Hausfeld Rechtsanwälte LLP > Berlin, Germany > Firm Profile

Hausfeld Rechtsanwälte LLP
Walter-Benjamin-Platz 6
10629 Berlin
Germany

Germany > Antitrust

Hausfeld Rechtsanwälte LLP advises on various antitrust law topics, such as merger control, compliance and distribution antitrust law, although a traditional strength remains the representation of claimants in cartel damages compensation proceedings and the related enforcement of damages claims; the team is well versed in dominance abuse matters in the digital antitrust space, where the practice also increasingly acts in the defense of clients. Alex Petrasincu and Ann-Christin Richter are experienced in antitrust law as well as internal investigations; Thomas Höppner impresses with expertise in dominance abuse and damages claims.

Testimonials

‘Insightful and precise advice, reliable, great guidance from Alex Petrasincu.’

‘Alex Petrasincu: A hard worker whose expertise far exceeds expectations.’

‘The team around Thomas Höppner can only be described as excellent. Extremely complex issues are analyzed excellently and legally assessed in such a way that the results are comprehensible and can be used immediately. No long-winded, lengthy briefs, always to the point, precise, understandable, competent. Real support in difficult questions.’

‘Ann-Christin Richter: Very smart legal advice with convincing negotiation.’

‘Very strong, agile team. Good leadership and excellent results. The team goes the extra mile.’

‘The team has a focus on large antitrust damages litigation and has built up unique know-how on the plaintiff’s side in this area in Germany over the last few years. The law firm is now also successfully active on the defendant side.’

‘Alex Petrasincu and Ann-Christin Richter: Outstanding antitrust lawyers; Thomas Höppner is the specialist for GAFA victims beyond Germany.’

‘Digitization has not only given the media opportunities. The dominance of Big Tech in particular presents the media with major challenges in building sustainable business models in the digital world. The Hausfeld team has the necessary experience and expertise in this complex area to understand complex digital ecosystems, identify illegal practices and successfully take action against them in court.’

Key clients

Adspert

Arbeitsgemeinschaft Onlineforschung (agof)

Barely Digital

BMW Group

Bundesverband Digitalpublisher und Zeitungsverleger (BDZV)

Coca-Cola Europacific Partners

Compliance Solutions

Dachser

Deichmann

Filmwerkstatt Düsseldorf

finanicalright claims

Goliathwatch

Jet Tankstellen Deutschland

Koch

Medienverband der freien Presse (MVFP)

PostNord

Qwant

Rewe Group

StepStone

Titan Beta

Waberers

Zentralverband der deutschen Werbewirtschaft (ZAW)

Work highlights

  • Representation of Jet Petrol Stations Germany and Deichmann in asserting claims for damages against German banking associations and individual banks due to excessive dealer fees for Girocard payments in violation of antitrust law.
  • Representing several large companies, including Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, the Rewe Group, the Scandinavian postal and logistics company PostNord and various international freight forwarders (Waberers, Dachser, Koch), in asserting antitrust claims for damages as a result of the fines imposed by the EU Commission.
  • Advising and representing a number of German and foreign product and price comparison services in damages proceedings against Google in connection with the European Commission’s Google Shopping decision.

Media > Entertainment Tier 4

Hausfeld Rechtsanwälte LLP advises radio and television broadcasters as well as collecting societies on copyright and media antitrust issues and impresses with experience in dispute resolution. Led by antitrust and media lawyer Thomas Höppner, the team regularly acts in fundamental proceedings before the Federal Antitrust Authority in connection with large tech companies and anti-competitive and data protection matters. The advice on generative AI models is a recent growth area and also includes the support in litigation. Ann-Christin Richter is a key contact for IP matters, which she also handles at the interface with antitrust law.

Practice head(s):

Thomas Höppner

Other key lawyers:

Testimonials

‘The team at Hausfeld Rechtsanwälte LLP offers its clients a high quality and accessible service.’

‘The team’s expertise is unique and includes experts in all areas relevant to media companies.’

‘Hausfeld is characterized by his ability to recognize digital trends at an early stage, assess their impact on the media industry and understand complex issues.’

‘Prof. Höppner has shown over the last decade that he and his team understand the extreme complexity of the ecosystems and business practices of Big Tech companies.’

‘Prof. Höppner and his team excel at identifying new trends (e.g. AI) at an early stage and preparing clients accordingly.’

Key clients

Adspert

alfaview

Antenne Bayern

Arbeitsgemeinschaft Onlineforschung

Bundesverband Digitalpublisher und Zeitungsverleger

Corint Media

European Magazine Media Association

Global Savings Group

Informationsgemeinschaft zur Feststellung der Verbreitung von Werbeträgern

Initiative Urheberrecht

Ladenzeile

Markenverband

Medienverband der freien Presse

OC&C Strategy Consultants

Organisation der Mediaagenturen

Qwant

REGIOCAST

RTL Radio Deutschland

Titan Beta

TrueCaller

VAUNET – Verband Privater Medien

Verband Schweizer Medien

Zentralverband der deutschen Werbewirtschaft

Work highlights

  • Advising the Swiss Media Association in connection with the introduction of ancillary copyright for press publishers in Switzerland as well as on questions of rights exploitation and management in the age of AI.
  • Representation of the German press publishers’ associations (BDZV and MVFP) and the internet search engine Qwant in the Google Android procedural complex, including before the EU Commission, the European Court of Justice and now the European Court of Justice.
  • Representation of the German online advertising industry in a fundamental complaint against Apple before the Federal Cartel Office due to anti-competitive behavior by Apple in connection with the so-called App Tracking Transparency (ATT) Framework.

Dispute resolution > Commercial litigation

Under the leadership of Alex Petrasincu und Wolf von Bernuth, Hausfeld Rechtsanwälte LLP represents both plaintiffs and defendants, particularly in cartel and capital market disputes.

Hausfeld ist eine der führenden internationalen Kanzleien auf dem Gebiet der privaten Kartellrechtsdurchsetzung. In Deutschland ist Hausfeld mit Büros in Berlin und Düsseldorf vertreten. Hausfelds Anwälte sind Pioniere auf dem Gebiet der privaten Kartellrechtsdurchsetzung und verfügen über jahrelange Erfahrung in diesem Gebiet. Die besondere Expertise von Hausfeld wird dabei auch an den zahlreichen Auszeichnungen deutlich, die Hausfeld erhalten hat.

Department Name Email Telephone
Dr. Alex Petrasincu alex.petrasincu@hausfeld.com
Prof. Dr. Thomas Höppner thomas.hoeppner@hausfeld.com
Dr. Ann-Christin Richter ann-christin.richter@hausfeld.com
Dr. Wolf von Bernuth wolf.bernuth@hausfeld.com
Anzahl der Anwälte weltweit : 110
Anzahl der Anwälte in Deutschland : 27
Deutsch
Englisch
Französisch
Büros im Ausland : Boston, Brüssel, London, New York, Paris, San Francisco, Stockholm, Washington

The firm: Hausfeld is a leading disputes-only specialist law firm with offices on both sides of the Atlantic. It pioneered competition damages actions in Europe and is recognised as an innovator in the legal market. Its team comprises highly experienced litigators with a proven track record in competition and commercial — including financial services, shareholder claims, technology and insolvency – litigation.

The firm regularly acts for a number of the world’s largest organisations. Its ability to offer flexible engagement structures, enables clients to pursue claims with a level of cost risk best suited to their circumstances. The firm’s conflict-free platform means that it can take instructions where many other firms cannot. It has considerable expertise in doing so for high profile and high value disputes. In Germany, Hausfeld has offices in Berlin and Düsseldorf.

Types of work undertaken
Competition litigation: 
Hausfeld is widely recognised as one of the leading plaintiffs’ practices for antitrust litigation, especially antitrust damages actions and antitrust law in the digital sector, especially in proceedings concerning the abuse of market power by leading global technology companies (Google, Amazon, Apple, Facebook).  The firm represents major international and small and medium-sized companies in the most important antitrust proceedings on a national and European level. Hausfeld’s antitrust practice regularly wins awards. Among others, in 2020 Global Competition Review recognized Hausfeld’s pan-European work on the Trucks cartel as “Litigation of the Year – Cartel Prosecution”. In addition, Hausfeld was nominated for “Antitrust Law Firm of the Year” by legal publication Juve in 2018, and won the Juve award for “Law Firm of the Year for Dispute Resolution” in 2019 inter alia due to its work in antitrust litigation.

Commercial litigation: The highly regarded Commercial Litigation team  has an excellent track record of litigating complex, high-value commercial and capital markets disputes. The firm has been substantially involved in the handling of the “diesel scandal” in Germany and is claiming damages on behalf of 35,000 VW buyers. Moreover, the practice has established a strong reputation with large shareholder lawsuits and proceedings in the field of commercial and product liability law.

Technology: Hausfeld is one of the leading law firms in the technology and media sector. The firm is recognized for its expertise in resolving disputes relating to the abuse of market power by Google, Amazon, Apple & Co and advises on fundamental regulatory issues in the digital sector at national and European level. The team represents well-known technology and media companies and associations from Germany and Europe.

Department Name Email Telephone
Antitrust/Competition Litigation Dr. Alex Petrasincu alex.petrasincu@hausfeld.com +49 211 81 999 222
Antitrust/Competition Litigation; Technology & Data Breach Dr. Ann-Christin Richter ann-christin.richter@hausfeld.com +49 30 322 903 012
Antitrust/Competition Litigation; Technology & Data Breach Prof. Dr. Thomas Höppner thomas.hoppner@hausfeld.com +49 30 322 903 006
Commercial & Financial Services Litigation Dr. Wolf H. von Bernuth wolf.bernuth@hausfeld.com +49 30 322 903 013
Number of partners : 4
Number of other fee-earners : 25
English
French
German
Danish and other Scandinavian languages
ABA (American Bar Association)
Studienvereinigung Kartellrecht