The Legal 500

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s comprehensive practice has been busy advising on renewable energy matters and acting for public banks, an area in which Benedikt Wolfers is ‘an outstanding expert’. The team also expertly advises on environmental, planning and regulatory issues, and recently advised 
BayernLB on the €1bn sale of Bayerische Landesbausparkasse as part of a restructuring requested by the EC. It acted for RWE in a constitutional case regarding the Nuclear Energy Act, and advised Betfair on one of the first sports betting licences granted to a private undertaking in Germany. Wolf Friedrich Spieth is also recommended.

Gleiss Lutz’s broad practice variously advised E.ON on constitutional law regarding the decommissioning of nuclear power stations and acted for AOK on invitations to tender for discount contracts for generic drugs. It also represented Bank of Ireland in state aid proceedings before the EC. Public planning law expert Hans Schlarmann ‘leads a team of specialists with great attention to strategy and tricky details’, and Michael Uechtritz is ‘absolutely brilliant and his administrative law experience outstanding’. Marcus Dannecker now heads the practice after Olaf Otting joined Allen & Overy LLP in November 2012.

CMS gives ‘precise and practice-oriented’ advice. The team’s core areas of expertise are environmental, planning and infrastructure work, with recent highlights including advising 
K + S on the disposal of salt water used in the potash industry, and acting for the city of Stuttgart in an EU state aid case. It is also advising Gasunie on the extension of natural gas transmission pipelines. Fritz von Hammerstein is ‘one of the most experienced in Germany for mining law’.

Dolde Mayen & Partner excels at environmental and planning law advice as 
well as contentious administrative and constitutional law representation. The team advised BIS Bremerhaven on planning law 
issues pertaining to road construction, and assisted EnBW with planning law relating to a hydro project. The very experienced Klaus-Peter Dolde, Markus Deutsch and Thomas Mayen 
are recommended.

Linklaters LLP provides excellent transaction-related advice in the energy, healthcare and transport sectors, and infrastructure work and regulatory advice are also strong areas. The team advised Austrian Verbund Wasserkraftwerke on acquiring eight hydroelectric plants from E.ON, and is advising Bilfinger Berger on motorway extension projects. The team is advising KfW-IPEX, NIBIC and LBBW on environmental and planning law pertaining to the financing of the Baltic 1 offshore wind farm. Jan Endler is the name to note.

Noerr excels at environmental and planning law work, and ‘proactively brings issues to the client’s attention’. The team recently advised Gazprom on its acquisition of Envacom Service. Olav Wagner is a key figure on the public procurement side, where the team capitalised 
on its health sector expertise to advise 
Hochtaunus-Kliniken on PPP matters. Holger Schmitz is ‘knowledgeable, service-oriented and pragmatic’.

Redeker Sellner Dahs has strong environmental and planning law expertise and a well-regarded contentious practice, and its ‘dedicated experts advise with the necessary composure and experience’. The team recently advised the Federal Ministry of Transport on air traffic noise pollution issues and is assisting Evonik with emissions trading matters. It has also been advising Dow Germany on development planning for a coal-fired power station. Dieter Sellner, Ulrich Karpenstein and Tobias Masing are recommended.

White & Case LLP has environmental, planning, PPP and energy law expertise, as well as strong ties to several federal ministries. It recently advised the Federal Finance Ministry on the planned privatisation of TLG Immobilien and assisted the Federal Ministry of the Environment with energy and climate matters. The municipality of Helgoland received advice on offshore wind farm matters. Norbert Wimmer 
is recommended, but the group lost public procurement expert Kersten Wagner-Cardenal, who joined Görg Partnerschaft von Rechtsanwälten in January 2013.

Baumeister, Rechtsanwälte is a ‘highly specialised’ and ‘well established’ boutique that focuses on waste, environmental and planning law, and has strong ties to industrial clients such as ThyssenKrupp. BP Germany recently instructed the team on refinery expansion matters, and RWE Innogy is a client for emission and planning law advice. Martin Beckmann is highly regarded.

‘All performance indicators are outstanding’ in Clifford Chance’s environmental, planning and public procurement practice, which advised GKW Wustermark on nature conservation, building and emission control law, and assisted Amprion with obtaining planning approval for high-voltage power lines. Other work included advising Macquarie on construction of a geothermal energy plant. Horst Schlemminger is one of ‘the most experienced environmental lawyers’.

Gaßner, Groth, Siederer & Coll is a 
well-known boutique with a focus on environmental, planning and waste law, and a prominent contentious practice. The team advised the state of Mecklenburg Western Pomerania on the permissibility of asbestos transportation; GeoEnergy on geothermal projects; and the Federal Office for Radiation Protection regarding the Morsleben radioactive waste depository. Name partners Hartmut Gaßner, Klaus-Martin Groth and Wolfgang Siederer are recommended.

Graf von Westphalen has expertise in environmental, planning, procurement and infrastructure matters. Recent highlights include advising Ikea on the building of an inner city store, and acting for Deutsche Telekom on planning and construction of data centres. Ronald Steiling is recommended, and the team was reinforced by the recent recruitment of procurement lawyer Bettina Meyer-Hofmann from Mütze Korsch Rechtsanwaltsgesellschaft mbH.

Hengeler Mueller frequently advises on environmental and planning law, has regulated industries expertise and has a strong contentious element to the team, which represented GN Store Nord in liability action against the Federal Republic of Germany. The team is advising WestLB on constitutional, regulatory and state aid issues pertaining to its restructuring, and Dong Energy receives environmental, planning and zoning law advice. Dirk Uwer is ‘responsive, efficient and client-friendly’, and gives ‘very practical advice’.

Hogan Lovells International LLP’s ‘fast and accurate’ team focuses on environmental and planning law, particularly in the energy and real estate sectors. It is advising Autobahn Tank & Rast on PPP models and tender processes, and recently advised Mitsubishi on environmental law pertaining to the partial acquisition of two offshore grid connection projects. The team is acting for Dreieich’s municipal utility company on the development and operation of a photovoltaic power plant. Thomas Dünchheim is ‘available 24/7’ and is recommended along with practice head Bernhard Kuhn.

Bird & Bird has a leading public procurement practice, particularly in the healthcare sector. Recent work includes advising EWV on high-value service concessions and representing statutory health insurance companies on the first Europe-wide invitation to tender for the supply of biosimilars. The firm reinforced the team by recruiting the highly regarded Heiko Höfler from Orrick Hölters & Elsing in October 2012. Jan Byok is also recommended.

DLA Piper has a focus on infrastructure and other projects work, as well as expertise in public procurement regulations and substantial transport sector experience, particularly in the aviation industry, where Virgin Airlines is a client. The team continues to advise Nabucco Gas Pipeline International on its projects. Public sector clients include The Federal Ministry for Nutrition and the state of Rhineland-Palatinate. Ludger Giesberts is the key contact.

Avocado rechtsanwälte is ‘highly recommended’ for waste law, and also frequently advises on emissions trading. Clients include power plant operators and chemicals companies. Markus Figgen and Ralf Kaminski are recommended.

Baker & McKenzie acts for clients such as Novartis on public procurement law, while environmental law work includes advising a foreign natural gas company on plans for a project to explore shale gas resources in Germany. Marc Gabriel and Joachim Scherer are recommended, and clients say ‘if we need urgent advice they work within our timescales’.

Becker Büttner Held, Rechtsanwälte Wirtschaftsprüfer Steuerberater’s energy experts advise power plant operators and energy trading companies, and the firm also has a leading practice providing energy law advice to several hundred German municipalities. Peter Becker and Ines Zenke are recommended. The firm’s merger with Hamburg-based energy boutique Kuhbier reinforced the team in 
January 2013.

GSK Stockmann + Kollegen’s partners have ‘enormous expertise’ and ‘are highly respected by the counterparty’. Environmental and planning law are particular strengths and wind energy has been a recent growth area. The team continues to advise the state of Lower Saxony on national motorway planning, and recently advised Stuttgart regional authority regarding fine particle pollution. It also acts for Manroland. Wolfgang Würfel is recommended and Andreas Geiger is ‘among the best’ for planning law.

Heuking Kühn Lüer Wojtek has a robust PPP and public procurement team, which advises JadeWeserPort on an ongoing basis. The firm also assists HVV Hamburger Verkehrsverbund with state aid advice, and acts for the Ministry for Traffic and Infrastructure Baden-Württemberg on tenders. Ute Jasper is ‘a fantastic public procurement lawyer’.

Boutique firm Lenz and Johlen is ‘one of the most longstanding players’ in the market for environmental and planning law. Its clients include Aldi and Bauhaus. The team also advised Metro Properties on the development of retail operations. Heribert Johlen is the name to note.

Taylor Wessing focuses on environmental and planning law, but also has regulatory and procurement law expertise in the transport and energy sectors. The team advised Evonik Industries on environmental aspects of the sale of its industrial soot business, and advised EGN on inter-communal waste incineration models. Other work included advising the Ministry for Economic Affairs, Labour and Traffic of Lower Saxony on night-flight regulations. Walter Potthast is ‘very competent, proactive and efficient’, and Torsten van Jeger is also recommended.