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GERMANY
– Leading tax law firms
www.taxdirectorshandbook.co.uk
88
F
lick Gocke Schaumburg
has
an enviable reputation within
the market as a boutique tax
law firm whose expertise runs
the gamut of the sector, and a very large
number of fee-earners including many
tax advisers and CPAs. The client base
is ‘
excellent
’, with some ‘
very prestigious
’
name; it ranges from international
corporations and national companies
(from sectors such as telecoms, utilities,
insurance, transport, electrical and
construction) to leading German families.
The team as a whole has a ‘
very good
reputation
’, and lawyers of note include
Thomas Rödder in corporate tax; Detlev
Piltz in tax litigation and international
matters; and the nationally respected
figure of Harald Schaumburg. The firm is
aiming to build its profile internationally
and extend its expertise to areas other
than tax.
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer
’s
large team is led by Christian Ruoff,
and witnessed an upturn in M&A-
related tax advice, with restructuring
and refinancing work also remaining
significant areas. The group has an
impressive portfolio of clients that
includes Porsche Automobil Holding,
Deutsche Bank, Volkswagen and
Deutsche Post. Recent highlights
include acting for Thyssen Krupp
Marine Systems in the complex takeover
of the shipbuilding group Blohm +
Voss; and representing Merckle/VEM
Vermoegensverwaltung on the sale of the
Merckle/ratiopharm group to an Israeli
company, in a €3.6bn deal. Tobias Teufel
is now partner at the firm and specialises
in bank and investment taxation.
Stephan Eilers and Norbert Schneider are
recommended.
Linklaters LLP
’s team, led by
Sebastian Benz, had a busy year, and
is noted for its ‘
high-quality
’, multi-
jurisdictional advice. The firm acted
for Banco Santander on the €555m
acquisition of the German retail
section of Swedish bank SEB; for
Unicredit Bank on the acquisition of
Bank Austria’s investment banking
arm; and for a consortium of banks
including Commerzbank and RBS
on the restructuring of Schaeffler’s
loan liabilities, the largest corporate
restructuring to date in Europe. Andreas
Rosenberg and Jens Blumenberg are
recommended.
Allen & Overy LLP
’s busy four-
partner team was strengthened by Heike
Weber being made partner, joining
Germany – Leading tax
law firms