Hayley Cross

Hayley is a Partner in the Corporate department, with a specific focus on working with emerging, innovative companies and those who invest in them.

Hayley supports companies throughout the early stages of their life cycle, starting with incorporation and shareholder arrangements, to raising investment at seed stage and throughout. She also works with a number of VC firms advising on their seed to Series A/B investments into emerging companies. Hayley provides pragmatic and commercial advice in a way that is relevant to the business and their way of working.

Hayley trained and qualified as a general corporate and commercial solicitor at a West End law firm. She specialises in advising on venture capital transactions, and has played a pivotal role in building the Emerging Companies team.

Hayley advises on a range of matters including:

• incorporation and structuring
• angel investments
• venture capital funding transactions from seed to exit (including SEIS, EIS and VCT)
• convertible loan agreements, advance subscriptions and SAFEs
• employee incentives
• university spin-outs
• corporate governance and shareholder arrangements

Hayley is passionate about working with entrepreneurs and investors and strongly believes in building long-term relationships. Hayley predominantly advises technology businesses, as well as food & beverage and FMCG companies and a growing number of clients within the life sciences sector. Hayley has a specific passion for working with impact ventures and impact investors and regularly works with our Charities & Social Ventures team to advise emerging impact ventures seeking capital, as well as running regular events for those in the impact space and building a growing community of impact entrepreneurs and investors.

Hayley is particularly passionate about the health and wellbeing of those who work in law firms and particularly working parents. She is a qualified mental health first aider as well as a wellbeing champion and a key contributor to the firm's parenting network. She is also a Governor at her local school and spends her Sunday mornings coaching her son's rugby team.