The Legal 500

Within Banking and finance, Bech-Bruun is a first tier firm,

At Bech-Bruun, Steen Halmind, Morten Krogsgaard and Tue Ravnholt Frandsen advise on debt restructurings, distressed debt, and debt buy-back transactions, acquisition finance and regulatory matters. The team assisted Goldman Sachs International with an ISS €127.5m senior notes issue. Other clients include RBS, Svenska Handelsbanken and BNP Paribas. Steen Jensen represented two listed banks in negotiations with Finansiel Stabilitet. Jørgen Reimer Jensen specialises in aircraft and rail financing.

Within Capital markets, Bech-Bruun is a first tier firm,

Bech-Bruun advises on secondary rights issues, share transactions and compliance. Søren Meisling, Regina Andersen and Peter Lyck represented the issuers on the successful IPO and listing of global bioscience company Chr Hansen Holding. Jørgen Reimer Jensen and Trine Damsgaard Vissing advised joint lead managers Nordea and SEB Enskilda on the Bavarian Nordic rights issue. On the debt side, Jensen acted on derivatives and fund raising, notably on the Norwegian and South American markets. Steen Jensen advised Amagerbanken on restructuring financial products.

Within Dispute resolution, Bech-Bruun is a second tier firm,

Clients appreciate Bech-Bruun’s ‘exceptionally short response times’. The group, which includes former High Court judge Lars Lindencrone Petersen, represents insurers and reinsurers (Zurich, AXA, and Codan), and corporates A P Møller-Mærsk, Energinet.dk, TDC and Vestas. Jes Anker Mikkelsen represents Lloyds of London. Lars Svenning Andersen is representing 1,100 plaintiffs in a DKK4bn class action against DONG. Construction specialist Carsten Pedersen wins plaudits for his ‘strategic, analytical approach’.

Within EU and competition, Bech-Bruun is a second tier firm,

Bech-Bruun advises on state aid, anti-competitive practices, merger control and public procurement. Group head Simon Evers Kalsmose-Hjelmborg successfully represented Viasat UK Broadcasting in a case regarding TV 2’s abuse of dominance on the TV advertising market. Peter Stig Jakobsen won DKK75m in damages for Forbruger-Kontakt in a High Court case against Post Danmark regarding abuse of dominant position. Henrik Holtse was promoted to partner.

Within Employment, Bech-Bruun is a second tier firm,

Bech-Bruun’s six-partner practice, led by the ‘straightforward, respectful and deeply experienced’ Mette Klingsten, who represents British American Tobacco and Capgemini, advises on collective dismissals, redundancy programmes and outsourcing activities. Bjarke Vejby is representing Amagerbanken in a Supreme Court case concerning claims by retired bank employees. Morten Ulrich represents TDC and Lars Svenning Andersen has been appointed legal adviser to the ADP Group. The ‘experienced, savvy’ Jette Ronøe specialises in stock options; and discrimination lawyer Mads Krarup successfully defended JS Danmark in the Supreme Court.

Within Energy, Bech-Bruun is a second tier firm,

As principal legal council for Energinet.dk , Per Hemmer and his team at Bech-Bruun advise on transmission-related contractual and regulatory issues concerning a submarine power cable. Renewables work included advising E.ON Vind Sverige on the establishment of Rødsand II, Denmark’s largest offshore wind farm, and representing waste-to-energy plants DONG Energy Generation, Amagerforbrænding and Vesterforbrænding. The team provides specialist advice on shale activities in Denmark, notably to Schuepbach Energy, Devon Energy and Total.

Within Environment, Bech-Bruun is a first tier firm,

Bech-Bruun’s group leader Jens Auken and Hanne Mølbeck are advising Copenhagen Metro on the 2007-2018 extension programme and CPH City & Port Development on the redevelopment of Copenhagen port. Mads Kobberø advises some 50 municipalities on soil contamination, environmental permits and environmental law enforcement. Kobberø represented the municipality of Copenhagen, settling a longstanding dispute about payment for the diversion of sea water.

Within Information technology, Bech-Bruun is a first tier firm,

Bech-Bruun’s eight-strong team, led by Niels Andersen, advises on complex IT contracts, outsourcing and licensing agreements, system integration, compliance, e-commerce and data protection matters, including drafting and filing applications to the Danish Data Protection Agency, as well as providing transactional support. High-profile clients include Microsoft, Adobe, Dell and Business Software Alliance. Software licensing specialist Arly Carlquist is recommended.

Within Insolvency, Bech-Bruun is a first tier firm,

At Bech-Bruun, practice head Ole Borch, Michael Serring and Karl Stephensen are appointed receivers of the Copenhagen Bankruptcy Court, acting as trustees in bankruptcies, supervisors in suspensions of payments and members of creditors’ committees and handling out-of-court arrangements. Troels Tuxen is one of the three trustees of the Landic Group. The team provides restructuring advice, notably to Essex, JMI Invest and Flexa Holding.

Within Insurance, Bech-Bruun is a second tier firm,

Jes Anker Mikkelsen and Henrik Valdorf-Hansen and their team at Bech-Bruun have ‘a high understanding of the insurance industry’, having experienced a significant increase in regulatory work regarding life insurance and pension schemes. Mikkelsen, who is Danish counsel to Lloyd’s of London, successfully represented Ernst & Young in a Supreme Court Case. Clients include international and Danish insurers Zurich, AIG, TrygVesta and If, and commercial clients including Energinet.dk, Hewlett-Packard and Vestas. Jesper Windahl left to establish boutique Birch Windahl.

Within Intellectual property, Bech-Bruun is a second tier firm,

Bech-Bruun’s four-partner, 15-lawyer team, led by ‘strong litigator’ Klaus Ewald Madsen, focuses on trade mark and design, patent and copyright law, handling more cases than any other Danish law firm before the Maritime and Commercial Court. Clients recommend trade mark and design specialist Claus Barrett Christiansen for his ‘excellent industry knowledge’. High-profile clients include Business Software Alliance (BSA), Lenovo, Mars, Ratiopharm and Microsoft. Lisbet Andersen, who heads the trade marks group, handles domain name disputes.

Within Legal market overview,

The Big Four firms – Kromann Reumert, Bech-Bruun, Plesner, and Gorrissen Federspiel – dominate the market. While top banking and finance firms remain busy dealing with the aftermath of the crisis, the financial sector has been relatively quiet. Full-service firms Lett Law Firm and Horten face increased competition for public sector work.

Within Media and entertainment, Bech-Bruun is a first tier firm,

Bech-Bruun’s high-profile clients include Bonnier Publications, Capella Music, Electronic Arts and Universal. Following Denmark’s introduction of new gaming laws, it successfully defended three sports journalists from Viasat Sport, and the chairman of PARKEN Sport & Entertainment and FC København in the Supreme Court. Ole Borch focuses on sports law and sponsorship, while group head Niels Andersen’s clients include The Music Business Organisation. Arly Carlquist, who advises the Danish Game Producers’ Association, and Anders Rubinstein are recommended.

Within Mergers and acquisitions, Bech-Bruun is a first tier firm,

Jacob Hjortshøj and his ‘experienced, knowledgeable’ team at Bech-Bruun represented Lindorff Group (owned by Altor and Investor AB) on its DKK820m acquisition of debt collection company Finansservice. Tue Frandsen and Monica Reib advised Swedish Teracom on its €186m acquisition of the broadcast infrastructure businesses from DR and TV2. Søren Meisling advised on the €1.2bn cross-border merger between PBS Holding and Norwegian Nordito. Niels Kornerup and Jesper Kaltoft advised Nordic Sugar on its sale of Maribo Seed International to Syngenta. Philip Risbjørn, Mikkel Baaring Lerche and Nikolaj Bjørnholm left to join Hannes Snellman Attorneys at Law Ltd.

Within Real estate and construction, Bech-Bruun is a first tier firm,

Bech-Bruun’s practice, led by Torben Schön, possesses ‘in-depth knowledge and experience of construction law’. Andreas Antoniades represented Landic Property VI and its Swedish subsidiary in its SEK2.4bn divestment of 44 office properties in Sweden to Hemfosa Solen; Lars Kjær assisted Aareal Bank, Helaba and Nykredit with real estate financing involving the sale of operational companies to Debenhams Retail Investors. Carsten Pedersen ‘quickly absorbs often difficult circumstances’.

Within Shipping and transport, Bech-Bruun is a first tier firm,

Bech-Bruun is commended for its ‘strength in marine insurance matters’. The group advises P&I clubs, shipowners, operators and carriers and handles Maritime and Commercial Court and Supreme Court cases. Clients include A P Moller-Maersk, Stena Line and Thomas Cook, and insurers TrygVesta and If P&C Insurance. Matters caused by the financial crisis included termination of charter party arrangements and detention disputes. Group head Jes Anker Mikkelsen represented Indian shipowners PFS Narayana Shipping in a dispute regarding owner’s obligations to pay for charterers’ debt for bunkers. Henrik Valdorf-Hansen acted in international arbitrations concerning damage to wind turbine foundations in Germany and Austria. Jesper Windahl left to establish shipping boutique Birch Windahl.

Within Tax, Bech-Bruun is a second tier firm,

Bech-Bruun’s tax practice has been weakened by Nikolaj Bjørnholm’s departure to Hannes Snellman Attorneys at Law Ltd and Christian Bachmann’s move to Abel & Skovgård Larsen Advokatfirma. Clients appreciate Anders Oreby Hansen’s ‘out-of-box thinking’ in M&A-related tax planning, group restructuring and transfer pricing. Carsten Pals advises on structured finance products. Aarhus-based Michael Serup specialises in changes in business ownership and company structure. Senior associate Anne Becker-Christensen is commended for ‘incredible theoretical insight’. The team maintains an excellent record in tax controversy cases.

Within Telecoms, Bech-Bruun is a first tier firm,

Bech-Bruun’s team, headed by the ‘business oriented’ Niels Andersen and Arly Carlquist, advised on Terracom’s purchase of mast, fibre network and telecom equipment from Broadcasting Services Denmark and Telia’s sale of its TV transmission company Stofa as well as handling regulatory matters related to the telecoms market. Key clients include ACN, Comitel, Microsoft and payment processor PBS.