The Legal 500

Within Antitrust, Hengeler Mueller is a second tier firm,

Clients appreciate the ‘very lean staffing’ 
and ‘extremely high partner involvement’ at Hengeler Mueller, which has a steadily growing portfolio of cross-border instructions, and which has acted in highlight cases such as giving merger control advice to MAN regarding its takeover by Volkswagen. Other highlights included representing a client in the European Commission’s administrative fine proceedings regarding a truck manufacturing cartel and representing HRS in the FCO’s proceedings regarding the so-called ‘best price clause’. Jochen Burrichter is ‘a doyen in his field’, and Thorsten Mäger is also recommended.

Within Bank lending,

Hengeler Mueller’s broad practice is particularly adept at handling restructuring-related matters and is gaining recognition for its up-and-coming lawyers. The team acts for borrowers and lenders, and recent highlights include advising Amprion on a syndicated loan; representing BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank, HSBC and J.P. Morgan as lenders on the €8bn refinancing of Schaeffler; and acting for Landesbank Baden-Württemberg on the financing of Patrizia Immobilien’s acquisition of LBBW Immobilien. Johannes Tieves and Thomas Cron ‘belong among the top partners for finance in Germany’.

Within Capital markets, Hengeler Mueller is a first tier firm,

Hengeler Mueller’s lawyers are ‘so efficient that they’re worth the high hourly rates’, and give ‘quick and very qualified responses’. The firm has a leading practice in both the debt and equity spaces, and has excellent contacts with issuers and banks. Highlights included advising Adidas on the issuance of a €500m convertible bond; Siemens on a $3bn bond issuance with warrants; and Commerzbank on capital transactions totalling €11bn. Torsten Busch and debt expert Hendrik Haag are recommended.

Within Corporate and M&A, Hengeler Mueller is a first tier firm,

Hengeler Mueller, which is ‘nothing but outstanding in any respect’, advises across a wide range of industries, represents good value, and ‘consults effectively on the myriad of issues that arise’. The team frequently advises major foreign clients on their German activities: for example, it advised Rolls-Royce on the €3.4bn takeover of Tognum jointly with Daimler. It also advised 
EQT on the sale of Kabel BW to Liberty Global. Other clients include ThyssenKrupp, Porsche Automobil Holding and GlaxoSmithKline. 
Hans-Jörg Ziegenhain ‘identifies commercially relevant items in negotiations’, and ‘does not 
lose time with side issues’.

Within Dispute resolution, Hengeler Mueller is a first tier firm,

Hengeler Mueller’s strong team provides ‘perfect information flow’ to clients, and has sharpened its profile on the arbitration side to complement its litigation work. It recently represented BayernLB in damages actions against former board members. The team also defended Deutsche Telekom against claims by the Federal Republic of Germany arising from the delayed start of a toll collection system, and defended Porsche against performance, compensation and declaratory claims brought by investors. Markus Meier ‘does a superb job’ and is ‘in a class of his own’. Hartwin Bungert is recommended for his ‘excellent legal knowledge combined with business acumen’.

Within Employment Other recommended firms

Within Litigation, tier 5

Hengeler Mueller has notable telecoms and pharmaceuticals expertise, and produces a ‘fantastic quality’ of work. It is acting for IPCom in its high-profile litigation against Nokia. The team also represented Kennametal in a patent lawsuit regarding chemical coatings. Wolfgang Kellenter has ‘perfect knowledge and rhetorical skills’.

Within IP: trade marks Other recommended firms

Within Restructuring, tier 4

Hengeler Mueller has significant expertise in refinancing, and recently advised Pfleiderer on the restructuring of a €1.1bn syndicated credit facility. It also advised Q-Cells on bond restructuring. The team represents numerous banks, and acted for WestLB on its comprehensive transformation. Johannes Tieves is ‘proactive and pushy if needed’, and the partners overall are ‘hands-on and deliver sound and immediate advice’.

Within Investment funds, Hengeler Mueller is a first tier firm,

Hengeler Mueller has one of Germany’s leading funds practices, and frequently advises on cutting-edge matters. It has leveraged its best-friends network internationally and has compiled a great track record in international work. Morgan Stanley is a key client. Edgar Wallach and Thomas Paul are recommended.

Within Private equity, Hengeler Mueller is a first tier firm,

Hengeler Mueller is emerging as ‘a crucial player to be taken seriously’, and has strong relations to key market players. Recent work includes advising KPS Capital Partners on its acquisition of Bosch’s foundation brakes business; KKR on the tender offer for WMF; and Melrose on the tender offer for Elster Group. Hans-Jörg Ziegenhain is highly recommended.

Within Public sector, Hengeler Mueller is a third tier firm,

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’.

Within Real estate, Hengeler Mueller is a third tier firm,

Hengeler Mueller provides ‘top-notch quality’ and leverages the firm’s extremely strong M&A and finance practices to advise various clients on real estate loan refinancings and restructuring matters. Highlights were advising Landesbank Baden-Württemberg on the sale of LBBW Immobilien and its portfolio of 21,000 residential units, and acting for GAGFAH on the sale of the Pegasus portfolio to GSW. Georg Frowein is well regarded.

Within Structured finance and securitisation, Hengeler Mueller is a first tier firm,

Hengeler Mueller’s ‘high-quality practice’ 
has been advising Commerzbank, Deutsche Bank and LBBW on the €10bn refinancing 
of Schaeffler Group including €2bn worth 
of high-yield bonds. It acted for Citigroup 
on RWE’s €1.33bn hybrid bond with 
placements in the UK, Switzerland, Singapore and Hong Kong. Stefan Krauss has ‘an 
extremely good reputation’, and Dirk Bliesener is ‘precise, efficient, and speedy’ and ‘provides incomparable advice’.

Within Tax, Hengeler Mueller is a second tier firm,

Hengeler Mueller gives ‘excellent support’ on large-scale transactions. It advised E.ON on tax aspects of its €3bn sale of Open Grid Europe, and acted for Fresenius on the voluntary public takeover offer for Rhön-Klinikum. It also assisted ThyssenKrupp during the combination of its stainless steel business with Outokumpu. ‘Very capable tax specialist’ Stefanie Beinert is ‘an expert in cross-border partnership taxation’, which is a growing area of practice for the firm.

Within Telecoms, Hengeler Mueller is a second tier firm,

Hengeler Mueller provides ‘high quality’, ‘top-of-the-bill advice’ on telecoms transactions and represented Deutsche Telekom in legal disputes and subsequent settlement agreements for mobile phone service provider contracts with Drillisch Group. It acted for Kabel Deutschland in litigation regarding frequency allocation interference issues. Wolfgang Spoerr ‘understands the legal regime very well’.