Chassany Watrelot & Associés (CWA) > Paris, France > Firm Profile
Chassany Watrelot & Associés (CWA) Offices

8 RUE CHATEAUBRIAND
75008 PARIS
France
Chassany Watrelot & Associés (CWA) > The Legal 500 Rankings
France > Employment Tier 1
Employment law boutique Chassany Watrelot & Associés (CWA) impresses with the size of the team involved; its offices in France (Paris, Lyon and Sophia-Antipolis) as well as in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia; and its ability to advise on the full range of employment law and social security matters. The practice is frequently retained to assist with the implementation of challenging projects, such as large-scale restructurings, plant closures or the implementation of new collective agreements on a wide scale. The management of labour law issues linked to insolvency proceedings is another area of strength. The practice is also a strong name for large M&A and private equity deals and is well versed in employment and benefits matters. Recently, the team assisted its key client Carrefour with the implementation of Covid-19 sanitary passes for all its employees across its various shopping centers, and acted on a strategic carve-out project in the energy sector. The firm’s prestigious client base includes leading French and international companies, French blue chip companies from the retail and energy sectors among them. Philippe Chassany, Jérôme Watrelot and Elisabeth Graujeman co-head the practice which also includes key members Sébastien Poncet, Hélène Guillot , Virgile Zeimet, who made partner in 2021, and Abdelkader Hamida, who joined in May 21 from Vaughan Avocats. In 2021 the firm was acquired by audit firm Implid and Juliette Pouyet, Julien Boucaud-Maître and of counsel Anne de Gabory left the firm.Practice head(s):
Philippe Chassany; Jérôme Watrelot; Elisabeth Graujeman
Other key lawyers:
Sébastien Poncet; Hélène Guillot; Virgile Zeimet; Abdelkader Hamida
Key clients
PAI partners
Carrefour
Crouzet
Shiseido Group EMEA
Worlwide Flight Services (WFS)
Amrest (KFC, Pizza Hut)
Ugitech
Maersk
Penelope
Fibre Excellence Tarascon
Groupe Labeyrie
WKF
Kaufman & Broad
La Croix Rouge Française
H&M
Transdev Group
Work highlights
- Advised PAI PARTNERS on the acquisition of the Tropicana brand ($3.3bn) from PepsiCo.
- Advised CARREFOUR GROUP on all its human resources issues related to the implementation of the French health pass (Passe sanitaire) in Carrefour stores.
- Advised WORLDWIDE FLIGHT SERVICES (WFS) GROUP on its insolvency and restructuring proceedings launched as a consequence of the Covid-19 crisis.
Employment > Social security: compensation and benefits
Chassany Watrelot & Associés (CWA)Chassany Watrelot & Associés (CWA) > Firm Profile
The firm: Chassany Watrelot & Associés (CWA) is a law firm exclusively dedicated to employment law and other areas impacting human resources management. Over the past 30 years, the firm has experienced strong growth and is now in Lyon (since 1987), in Paris (since 1999), in Nice-Sophia Antipolis (since 2019) as well as in Casablanca and Tangiers (2011), Algiers and Tunis (2012). CWA brings together over 60 lawyers providing legal advice, accompanying and representing companies during litigations, and developing and conducting professional training.
CWA provides companies with strong support at all stages of the employment relation, be it individual or collective employment relations, either in the daily management of human resources and in the framework of large scale operations (restructurings, mergers and acquisitions, sales, outsourcing).
CWA defends its clients throughout all aspects of litigation, whether individual or collective. Given the increasing criminalisation of business law in general and labour law in particular, CWA has developed a expertise in employment criminal law to handle this type of litigation.
Because all human resources professionals need to constantly update their knowledge of employment law, CWA deploys all its knowledge and experience to provide tailor-made training sessions, bringing functional and innovative solutions.
Areas of practice: Thanks to its wide experience and multilingual skills, CWA provides legal advice to major international groups or SMEs which benefit both from the very personalised follow-up of a specifically dedicated lawyer and from the expertise of the entire firm through its highly technical expertise hubs.
Restructurings/M&A: the firm is involved in restructuring operations, such as business transfers, mergers and acquisitions or outsourcing operations. It addresses all matters: works council consultation, legal due diligence reports, impact of business transfers on employees, or elaboration and implementation of redundancy plans, negotiation of management packages.
Employment collective relations: a partner of companies and/or employer organisations, CWA brings its knowledge of legislation and case law, its responsiveness, and its analysis to help master the management of working relations, including the implementation of staff representative institutions.
Compensation and profit sharing: CWA assists its clients in remuneration strategies, including incentive plans (bonus, stock-option plans, profit-sharing, savings plans), taking into account the legal environment for social and tax optimisation, and the specific clients constraints and needs. (notably in cases of mergers or any other restructuring operations.)
Pensions and welfare protection: CWA also assists companies during the implementation or modification of retirement plans, supplementary healthcare schemes or death-incapacity-disability schemes. It has also developed a wide expertise in end-of-career plans (preretirement, proactive planning on employment and careers, etc).
Social security: CWA offers its expertise and understanding of the impact of social security regulations on the application of social security rules and the inspections of companies. It supports companies in the implementation of these rules and in the decision making process.
Health and safety at work: the firm adapts to legal developments during the development and follow-up of the occupational hazards prevention policy and in the conduct of relations with the health and safety committee. Its experience allows CWA to accompany its clients at the pre-litigation and litigation stages.
International mobility: CWA has developed expertise and assists clients in their international development with constant focus on the safety of the solutions recommended. CWA’s transversal team, dedicated to international mobility, works in connection with a network of foreign lawyers able assist clients in managing their employee mobility.
Main Contacts
Department | Name | Telephone | |
---|---|---|---|
Partner | Practice areas: individual and collective employment relationships | Bruno Briatta | bruno.briatta@cwassocies.com | +33 (0)4 37 51 16 16 |
Managing partner | Practice areas: Restructuring, employment collective relations, Litigation | Philippe Chassany | philippe.chassany@cwassocies.com | +33 (0)4 37 51 16 16 |
Partner | Practice areas: Employment collective relations, Social security law | Sébastien Cellier | sebastien.cellier@cwassocies.com | +33 (0)1 44 34 84 84 |
Partner | Practice areas: Restructuring, Health and safety at work (working conditions/accidents at work and occupational diseases) | Laurence Cohen | laurence.cohen@cwassocies.com | +33 (0)4 37 51 16 16 |
Partner | Practice areas: Litigation | Benoît Dubessay | benoit.dubessay@cwassocies.com | +33 (0)1 44 34 84 84 |
Head of the Pensions & welfare protection hub | Practice areas: Restructurings, Compensation and profit sharing, Pensions and welfare protection | Elisabeth Graujeman | elisabeth.graujeman@cwassocies.com | +33 (0)1 44 34 84 84 |
Partner | Practice areas: Restructuring, Health and safety at work (working conditions/accidents at work and occupational diseases) | Hélène Guillot | helene.guillot@cwassocies.com | +33 (0)1 44 34 84 84 |
Partner | Practice areas: Employment collective relations, Health and safety at work (working conditions/accidents at work and occupational diseases) | Franck Janin | franck.janin@cwassocies.com | +33 (0)4 37 51 16 16 |
Partner | Practice areas: Employment collective relations, Vocational training | Xavier de Jerphanion | xavier.dejerphanion@cwassocies.com | +33 (0)1 44 34 84 84 |
Partner | Practice areas: Employment collective relations, Litigation | Yves Merle | yves.merle@cwassocies.com | +33 (0)4 37 51 16 16 |
Managing partner, head of CWA Maghreb | Practice areas: International mobility, Corporate law and finance, Business law / Contract law, Public law, Tax law | Mohamed Oulkhouir | mohamed.oulkhouir@cwassocies.com | +33 (0)1 44 34 84 84 |
Partner | Practice areas: Employment collective relations, Health and safety at work (working conditions/accidents at work and occupational diseases) | Julia Pettex-Sabarot | julia.pettex-sabarot@cwassocies.com | +33 (0)4 37 51 16 16 |
Partner | Practice areas: Restructuring, Mergers and acquisitions, Employment collective relations | Sébastien Poncet | sebastien.poncet@cwassocies.com | +33 (0)4 37 51 16 16 |
Partner | Practice areas: Litigation | Magali Provençal | magali.provencal@cwassocies.com | +33 (0)4 37 51 16 16 |
Managing partner | Practice areas: Restructurings, Mergers and acquisitions, employment collective relations | Jérôme Watrelot | jerome.watrelot@cwassocies.com | +33 (0)1 44 34 84 84 |
Partner | Practice areas: Restructurings | Virgile Zeimet | virgile.zeimet@cwassocies.com | +33 (0)1 44 34 84 84 |
Lawyer Profiles
Photo | Name | Position | Profile |
---|---|---|---|
![]() | Julien Boucaud-Maître | Partner | View Profile |
![]() | Benoît Dubessay | Partner | View Profile |
![]() | Elisabeth Graujeman | Partner | View Profile |
![]() | Hélène Guillot | Partner | View Profile |
![]() | Mohamed Oulkhouir | Partner at CWA. Managing partner of CWA in Maghreb. Managing Partner of… | View Profile |
![]() | Juliette Pouyet | Partner | View Profile |
![]() | Mathieu Raio de San Lazaro | Partner | View Profile |
![]() | Jérôme Watrelot | Managing partner | View Profile |
![]() | Virgile Zeimet | Partner | View Profile |
![]() | Xavier de Jerphanion | Partner | View Profile |
Staff Figures
Number of lawyers : 66 at this office : 30Languages
Arabic English French German Spanish ItalianMemberships
IBA EELAOther
Other offices : Algiers Other offices : Casablanca Other offices : Lyon Other offices : Tangier Other offices : TunisSpotlights
FRANCE
Chassany Watrelot & Associés (CWA) is a law firm exclusively dedicated to employment law and other areas impacting human resources management.
Within the framework of large scale operations (restructurings, mergers & acquisitions, sales, outsourcing…) as well as in the daily management of human resources, Chassany Watrelot & Associés mobilizes all its expertise and resources, to provide customized, secure and operational solutions, taking into account all the requirements and time constraints of its clients and their business environment.
- Employment
Top Tier Firm Rankings
- Social security: compensation and benefits