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Kelly Rothwell is a Partner in the Restructuring & Insolvency Team at CMS.  Kelly has extensive experience in advising, among others, banks, funds, investors, borrowers and insolvency practitioners at all stages of financial downturns, restructurings and insolvencies.  Her focus includes advising on distressed asset sales, loan-to-own strategies, debt sales, insolvencies, cross-border restructurings, non-performing loan portfolio transactions (both buy and sell side), as well as advising on a broad range of general finance transactions. 

Kelly trained at CMS and then recently spent time as sole legal counsel at an asset based lending fund in London before returning to the firm. Prior to that, as a trainee, undertook a secondment to the distressed debt trading team at Deutsche Bank, London Branch.

Awards & Recognitions
01
  • Award
    IWIRC London Network Champion Award
    IWIRC London Network Awards, 2025
  • Quote
    "Kelly provided excellent legal support on a recent transaction, leading on a big push to get closing done over the Christmas period and offering consistently strong advice in a very challenging timeframe. Her support was much appreciated by the team."
    Client Quote

Relevant experience

  • A UK bank in relation to the options available to restructure the business of a Jersey listed property unit trust with subsidiaries and properties in 8 different European jurisdictions, the subsequent complex restructure, sale and managed wind down of the “rump” group.
  • A US fund in its successful acquisition of a non-performing loan portfolio (c. EUR 90m of loans backed by commercial German real estate). Kelly was the lead associate from DD stage, through to acquisition and elevation of the loans. Then for the last 18 months, she has been advising on the workout of the portfolio, involving complex advice across numerous jurisdictions including France, Germany, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Guernsey and the BVI .
  • A Norwegian shipping group on a pre-packaged administration of its UK subsidiaries which involved an application to the Pre-Pack Pool.
  • The Security Trustee to the bondholders and other lenders to the Phones 4U group.

Education

2010 – LPC (with Distinction), BPP Law School, London 
2009 – GDL (with Distinction), College of Law, London 
2008 – BA (Hons) English Language & Literature, University of Liverpool

Insights by Kelly

MFS collapse and the double pledging risk

16 Mar 2026 6 min read

The role of private credit in distressed debt

22 Jan 2026 6 min read

CMS Partner Kelly Rothwell elected Co-Chair of IWIRC London

12 Jan 2026 2 min read

NPLs in the UK and the Means of Transfer

07 Jul 2025 7 min read
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