to new programmes being launched e.g. start-up accelerators.
- Supporting all policy and guidance regarding industry regulatory change.
- Participating in committee meetings.
- Monthly in-person meetings.
- Oversee competition law and advice as necessary.
Benefits Delivered
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- Delivery of critical legal projects, managing all relevant stakeholders.
- High quality preparation of significant numbers of reusable legal templates
- Enhanced internal corporate and governance policies to manage legal risk across the board.
- Provide “second to none” market intelligence given our on the ground access to the industry through our client base and our business model.
200+ clients representing a combined £8.7 trillion of Assets Under Management
Cleveland & Co stands apart in proving access to high quality investment management advice
Emma Cleveland – CEO, Global General Counsel
Access the cross section of skills your institutional work requires
Expert legal support tailored to your needs
Your Business
Specialist Skills
We specialise in drafting, negotiating, and advising on key agreements like IMAs, fund documentation, and regulatory compliance across multiple jurisdictions.
One Team
Pricing
Choose Your Plan
Fixed Fee Projects
- Clear, one-time cost
- Transparent and predictable budgeting
- No ongoing commitment after project completion
- Best suited for specific, well-defined projects
Monthly Retainer
- Access to a dedicated team of experts
- Continuous, on-demand support
- Flexible, tailored assistance as needs evolve
- Builds a long-term relationship for strategic support
A panel of specialists through one account
%
Specialists typically outperform generalists by 15%
%
Access 700% more PQE compared to a single hire
%
Availability with team members across time zones.
Your Institutional Funds Legal Team

Emma Cleveland
CEO, Global General Counsel
Expertise: Investment Management, Financial Services Regulation, Funds, Alternative Funds, Securities, Trading & Investments, Securities Lending, Structuring & Restructuring, Distribution, Corporate Governance, Financing, Corporate, Commercial, Fintech, Intellectual Property
Experience: 20+ years

Rowena Hill
Managing Director, General Counsel EMEA
Expertise: Investment Management, Financial Services Regulation, Funds, Alternative Funds, Distribution, ESG and Corporate Governance, Corporate, Commercial
Experience: 19 years

Ziba Kinder
Legal Counsel
Expertise: Contract Drafting and Negotiation, Corporate and Commercial, Regulation and Compliance, Litigation
Experience: 15+ years
Access to 200+ years team PQE experience for less than the cost of a General Counsel.
Recent Awards
FAQ
Our FAQ section covers a range of topics about the institutional work work we do.
What types of legal agreements do you specialize in?
How do you integrate with our in-house legal team?
Are you in-house or private practice?
All our lawyers have a mix of private practice and in-house experience gained at quality firms (Janus Henderson, Schroders, Invesco, Franklin Templeton, Ninety One, Aviva, Threadneedle).
What experience do you have with IMA's?
Our institutional lawyers are expert legal practitioners but also understand the operational mechanics of an IMA and have experience of working with in-house onboarding teams. We understand the impact of clauses in practice not just theory.
We are being asked to review or sign up to IMAs as part of the RFP process and don't have in-house legal capacity. How can you help?
Our on demand team is a one stop shop enabling us to meet all institutional needs from funds to regulatory to investment documentation. We regularly help firms manage peaks and troughs of institutional work including proposals, and maternity / paternity cover.
What jurisdictions can you cover?
Our lawyers are qualified to advise asset managers on UK, Irish, Australia, US, Singapore mandates.
Top Tier Investment Management Testimonials
Conveniently located in London Bridge

Chat with Craig, or leave a message.
“I’m happy to answer any questions you may have and can coordinate within the team for you if necessary. Alternatively feel free to just leave a message and I can get back to you by email.” Craig Rowland