Slaughter and May and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer have taken lead roles on the £2.9bn takeover bid for British engineering company Tomkins by a Canadian consortium.

The consortium, which comprises private equity group Onex Corporation and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), has made an offer of 325p per share for the company and due diligence is now at an “advanced stage”, according to Tomkins.