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Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer is a firm of choice for large-cap private equity transactions. The team acted for Cinven and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board on the €1.2bn buyout of online booking portal Hotelbeds from TUI. It also advised EQT on the acquisition of Bilfinger’s building and facility division. Markus Paul heads the practice, which includes a number of recommended individuals, among them Nils Koffka, Kai Hasselbach and Ludwig Leyendecker.

Latham & Watkins LLP ‘works in a precise and efficient manner, even under time pressure’, to give ‘commercial and strategic advice’. It assisted BC Partners with its €1.8bn sale of a 72% stake in Synlab to Cinven, among the most high-value deals in 2015. Triton Partners is one of several new clients for the team. Rainer Traugott joined from Linklaters. ‘Very experienced and savvy negotiator’ Burc Hesse is recommended along with Henning Schneider and Christian Edye, who are ‘always available’; Oliver Felsenstein and Hans-Jürgen Lütt are also recommended. Dirk Oberbracht recently joined Gibson Dunn.

Clifford Chance represents numerous private equity firms and recently advised EQT Infrastructure II on its €1.4bn sale of EEW Energy from Waste to Beijing Enterprises. The team also advised KKR on purchasing a majority stake in Deutsche Glasfaser. Practice head Christopher Kellett, Joachim Hasselbach and Kerstin Kopp are key names to note along with Anselm Raddatz, who joined the practice after 19 years at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, and the increasingly visible Markus Muhs.

Gleiss Lutz covers the gamut of private equity work. High-value matters included advising KKR on its €1bn acquisition of Bayer’s global diabetes care division and acting for Blackstone and Kirkbi on the €960m buyout of insulation materials manufacturer Armacell. Jan Bauer, Patrick Kaffiné, Jan Balssen and Fred Wendt are the names to note. On the acquisition finance side, the firm recently elevated Frank Schlobach to the partnership and hired Eva Reudelhuber from Linklaters.

Hengeler Mueller’s practice features highly regarded practitioners Hans-Jörg Ziegenhain, Maximilian Schiessl, Emanuel Strehle and Christof Jäckle, as well as recently promoted partner Andreas Hoger. The team routinely acts on high-value transactions, such as acting for Advent International on its €2.8bn sale of Douglas to CVC Capital Partners. The practice has substantial real estate sector expertise and advised Blackstone on a €1.6bn real estate portfolio acquisition.

Kirkland & Ellis International LLP’s ‘very commercial and pragmatic’ team has a good reputation for restructuring work in the private equity arena. It advised Summit Partners on the €725m sale of its majority stake in 360T Beteiligungs GmbH to Deutsche Börse and acted for Gilde Buy Out Partners in its acquisition of jeweller Amor from 3i. Jörg Kirchner is recommended; Achim Herfs joined from Hengeler Mueller but Christian Zuleger and Volker Kullmann moved to Sidley Austin LLP.

Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP gives ‘detail-oriented advice’ underpinned by its ‘commercial approach’. The team assisted Advent International with the €600m sale of its majority stake in GFKL Financial Services to Permira. Norbert Rieger is very well regarded and has substantial tax expertise in relation to private equity transactions. Peter Nussbaum is also recommended. The highly regarded Michael Bernhardt joined from Allen & Overy LLP but Peter Memminger left to establish his own corporate boutique, Memminger LLP.

Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP is a significant player in the mid-cap arena and has a particular focus on cross-border work, where it leverages the firm’s US offices. It assisted Wendel with acquiring a 73% stake in Austrian Constantia Flexibles and acted for 3i in its sale of jeweller Amor to Gilde Buy Out Partners. The highly regarded Mario Schmidt is recommended along with Stefan Jörgens, Maximilian Schwab and Axel Wahl.

CMS has a major mid-cap practice, where one particular highlight was acting for new client Equistone Partners in its purchase of a majority stake in TriStyle Mode from Primondo Specialty group and Wirth Beteiligungs GmbH. Udo Simmat and Martin Bell are very well regarded.

Linklaters focuses on the infrastructure, real estate and finance sectors. Notable infrastructure matters included advising Macquarie on buying a 25% stake in Energie Steiermark. Terra Firma and Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management received advice on the sale of Tank & Rast to Allianz Capital Partners. Ralph Drebes has taken over as practice head after Rainer Traugott’s departure to Latham & Watkins LLP. Ulrich Wolff is also recommended.

P+P Pöllath + Partners focuses on fund structuring matters, management advice and management participation programmes. The team also fields a number of experts for mid-cap transactions, among them Matthias Bruse, Otto Haberstock, Philipp von Braunschweig and Andrea von Drygalski. Recent work includes advising EQT on its €1.44bn sale of EEW Energy from Waste to Beijing Enterprises.

Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP is a trusted adviser in turnaround situations but also handles private equity transactions, regularly acting for Bregal, Centerbridge Partners, TPG Capital and General Atlantic. Tipico group’s shareholders received advice on selling a majority stake to CVC Capital Partners. Gerhard Schmidt and Christian Tappeiner are highly regarded. Volkmar Bruckner joined from Latham & Watkins LLP.

White & Case LLP attracted an increasing number of high-value transactions, with Stefan Koch and Andreas Stilcken being particularly visible in the market. One recent highlight was the €3.5bn buyout of Tank & Rast from Terra Firma, where the team acted for the successful bidding consortium led by Allianz Capital Partners.

Allen & Overy LLP receives praise for its ‘extraordinary level of service’. Its real estate expertise ensures a constant flow of work, with Corestate Capital and Patrizia Alternative Investments being among the key clients. The team also acted for Deutsche Beteiligungs AG in several acquisitions. 3i, Cinven and KKR are also clients. Markus Käpplinger now leads the team, after Michael Bernhardt’s departure to Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP.

Hogan Lovells International LLP attracted a range of mid-cap transactions such as advising Odewald & Compagnie and Cobepa on the sale of d&b audiotechnik to Ardian. Matthias Jaletzke, Joachim Habetha, Volker Geyrhalter and the ‘forward-thinking’ Lars Benger are recommended.

Jones Day ensures ‘immediate availability of partners across practice groups’. The team has a real estate sector focus and recently acted for Blackstone in a real estate portfolio acquisition from Real IS. Ivo Posluschny, Ansgar Rempp and Philipp Grzimek are recommended. Stefan Schneider has been promoted to partner.

Noerr’s team develops ‘bespoke solutions’ and ‘thinks outside the box’. It advised Alteri Investors on its takeover of Walz. Aurelius and Oakley Capital are new client wins. ‘Pragmatic, practical and knowledgeable’ tax law expert Carsten Heinz is recommended along with Dominik Rompza and practice head Georg Schneider, who has ‘excellent connections’.