DEALS OF THE WEEK 15.12.2000

Most pinstripe deal: Norton Rose provided corporate advice and Gouldens banking and property advice to property investment and development company Pillar on its 373 million recommended cash offer for Wates City of London Properties, advised by Clifford Chance.

As part of the deal, Pillar has established a Jersey close-ended unit trust to invest in property in the City.Best packaged deal: Allen & Overy acted for Australian company Mayne Nickless on the 190 million sale of courier companies Interlink Express and Parceline to France's La Poste Group - part of the French post office - advised by US firm Jones Day Reavis & Pogue.Most hell-raising deal: DLA advised Dixon Motors, a leading car and motorcycle retailer, on a 5 million placing to raise funds for it to buy Motorsport Dealers International, which owns the Motorcycle City chain.

US firm McDermott Will & Emery represented underwriter and broker ING Barings.Thinnest deal: M&A Solicitors in Cardiff acted for IQE on its purchase of Wafer Technology in a deal which values Wafer at more than 40 million.

Vizards Staples & Bannisters acted for the owner/management team at Wafer, while Lawrence Graham advised the minority selling (corporate) shareholder.Smartest deal: Manchester firm Chaffe Street advised a management buy-out team on the 12 million acquisition of the Coats Viyella contract clothing business, which supplies Marks & Spencer.

Eversheds acted for Coats Viyella.Most developed deal: Harrow firm Harold Benjamin Littlejohn represented Martin Grant Homes on its 6.5 million purchase of four acres of residential development land at Highfield Park, St Albans from the Department of Health, advised byMacfarlanes.

The sale marks the final phase in the disposal of the 120-acre site of the former Hill End and Cell Barnes hospitals to developers.Most systematic deal: Surrey firm Mundays advised KewillSystems on the disposal of its businesses relating to software packages Omicron Power Systems and Micross Elite to Paddico (215), advised by Leeds firm Addlestone Keane.

It also acted for Kewill and Alpha Numeric International on the sale of the software supply and printer maintenance business Alpha-Numeric to Intellident, advised by Wokingham firm Southorns.