Germany's rapidly growing economy — the fourth largest in the world and the largest in Europe — offers uniquely attractive trade and investment opportunities. German businesses are among the leading exporters in the world, and the German economy is one of the largest importers of goods and services worldwide.
Germany's relations with the United States, China and the European countries where K&L Gates maintains offices are of major importance. Size and scope of the dynamic partnership between the United States and Germany have grown steadily. Germany also has good relations with China. In view of the global financial crisis, the cooperation of these two export-oriented countries is highly significant. Germany was France's most important trading partner in 2009. German-British relations are close and diverse. Great Britain ranks sixth among Germany's most significant trading partners. After Poland's EU accession in 2004, trade between the two countries has developed dynamically. Even in 2008, in the midst of the global finance crisis, bilateral trade rose by 10 percent to reach a total of 66.3 bn € (Federal Bureau of Statistics). Relations between Russia and Germany have seen dynamic development. Russia is one of Germany's most important external trading partners. (Information on Germany's relations to the countries listed above taken from the Federal Foreign Office in Germany (Auswärtiges Amt)).
In recent years, K&L Gates has significantly expanded its presence and resources in Germany. We have joined with high-caliber teams of lawyers and have enhanced the existing practices through the addition of highly experienced individuals. The German practice comprises approximately 50 resident lawyers in the country's capital Berlin and its financial center and economic stronghold Frankfurt.
The group's main practice areas include corporate, M&A, real estate transactions, banking and finance, tax, and regulatory (antitrust and trade regulation/public procurement and PPP), employment, as well as corporate matters in such fields as real estate and telecommunications, media and technology (TMT).
The German Cross-border practice in our U.S. offices offers a wide range of services on both inbound and outbound cross-border corporate, business, financing, intellectual property, and litigation matters for the firm's large, mid-size, and emerging growth company clients.
Clients include German and international blue chip companies, major international utility service providers, renewable energy project developers, investment banks, private equity, and hedge and venture capital funds as well as a variety of national and international businesses.
Rankings
K&L Gates was recently ranked among the Top 50 Firms in Germany for employee training programs by Azur 2010 (affiliated magazine of JUVE, one of the leading German legal directories). In addition, the firm is mentioned in various publications, including JUVE, Chambers and Legal 500. Further rankings are listed within specific practice groups below.
Key areas of practice for our German offices include:
German Corporate / M&A
Mergers and acquisitions are a focal point of K&L Gates' German practice. The M&A group provides an integrated cross-border service for industrial clients, financial institutions, and financial investors. Our experience extends to a wide range of M&A transactions from domestic to highly complex international deals. Our integrated German corporate and M&A team possesses deep knowledge in transactional matters due to its longstanding experience in the respective fields.
Our engagements encompass both private and public M&A transactions. We address every aspect of the transaction, including finance, regulatory, compliance, and corporate governance aspects as well as administrative and employment law issues. The group has a strong reputation for its innovation, commercial experience, and technical ability.
Rankings
Recommended firm for Corporate/M&A Mid-sized Deals The Legal 500, 2009
"A law firm appreciated for M&A" JUVE Handbuch 2009/2010
Our main areas of focus include:
- Cross-border and domestic acquisitions and divestitures of private companies, including advising sellers and buyers in large auction processes
- Public takeovers and securities law
- Distressed M&A transactions
- International joint ventures
- Leveraged buy-out transactions, including MBOs, MBIs, recapitalizations, and public to private transactions
- Public private partnership projects
- Corporate restructurings
German Cross-Border
K&L Gates practitioners resident in the firm's German offices and their peers in the United States support the firm's national and international practice and deal with cross-border transactions involving the United States, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and other European countries. The team offers a unique combination of domestic and cross-border experience in corporate, business, banking and finance, intellectual property, and real estate transactions and litigation as well as policy, regulatory, and government relations matters.
For additional information, please e-mail or contact:
- Dirk Michels in Palo Alto at or (650) 798-6709 or
- David Murdoch in Pittsburgh at or (412) 355-6472
Mr. Michels is admitted to practice law both in California and in Germany. Mr. Murdoch, a Pennsylvania lawyer, is also an Honorary Consul of the Federal Republic of Germany. In February 2010, Mr. Murdoch was presented with the Bundesverdienstkreuz (Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany) for strengthening German-American relationships.
German Finance
Our German finance lawyers represent both lender and borrower clients in aircraft finance, acquisition finance, project finance, commercial lending, asset-based lending, structured finance, and equipment leasing. Many of our financings involve multiple countries. Our offices work together to provide mutual support for such transactions.
K&L Gates represents not only financial institutions, but also corporate and other business borrowers, in both secured and unsecured commercial credit facilities, including cash-flow and asset-based transactions.
We assist clients in perfecting and enforcing security interests in all kinds of collateral, including aircraft, rolling stock, equipment, inventory, and insurance policies. We handle acquisition financing, warehouse lines of credit, loans to regulated industries, and other specialized lending arrangements.
Our finance lawyers have significant experience with asset-based lending, equipment leasing, and structured finance equipment leasing of specialized assets, such as aircraft or containers. We also advise clients concerning cross-border leasing arrangements.
Clients have also looked to us to assist with the preparation of prototype lease documents, the acquisition or sale of equipment leasing portfolios, and the securitization of such portfolios.
Rankings
Ranked as a tier 2 firm for Banking & Finance: Asset Finance & Leasing: Aviation (Chambers Europe 2010).
German Labor and Employment
The German employment law group of K&L Gates advises clients on all legal issues concerning directors and staff, including employment law, compensation and benefits, social security, tax, and immigration. The group is also particularly experienced with the structuring of complex benefit schemes, including pensions. The group's work covers transactional services with relation to employment as well as the representation of employers in court. The group's clients range from mid-size companies to large corporations with a focus on the technology industry.
Rankings
The German employment group is listed among the leading firms in Chambers Europe 2009.
Our main areas of focus include:
- Employment agreements with directors and officers
- Advice on the liability of directors and officers
- Structuring of compensation and benefit schemes
- Structuring and restructuring of pension schemes
- Advice on non-competition clauses and their enforcement
- Restructuring of companies and outsourcing
- Termination of employment agreements including mass dismissals
- Cross-border secondments of employees
- Employees' inventions and the assignment of proprietary rights
- Negotiations with works councils
- Social security
- Wage tax
- Corporate immigration
- Employment-related transactional services
- Employment litigation
German Real Estate
Our German real estate team provides comprehensive advice on real estate-related matters. We assist our clients with the acquisition of real estate portfolios, including advice on the development of real estate and infrastructure projects regarding commercial, industrial, and residential properties. Our legal services include due diligence, the drafting and negotiation of contracts, finance, and all related legal matters.
Our advice on investment properties covers a range of real estate-related issues, such as landlord-tenant matters, insurance, the law applicable to works and services, and building and planning law as well as claim and contract management, including the judicial enforcement of claims and their execution.
We have extensive experience with refinancing and restructuring as well as the sale and purchase of real estate located abroad. When coordinating due diligence, we also offer the set-up and administration of physical and virtual deal rooms.
Clients include local and international investment funds, real estate companies, investment banks, and private investors.
Rankings
Recommended firm for real estate, planning & building law The Legal 500, 2009
Our main areas of focus include:
- Real estate transactional work at national and international level (offices, logistics, residential, health sector, care homes and hospitals, retail)
- Leases, leaseholds, sale and lease backs
- Infrastructure and commercial developments (e. g. wind parks, shopping malls, zoning)
- Construction including litigation
- Environmental
- Public planning law
- Notarial services
- Restructuring, creditors' rights and insolvency issues
German Environmental, Land Use, and Natural Resources
The firm's German environmental group aims to deliver commercially focused, sustainable, and cost-effective solutions that meet clients' objectives. We find solutions by negotiation wherever practicable. We have an in-depth knowledge of current environmental and planning issues. Our experience also covers related issues including sustainable development, retail, housing, health care, historic buildings, and conservation. We conduct environmental and planning disputes. For our clients, we liaise with public authorities and negotiate agreements under public law related to any issues under planning or environmental law. We undertake planning and environmental due diligence for both property and corporate transactions.
Our main areas of focus include:
- Development consent
- Contaminated land
- Environmental permits
- Environmental compliance
- Heritage and conservation
- Contracts under public law
- Administration and court proceedings
German Construction and Engineering
Our German construction and engineering team assists clients with the everyday issues and battles that are part of the construction and engineering industry. Our core practices are construction project support and dispute resolution. Our experience also covers public procurement law and infrastructure projects.
Our main areas of focus include:
- Contract negotiation and preparation
- Development
- Procurement
- Claim preparation
- Dispute resolution, including ADR and arbitration
- Insurance coverage
- Construction and bankruptcy
- Architect malpractice
German Telecom, Media & Technology
K&L Gates' Telecom, Media, and Technology (TMT) group is experienced in dealing with all TMT-related matters and in particular the increasing convergence of telecom, media, and technology. Our interdisciplinary structure with fully integrated practices provides exceptional client service.
The German TMT team enjoys a strong reputation for developing commercially viable solutions to complex legal issues. Our success can be attributed to our high standards of service, extensive industry experience, and longstanding relationships with important market participants. The team works closely with colleagues in the UK, France, the United States, and Asia, providing quality local advice to meet our clients' needs.
Rankings
Our German TMT partners are frequently recognized by JUVE (one of the leading German legal directories), Legal 500, Best Lawyers, Legal Success / Handelsblatt, and Chambers Europe as leading practitioners in their fields.
"Law Firm of the Year for Media" and "Law Firm of the Year for Telecommunications" JUVE Awards, 2009
Our main areas of focus include:
Telecommunications
- Access and fee regulation matters
- Frequency and license proceedings
- Operational and "set-up and supply" contracts
- Consumer protection issues
- Other regulatory proceedings
Media
- Negotiation of content and distribution agreements
- Enforcement of copyright claims
- Collecting societies
- Film licensing, production, and financing
- All kinds of IT contracts
- Media regulation
Technology
- Outsourcing agreements
- Internet and e-commerce including contracts, copyright, and regulatory issues
- Data protection, nondisclosure, and encryption
- IT compliance
General Intellectual Property
- Trademark rights, design protection, patents, and utility patents
- Advice on all issues of unfair competition
Our clients include:
- Various mobile network operators
- Regional, national, and international fixed line operators
- internet backbone providers and Internet service providers
- Television and radio stations
- Collecting societies
- Software developers
- Internet platform operators and other “Web 2.0” companies
- Hardware producers
- Investment banks, venture capitalists, and private equity companies
Regulatory
German Antitrust and Trade Regulation
In the increasingly global marketplace, national and multinational antitrust and competition considerations are core strategic issues for most industries. With more than 60 professionals in 36 offices in North America, Europe, and Asia, K&L Gates’ antitrust and trade regulation practice group is located where our clients are, helping them minimize antitrust and competition law risk. Competition law in the EU Member States is governed by the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU Treaty of Lisbon) and each of the 27 Member States’ own competition laws. The lawyers in our Berlin office act as “European Counsel” for clients wishing to maintain a point of contact for the management and coordination of antitrust and regulatory services for their business ventures in the various EU jurisdictions. K&L Gates’ competition lawyers in Germany are an integral part of K&L Gates’ international antitrust and trade regulation practice.
We provide advice regarding a variety of issues under German and EU competition laws, including:
- Merger notifications and challenges
- Horizontal and vertical aspects of commercial transactions and agreements
- Dominant market position issues
- Investigations and sector inquiries by the competition authorities
- Identification of state aid issues and notification
- Antitrust, competition and trade law compliance issues
- External trade regulation (Customs and export control issues)
In addition to experience with and knowledge of the antitrust laws, winning an antitrust case — or avoiding one — requires an understanding of the industry and its products, services, and geographic markets. Experience in the following German industries, among others, gives our German lawyers insight into the business conditions and strategic challenges faced by our clients and other participants:
- Automotive
- Aviation
- Biotech and pharmaceuticals
- Construction
- Health care
- Solar energy and equipment
- Transportation and travel
- Technology media telecoms (TMT)
- Water and waste water
Public Procurement and PPP
Our German public procurement and PPP team is highly regarded in the market for its long-term advice to principals, bidders and sponsors. Our solutions are tailored to the legal realization of complex technology, infrastructure and construction projects. Thanks to our work in various pilot projects, we are familiar with economic and political interests both of the bidders as well as the principals.
We focus on the structuring of complex procurement proceedings, including the structuring of privatizations and PPP-projects complying with procurement and state aid law, as well as on the advice to bidders in such proceedings. In addition, we frequently act as consultants and represent our clients in review proceedings, as well as before German and European courts.
Rankings
“Recommended law firm for PPP and procurement law. With (...) partner Hausmann plus three-headed team joining in summer 2009, K&L Gates enhances its practice by procurement law expertise at the highest stage, in particular in the fields of PPP, supply and disposal, infrastructure and transport.” JUVE Handbuch, 2009/2010
Our main areas of focus include:
Advice to companies
- Strategic and legal advice on procurement proceedings starting with the call for competition until the conclusion of contracts
- Legal analysis and development of procurement specifications and bidding documents
- Drafting of bidder-questions and objections concerning the violation of procurement provision
- Support in contract negotiations
- Representation in review proceedings as well as before German and European courts
- Advice on procurement-related compliance issues
Advice to the public authorities
- Legal review of corporate transactions relating to public procurement and state aid law
- Drafting and structuring of complex procurement proceedings and PPP-projects
- Preparation of procurement specifications and procedural letters
- Drafting and negotiation of contracts in public procurement proceedings and for PPP-projects
- Legal evaluation of requests for participation and bids
- Answers to bidder-questions and objections concerning the violation of procurement provisions
- Representation in review proceedings as well as before German and European courts
Tax
The German tax practice focuses on the tax optimization of cross-border real estate transactions, financing, and pan-European investment structures. Among its clients are national and cross-border investors such as opportunity funds, banks, insurance companies, as well as initiators. The team advises on tax and insurance regulatory optimization and the structuring of national and cross-border real estate investments, unregulated international real estate funds, portfolio transactions, restructurings and joint ventures.
Our main areas of focus include:
Advising investors, companies, investment managers, servicers and other service providers, banks, insurers, opportunity funds, developers, enterprises, and partnerships, with respect to domestic and international tax law, particularly in the areas of:
- Optimization of inbound and outbound property transactions
- Tax-efficient structuring of German and cross-border company acquisitions (M&A)
- Taylor-made financing and refinancing
- Restructuring of existing investments and financing
- Joint ventures
- Asset management
- Regulatory and tax advice for unregulated European investment and holding structures
- Negotiations with competent tax authorities and tax courts
- Due diligence
- The Germany-based tax team benefits from close cooperation with worldwide tax lawyers and other practice groups of K&L Gates