Herbert Smith Freehills has advised Inter City Railways Limited, a joint venture in which Stagecoach has a 90% interest and Virgin a 10% stake, on its successful application for the Intercity East Coast rail franchise in the UK

The new franchise will start in March 2015 and is planned to run until 31 March 2023, with the option for a one-year extension at the Department of Transport's discretion. The franchise is set to see more than £140m invested in delivering an improved service and a more personalised travel experience for passengers. Trains will operate under the ‘Virgin Trains East Coast’ brand.

The Herbert Smith Freehills team was led by partners Adrian Clough (infrastructure) and Ben Ward (corporate).

As the franchise is currently operated by a government-owned company, the competition for the Intercity East Coast franchise was unique in requiring the successful bidder to acquire the existing train operator. Adrian and John Williams, Of Counsel, advised on the new franchising arrangements with the Department for Transport while Ben advised on the acquisition by Inter City Railways of the existing public sector train operator. Competition and procurement advice was provided by partners Andre Pretorius and Tim Briggs.

Ben Ward also advised Stagecoach on its joint venture arrangements with Virgin and the associated brand licensing arrangements. The Herbert Smith Freehills team continues to advise Inter City Railways Limited on its mobilisation activities in advance of the commencement of the new franchise.

Herbert Smith Freehills has advised Stagecoach for around 20 years and Ben Ward manages the firm's relationship with the group. The firm has completed substantial transactional work for the group including acquisitions, disposals, transport and corporate work. Separately, Herbert Smith Freehills is also on Virgin’s UK legal panel and is a long-standing legal adviser to the group.