Oppenhoff > Cologne, Germany > Firm Profile

Oppenhoff > The Legal 500 Rankings

Germany > Private clients and non-profits Tier 2

Oppenhoff offers a full-service approach and comprehensively advises on complex issues in the areas of asset and corporate succession and inheritance. The foundation segment constitutes a recent growth area, where the team advised on the establishment of new foundations and acted on behalf of numerous large German foundations, among others. Practice head Axel Wenzel supports wealthy private individuals, family entrepreneurs and foundations in national corporate law matters and regularly joins forces with Gregor Seikel in succession issues and family conflicts. Sebastian Zeeck covers matters pertaining to restructuring and corporate litigation. At the end of 2021, the team welcomed Hans-Joachim Otto (inheritance law, succession planning, real estate and brokerage law) from GSK Stockmann; in April 2022,  inheritance tax law expert Jan Mohrmann joined from ADVANT Beiten.

Trade and distribution > Foreign trade law Tier 2

Led by Stephan Müller, Oppenhoff advises on strategic compliance issues, sanctions and investment control and represents clients in criminal and administrative fine proceedings before national and European authorities. Other key areas are excise and customs law as well as international contract law. Mareike Heesing focuses on advising national and international high-tech companies and heads the French desk, while Heiko Höfler assists public sector clients with complex transactions and contentious matters.

Insurance > Advice to insurers Tier 3

Oppenhoff offers expertise in transactional insurance law matters, where particularly the insurtech sector benefits from close cooperation with the firm's IT and data protection experts. The team also covers other insurance law matters, including W&I insurance, reinsurance as well as retrocession agreements. Practice head Peter Etzbach assists with cross-border transactions, joint ventures and restructurings, especially in the insurtech sector. The underwriting of W&I insurance is a focus of Till Liebau, while Hanno Goltz covers corporate law matters. At the beginning of 2022, Anna-Catharina von Girsewald made partner; she advises on insurance supervisory law and compliance.

Corporate and M&A > M&A Tier 4

Clients from the financial services sector and the digital economy regularly call upon Oppenhoff's expertise in acquisitions and sales; the team also assists with transactions in special situations and supports TRI providers in insuring risky deals. Team leader Peter Etzbach primarily advises finance and insurance companies on cross-border transactions, joint ventures and restructuring, while Günter Seulen covers capital market transactions, company acquisitions and joint ventures as well as compliance and directors' liability issues. Markus Rasner is well versed in international M&A and private equity deals, with a particular focus on advising Asian investors.

Industry focus > Healthcare and life sciences Tier 4

Oppenhoff‘s interdisciplinary team advises pharmaceutical manufacturers, biotechnology companies, hospitals, nursing homes, health insurance companies and service providers. The group focuses on M&A transactions and venture capital investments in healthcare start-ups and recently increasingly advised on medicinal cannabis such as import and export matters. The team is jointly led by Gabriele Fontane (corporate, M&A, private equity) and Peter Klappich (litigation and arbitration as well as advice on competition and commercial law, regulatory matters).

Information technology > Information technology and digitalisation Tier 4

Oppenhoff‘s interdisciplinary practice focuses on advising insurance companies, where the team regularly covers the interface to insurance supervisory law, data protection, telemedia law and consumer protection law as well as on the processing of health data. In addition, digital companies are supported in technology transactions, which Marc Hilber specialises in, as well as in outsourcing issues, IT projects and e-commerce issues, which form the core areas of Jürgen Hartung ‘s expertise.

Germany > Employment Tier 5

Oppenhoff's consulting portfolio includes all individual and collective employment issues with a focus on supporting restructuring, reorganizations and transactions, while recently also experiencing an increase in instructions on contentious issues. This corresponds with practice head Jörn Kuhn's wealth of experience: in addition to restructuring, he is well versed in in- and out-of-court disputes with employees, works councils and trade unions, but also advises on company pension matters, particularly in the context of transactions. In addition to collective employment law, Kathrin Vossen is further adept at individual employment law and focuses on illness-related dismissals, operational integration as well as health management and employment law for severely disabled people. These technical skills are complemented by sector expertise in the automotive, IT, retail and consumer goods, insurance and aerospace industries.

Information technology > Data protection Tier 5

In addition to traditional GDPR issues and clients' representation before the authorities, Oppenhoff is increasingly active in the areas health data, digitisation and the Internet of Things, where the group regularly cooperates with the digitisation team. Another growth area are matters pertaining to cybersecurity, including preventive checks. Jürgen Hartung and Marc Hilber head the team.

Public sector > Planning and environment Tier 5

Brownfield development and redevelopment play a central role in Oppenhoff's environmental and planning law practice, while the team not only assists with the decommissioning and dismantling of locations, but also advises clients on project development and future usage in close cooperation with the firm's real estate practice. Here, the team's expertise in environmental and planning law is primarily anchored in immission control and soil protection law and in advising on conventional and renewable energies. Stephan Müller frequently applies his environmental law expertise in compliance matters, while Holger Hofmann focuses on plant-related environmental law.

Public sector > Public procurement Tier 5

Oppenhoff advises domestic as well as foreign industrial and medium-sized companies, primarily from the aviation, IT and defense sectors, on procurement law matters and also represents them before courts and procurement chambers if necessary. In addition, clients are supported in transactions with public clients. Cross-border awards have become an increasing focus for the practice which thereby applies its expertise in foreign trade law. Heiko Höfler leads the team and has extensive experience in court representation.

Germany > Tax Tier 5

Oppenhoff's tax practice assists national and international clients with tax matters pertaining to restructuring and M&A transactions, with practice head Axel Bödefeld as the main contact. The practice demonstrates further expertise in transfer pricing and customs valuation as well as in contentious tax matters, where it regularly acts in connection with tax audits and before tax courts. Jan Mohrmann, previously at ADVANT Beiten, joined the Frankfurt office in April 2022 and advises private individuals on corporate and asset succession and is  also well versed in non-profit law.

Trade and distribution > Trade, distribution and logistics Tier 5

Oppenhoff advises its clients on purchasing, production, logistics and distribution with industry expertise in the retail, automotive, healthcare, IT and technology sectors. The firm is well versed in advising on contracts and distribution systems – including litigation – and offers in-depth expertise in antitrust law. Marc Hilber heads the practice and has particular expertise in supporting outsourcing and software development projects; he frequently advises on technology-related joint ventures. Simon Spangler covers the interface to German and European antitrust law.

Germany > Antitrust Tier 6

Oppenhoff's antitrust team adeptly covers issues relating to merger control, civil antitrust litigation as well as preventive compliance and demonstrates special sector expertise in the chemicals, automotive and consumer goods industries. Recently, the team has been increasingly active in disputes pertaining to the abuse of a dominant position and distribution antitrust issues. One of the key contacts is Vanessa Pickenpack, who is experienced in cartel damages proceedings, while Daniel Dohrn (sector focus automotive among others) and Simon Spangler (distribution antitrust law) jointly took over the team leadership in early 2022 after the departure of former practice head Andrés Martin-Ehlers to Baker McKenzie.

Industry focus > Energy