The Legal 500

Within Aviation, Stibbe is a second tier firm,

‘A truly full service Benelux firm’, Stibbe continues to act as dedicated counsel for The Brussels Airport Company. The firm also worked for The Flemish Region’s airport policy department on granting a public service concession at regional airports. ‘Service-oriented’ team head Frederik Vandendriessche has ‘in-depth knowledge in administrative law and public procurement’.

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Within Banking, finance and capital markets, Stibbe is a first tier firm,

Stibbe’s ‘excellent’ team is led by the ‘responsive and reasonable’ Ivan Peeters, who is an expert in securitisations. This comprehensive practice has notable strength in project finance. Wouter Ghijsels led advice to DG Infra, Inframan, DHAM and PMF (PMV) as subordinated lenders in the €850m financing of the Northwind offshore wind farm project. The firm was recently appointed to European Investment Bank’s panel for Belgium and The Netherlands. Counsel Philip Van Steenwinkel is also recommended.

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Within Competition, tier 5

Stibbe has picked up state aid instructions and is acting for several energy sector clients, including Czech Coal, in behavioural proceedings. Practice head Peter Wytinck defended Schindler in a private damages case brought by the EC before Belgian courts, following the elevator cartel investigation. Hendrik Viaene is recommended.

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Within Corporate and M&A, Stibbe is a second tier firm,

Stibbe provides ‘a high quality of service’ and maintains a strong corporate practice despite the departure of Olivier Clevenbergh, who left to found a new practice following the firm’s dissolution of its alliance with Herbert Smith Freehills LLP. Practice head Marc Fyon is ‘very experienced’, and is ‘pleasant to work with’. The ‘very good’ Katrien Vorlat recently advised KKR on its $2.375bn acquisition of Pfizer’s Capsugel division.

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Within Dispute resolution, Stibbe is a first tier firm,

Stibbe’s substantial dispute resolution practice handles the breadth of litigation and arbitration cases, and Bruno Maes and Jachin Van Doninck recently won a groundbreaking libel case for Skepp as plaintiff before the Court of Cassation. The matter concerned freedom of speech in relation to the use of alternative medicine.

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Within Energy, Stibbe is a first tier firm,

Stibbe acts for energy producers, suppliers and transmission system operators on distribution issues, renewable energy projects and litigation before the Belgian courts. Wouter Geldhof advised Elia on offshore grid development and acted for Fedesco on energy services contracts.

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Within Environment (including WEEE and RoHS), Stibbe is a first tier firm,

Stibbe represents architects, developers, environmental groups and public bodies, and is active across the entire Benelux region. Practice head Jan Bouckaert advised the Flemish Region in proceedings initiated by the EC at the European Court of Justice concerning the treatment of urban wastewater.

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Within Financial services, Stibbe is a first tier firm,

Stibbe has a transactional focus, and advised National Bank of Belgium and the Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA) on the rescue of Belgian retail banks. Jan Peeters advised clients on passporting into Belgium and FSMA compliance. Ivan Peeters and Wouter Ghijsels were recently appointed to European Investment Bank’s project finance panel.

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Within Information technology, Stibbe is a first tier firm,

Stibbe’s ‘strong’ team is praised for its ‘prompt reactions’ and ‘high business acumen’. ‘Excellent negotiator’ Erik Valgaeren heads this dedicated group, which advises Belgacom on matters ranging from wholesale agreements to litigation concerning software platforms. The team also advised Argenta on outsourcing and acted for Mozilla Corporation on a compliance programme. Senior associate Nicolas Roland has ‘excellent pleading skills in court’.

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Within Environment, Stibbe is a first tier firm,

Stibbe’s planning and environment practice has ‘in-depth knowledge’, and is closely integrated with the real estate and corporate teams. The team advised AG Real Estate on the Kanaalkom urban redevelopment in Hasselt, Flanders, including legal assistance relating to the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) and Environmental Impact Assessment. Practice head Jan Bouckaert and Monique Kestemont are recommended.

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Within Fraud and white-collar crime, Stibbe is a first tier firm,

Stibbe delivers ‘a high quality of service’ and ‘good response times’. The practice represents corporate clients in litigation concerning money laundering, corruption, public procurement fraud, tax fraud, internal fraud, environmental criminal law, extradition and mutual legal assistance. Practice head Hans Van Bavel and counsel Dirk Libotte are recommended.

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Within Information technology, Stibbe is a first tier firm,

Stibbe handles IT litigation and advisory matters. Recent work includes representing Google Belgium in Belgian court summary proceedings concerning freedom of speech and personal data of Gmail account holders. The firm also advised the EU Commission on contracts and data protection aspects of the new Schengen Information System and Visa Information System Project. Other clients include Unicef, Belgacom and YouTube. Erik Valgaeren is recommended for his ‘business insight’.

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Within Insolvency and restructuring, Stibbe is a second tier firm,

Stibbe has seen a rise in activity assisting large private companies and public entities faced with the insolvency of suppliers or contractors. The practice has also been busy acting as liquidator for various voluntarily dissolved companies registered in Belgium, and advising various Belgian public authorities on the Dexia Bank rescue plan. Paul Van der Putten is the key figure.

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Within Intellectual property, Stibbe is a second tier firm,

Stibbe’s ‘very good’ practice spans all aspects of IP law from contractual issues to litigation. Practice head Ignace Vernimme acted for pharmaceuticals manufacturer Mylan in multi-jurisdictional patent and parallel import cases. The team also represented the Belgian government in various IP disputes.

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Within Labour and employment, Stibbe is a third tier firm,

Stibbe has ‘a good depth of labour law knowledge’ and provides ‘innovative and creative solutions’. The ‘pragmatic’ Herman Craeninckx heads this comprehensive practice, which supports other departments and attracts standalone mandates. Newly promoted partner Jerome Aubertin provides ‘intelligent’ advice and is one to watch. Jean-Philippe Cordier and Corinne Merla left to form an employment boutique.

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Within Media and entertainment, Stibbe is a second tier firm,

Stibbe advises a number of high-profile clients in the media sector. Recent work includes advising Sony Entertainment on compliance with the audio-visual media services, privacy and e-commerce regulation for on-demand video applications. Practice head Erik Valgaeren is ‘an excellent negotiator’.

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Within Real estate, Stibbe is a first tier firm,

Stibbe has been involved in Belgium’s most important PPP projects. Practice head Rony Vermeersch led the advice to Antwerp Port Authority regarding the construction of the new port house, and acted for Brussels Capital Region on the PPP renovation of the Leopold II road tunnel.

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Within Shipping and transport, Stibbe is a third tier firm,

Stibbe is ‘a truly full-service firm in the Benelux market’, and provides ‘pragmatic’ and ‘business-oriented’ advice. Practice head Frederik Vandendriessche, who has ‘a thorough and very useful understanding of the transport sector’, recently advised Belgian railway company NMBS/SNCB on its obligations and liabilities regarding the new Diabolo railway link to Brussels Airport. Regulatory specialist Wouter Geldhof ‘excels in terms of responsiveness and proactivity’.

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Within Tax, Stibbe is a third tier firm,

Thierry Denayer heads Stibbe’s tax practice, which is recommended for its ‘excellent service and knowledge’. Direct taxation specialist Xavier Gillot was promoted to the partnership in July 2012, as was Wim Panis, who focuses on VAT, real estate and public sector taxation.

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