The Legal 500 > Europe, Middle East & Africa > Sweden > Employment

Advokatfirman Cederquist KB fields a 'fast and solution-oriented' team of experienced lawyers, who handle employment issues for companies and organisations from a variety of sectors. Practice head Robert Stromberg has significant expertise in reorganisations and redundancies; his recent highlights include acting for PwC with associate Klara Wirén in a dispute relating to a breach of a non-solicitation and non-competition clause by a former regional manager and the related payment of liquidated damages. Jens Tillqvist conducted several investigations for Fastighetsbyrån relating to the transferral of trade secrets, and associate Jonas Lindskog is also noted. Jenny Jilmstad is now at Hamilton Advokatbyrå.

The team at DLA Piper is 'professional and highly skilled' in employment litigation; it regularly handles cases before the Labour Court and various district and administrative courts. The group has also been active in privacy and data protection work; specialist Johan Sundberg was appointed as external data privacy officer for General Electric. Other clients include Discovery, ITV Studios Nordic and Xervon. 'Great' practice head Mats Borgström is praised for 'giving straightforward advice' and senior associate Dino Kalamujic is well versed in the service, fashion, retail and media sectors.

Led by Henric Diefke, Mannheimer Swartling's highly regarded employment and pensions practice handles the full spectrum of contentious and non-contentious employment matters. Recent mandates include Diefke assisting Spotify with the employment aspects of its acquisition of Soundtrap, and Anders Nordström conducting an investigation into the potential future risks associated with recruitment, whistleblowing and financial services for Sollentuna Municipality. Charlotte Demegård was promoted to specialist counsel in 2018.

The 'excellent' team at Advokatfirman Vinge, which is 'available and proactive', handles all aspects of employment law and is particularly well versed in contentious matters, most notably in claims relating to employee disloyalty and trade secret infringement issues. The group's client roster encompasses companies in the banking and finance, private equity, transportation and telecoms sectors. The practice is jointly led by Fredrik Dahl, Charlotte Forssander and Ingela Malmborg in Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö respectively. Newly promoted partner Åsa Gotthardsson is 'very knowledgeable, engaged and efficient'; she assisted Saint-Gobain Emmaboda Glas with the transfer of business units, and also handled a number of investigations for clients in the media sector. Yohanna Öhrnegård also made partner in 2018 and is praised for 'always delivering above expectations'.

Advokatfirman Schjødt's team 'stands on solid ground due to its experience'; it is regularly involved in the employment aspects of the M&A department's transactions but also handles disputes and gives 'well-adapted' advice relating to the protection of human capital, trade secrets work, pensions issues and incentive schemes. Senior counsel Tom Johansson is also experienced in the field; Jenny Jilmstad, who joined from Osborne Clarke, was a new arrival in 2019. Erik Danhard joined Kanter Advokatbyrå in 2019.

Baker McKenzie's 'responsive and available' department is active in a wide range of industries and fields Sten Bauer, who is singled out as a 'trusted partner with lenghty experience and an ability to provide good advice in all legal matters'; his recent work includes successfully defending Splunk in wrongful dismissal claims brought by a former employee. Counsel Johan Zetterström is 'always clear in his explanations' and specialises in corporate reorganisations, individual terminations and collective redundancies. 'Efficient' associate Ida Cederborg is also noted.

Setterwalls' practice is regularly instructed by national and international companies and public authorities, and handles matters relating to employment contracts, restructurings, terminations and labour disputes. The team also has notable expertise in internal investigations; practice co-head Åsa Erlandsson assisted The Swedish Social Democratic Party with an internal investigation after the speaker of the Swedish parliament was accused of sexual harassment. Other clients include TV4, Mylan and Dedicare. Fellow co-head Henrik Kjellander is also a key name to note. Dan Bullarbo left to establish Attorney Dan Bullarbo AB in 2018.

The department at Bird & Bird is praised for 'combining high-quality and hands-on advice with a pragmatic approach and understanding of the client's business'. The team, led by the highly regarded Katarina Åhlberg, advises on the full gamut of employment law with additional expertise in incentives and pensions, GDPR complicance and immigration law. In a recent highlight, Åhlberg advised QlikTech on the reduction of its workforce in its operating units in Gothenburg and Lund. Counsel Ottilia Boström has a 'pragmatic and business-oriented approach based on great knowledge and experience'.

Advokatfirman Delphi's main areas of expertise include general employment law advice, restructurings and labour disputes. The group works closely with the firm's banking and corporate departments and regularly assists with the employment aspects of wider transactions. Department head Fredrik Nordlöf is well versed in trade union matters, and Rebecka Thörn was instructed by Nibe Industrier to draft a bonus policy document; she also assisted the client with hires and terminations at a management level. Leif Ramberg departed to Advokatfirman Wåhlin in 2018.

Eversheds Sutherland handles restructuring and non-contentious matters, working closely together with the firm's M&A team. The group is also regularly involved in cross-border projects and benefits from the firm's international network. Per Westman leads the team, which was strengthened by the arrival of Torbjörn Lindmark  from MAQS Advokatbyrå in 2019.

MAQS Advokatbyrå's team has notable expertise in the retail, consumer, automotive and pharmaceuticals sectors. The highly experienced Lars Lövgren and Mats Nilsson jointly lead the practice from Gothenburg and Malmö respectively; Nilsson represented a fabric developer in fraud and wrongful representation claims against its former CEO. Other clients inlcude 3M, the University of Gothenburg and KGH Customs Services. Torbjörn Lindmark joined Eversheds Sutherland in 2019.

Roschier is praised for its ability to act on 'a pro-active basis and always provides practical advice that is well anchored in the client's business needs'. The group leverages the firm's presence in Sweden and Finland to provide assistance to Nordic clients. Practice head Jenny Welander Wadström understands 'complex and sensitive problems right away' and is noted for her 'commercial approach'; she assisted Atlas Copco with various pension issues including the transfer of assets from its pension foundation and the interpretation of the ITP pension plan. Other work included conducting a global human resources GDPR audit for Assa Abloy. Björn Johansson Heigis regularly handles the employment aspects of M&A matters and associate Victoria Bergholtz is also noted. Björn Rustare left for DLA Piper in 2018.

Advokatfirman Törngren Magnell's team is recognised for its 'in-depth knowledge, as well as being pragmatic and solution-oriented'. The group combines experience in a broad gamut of employment issues with notable expertise in discrimination matters and GDPR; 'outstanding' practice head Anna Jerndorf acted for H&H Group in a whistleblowing matter and also handled the employment aspects of its acquisition of Identx. Senior associates Lisa Ericsson and Cecilia Bergman are also active in the practice area.

Wistrand's 'fast and solution-oriented' practice 'always goes the extra mile' and regularly advises clients in the construction sector; the group has also seen an increase in work from the technology and media sectors relating to GDPR compliance. The team is jointly led by Jakob Bernander and Jörgen Larsson in Stockholm and Gothenburg respectively. Bernander and Gunnar Blomberg count the Swedish Construction Federation as a key client; they recently acted for it in several contentious matters regarding the interpretation of a collective bargain agreement. Maria Kosteska Fägerquist is another key practitioner.

Andreas Holmqvist is the key name to note at Gernandt & Danielsson Advokatbyrå; he regularly advises on restructurings and reorganisations, business transfers, downsizings and outsourcing mandates alongside expertise in contentious work and corporate compliance.

Hammarskiöld assists clients with the employment aspects of M&A and corporate restructurings and also handles the drafting of employment and consultancy contracts. Thomas Lindqvist and Erik Löfwall are the key contacts.

Clients praise Hellström Law's ability to provide 'good and valuable' advice across contract terminations, collective bargaining agreements, restructurings and union consultations as well as employment disputes. Practice head Johan Karlman is 'able to find satisfactory solutions'; he assisted Webhelp with the outsourcing of SJ's help desk services in Ånge. Mats Hellström and associate Natalie Franke were also involved in several internal investigations relating to workplace harassment issues.

Fredrika Skoog at Ramberg Advokater is experienced in employment, pensions and benefits matters including incentive schemes, protection of human capital issues and trade secrets work. She also represents employers in union consultations and labour disputes.

The department at Wesslau Söderqvist Advokatbyrå is involved in a variety of contentious and non-contentious matters. Jessica Stålhammar is the main contact in the group and counts international and domestic companies as clients. Other practitioners include Martin Bergander and Anders Ripp.

White & Case Advokat AB's practice fields Henrik Wireklint and counsel Fredrik Schultz; Wireklint recently assisted a public company with the drafting of template agreements and bonus policies for senior employees, and Schultz represented a food and beverage company in the termination of a senior manager.