Jones Day > Brussels, Belgium > Firm Profile

Jones Day > The Legal 500 Rankings

Belgium > Banking, finance and capital markets Tier 2

Jones Day handles complex, cross-border financing mandates, with a strong record advising lenders and borrowers on private equity acquisition finance transactions, as well as handling debt and equity capital markets work, debt restructuring, and financial services regulatory issues. Alongside private equity funds, the firm also advises international banks and corporates as well as public sector organisations. The team is led by Ferdinand Brughmans, who focuses on large-scale leveraged finance and syndicated lending deals, capital markets lead Matthieu Duplat, and Michèle Grégoire, who works with listed companies on loan restructuring and financial law issues.

Belgium > Competition: Belgian law Tier 2

Jones Day acts for a global client base in Belgian competition issues, including merger approvals, cartel investigations, and a particularly strong record in abuse of dominance proceedings, offering standout cross-border expertise in sectors such as financial services, the public sector, and energy. The firm is able to handle Belgian elements of major global cases alongside Belgium-specific cases for global clients, and also offers antitrust litigation capabilities, able to represent clients before Belgian courts and the BCA. Alexandre Verheyden and Bernard Amory head up the team, with Serge Clerckx a key name for private enforcement work and Yvan Desmedt noted for his work in the public sector and financial services industry. Laurent De Muyter is well-regarded as an expert within the space, and was recently re-appointed as an assessor for the BCA.

Belgium > Competition: EU and global Tier 2

Jones Day handles a diverse range of complex mandates, including high-value merger reviews, abuse of dominance proceedings, state aid, and sectoral investigations, for a global client base that features leading names in key industries such as telecoms, chemicals, and financial services, among others. The broad practice has expertise across the full range of matters, and is led by the highly experienced Bernard Amory and Alexandre Verheyden. Serge Clerckx is a key name for merger work, and Laurent De Muyter has advised major clients such as Deutsche Telekom on sectoral investigations. Kaarli Eichhorn leads the team’s Nordic practice, and is experienced in multi-jurisdictional merger clearances and global antitrust matters, while Philipp Werner plays a key role in state aid cases. At counsel level, Phillipe Laconte and Geoffroy Van De Walle have represented clients in high-profile proceedings in the telecoms and semiconductor spaces, respectively.

Belgium > Dispute resolution Tier 2

Underpinned by a substantial global network of offices, Jones Day is regularly engaged on a host of cross-border disputes and arbitral proceedings, representing both blue-chip multinationals and domestic entities operating in a range of sectors; from payment services and telecoms to energy and pharmaceuticals. Global disputes head Sébastien Champagne is a ‘standout litigator‘ whose wide-ranging workload encompasses product liability, trade practices, private enforcement disputes. Michèle Grégoire draws high-praise from a number of clients for her ‘impressive‘ contentious expertise and ‘outstanding industry knowledge‘, particularly in the banking and financial services arena, while the ‘excellent‘ Vanessa Foncke is proficient in both international commercial arbitration and disputes before the domestic courts. Other names to note for banking and finance disputes include newly promoted (January 2022) counsel Corentin De Jonghe, while associate Charlotte Van Themsche is recommended for her expertise in collective redress. All named lawyers are based in Brussels.

Belgium > EU regulatory: Chemicals Tier 2

Jones Day stands out for its REACH expertise, advising a range of chemicals manufacturers and downstream users, particularly in the food industry, on licensing applications, and is particularly active on behalf of REACH consortia. The firm also offers specialist food and environmental law expertise, encompassing chemicals issues relating to product labelling and recall. Ursula Schliessner heads up the team, specialising in chemicals regulation and environmental law, with associate Preslava Dilkova also a key member of the team, handling product safety issues and REACH applications.

Belgium > EU regulatory: Food Tier 2

Jones Day advises a range of food industry clients, including brands, manufacturers, distributors, and trade associations, on broad regulatory considerations relating to product development, distribution, and contentious issues relating to environmental contamination and product recall, with capabilities in regulatory compliance advice and litigation before enforcement bodies and European courts. The team is led by Ursula Schliessner, who has broad experience across environmental, food, and health and safety regulation.

Belgium > EU regulatory: Information technology Tier 2

Jones Day has a strong focus on telecoms and tech sector regulatory work, combining knowledge of EU-level sector regulation with competition law, and is able to advise global businesses alongside public sector bodies on regulatory compliance and throughout sectoral investigations and enforcement actions brought by regulators, alongside representing clients in litigation before EU courts. The team is overseen by Alexandre Verheyden and Bernard Amory, highly experienced competition practitioners with expertise in the telecoms space, alongside IT and data regulatory specialist Jörg Hladjk. Yvan Desmedt is also a key name, combining regulatory and antitrust expertise.

Belgium > EU regulatory: Pharma, medical devices and biotech Tier 2

Jones Day offers full-service regulatory support to life sciences and healthcare clients, including global pharma companies, research institutions, and a growing number of businesses in the cosmetics industry. The team offers standout expertise in M&A, intellectual property issues, product development and launch, and data protection issues, and is able to handle complex cross-border arrangements in collaboration with its global offices. The team is led by Cristiana Spontoni, a specialist in the pharma, medical devices, and cosmetic space, who handles cross-border transactional, regulatory, and privacy issues.

Belgium > EU regulatory: Privacy and data protection Tier 2

Jones Day advises a broad client base encompassing big tech, telecoms, and traditional manufacturing companies on cybersecurity and data issues, with standout work on data breach responses, risk management, and data transfers, alongside privacy and data elements of cross-border M&A. The team, led by Jörg Hladjk, ‘one of the top data protection lawyers in Belgium‘, also offers strategic advice on the EU Cybersecurity Directive and upcoming European data legislation, as well as global regulatory issues in concert with the firm’s international offices.

Belgium > Industry focus: Healthcare and life sciences Tier 2

Drawing on the firm’s considerable international network, Jones Day ‘s life sciences and healthcare practice advises on the full spectrum of healthcare and life sciences-related issues with an emphasis on cross-border transactional and commercial work. Recent work includes assisting with high-profile cross-border investments and acquisitions. Clients include pharmaceutical companies, research institutes, and medical devices manufacturers, and the firm has a particularly strong offering in the digital health area. Cristiana Spontoni helms the practice, which includes regulatory expert Ursula Schliessner.

Belgium > Commercial, corporate and M&A Tier 3

Jones Day advises Belgian and international companies and private equity funds on the full range of corporate law issues, including M&A and investments, structuring and operational issues, and accompanying fundraising and regulatory issues. The firm has advised on the Belgian and European elements of major cross-border deals in the semiconductor space, as well as a number of high-value private equity deals. Practice head Thomas De Muynck stands out for his cross-border M&A expertise, most notably his work in the Japanese market, while Jonas Van Den Bossche has a strong focus on the industrials and chemicals spaces, advising on corporate and commercial law issues.

Belgium > Industry focus: IT and telecoms Tier 3

The longstanding IT and telecommunications department at Jones Day continues to aid clients through its assessment of industry developments in the technology and telecoms fields. The team is well-equipped to aid clients in this sector, possessing a wealth of experience in the full spectrum of matters, including compliance, antitrust and commercial work. Bernard Amory has provided long-term support on competition and regulatory mandates to media and IT companies alike  – both at the domestic and Europe-wide level. Alexandre Verheyden is a key contact for both private and public sector clients; Thomas De Muynck is routinely engaged in cross-border technology matters; and Jörg Hladjk is active in data protection and cybersecurity work.

Belgium > Private equity Tier 3

Jones Day has continued to expand its footprint in private equity transactions, advising international investors such as AIP and Rockley Management on cross-border deals in concert with its global private equity platform, as well as increasing its share of domestic private equity-backed transactions, including buyouts, exits, minority investments, and portfolio M&A. The firm advises domestic and European funds, both private equity and venture capital, as well as working with target companies, particularly within the team’s focus areas of tech and life sciences. Thomas De Muynck heads up the practice, specialising in work with US and European funds investing in Belgium, with Jonas Van Den Bossche also a key name for cross-border buyouts.

Belgium > Customs, trade, WTO and anti-dumping Tier 4

The team at Jones Day is well equipped to handle contentious trading mandates, with its recent caseload including TBT agreements, EU trade deals and WTO obligations; the group also has experience appearing before the Court of Justice of the European Union. The department has seen an increase in instructions to assist with trade concerns in light of a rise in tensions globally. Practice head Nadiya Nychay joined the practice in June 2022 from Dentons ; she is an experienced practitioner and routinely advises clients on customs, compliance and international trade matters.

Belgium > Employment Tier 4

Under the leadership of Chantal Biernaux, the labour and employment department at Jones Day advises clients on the full range of collective and individual employment matters. Biernaux specialises in issues related to corporate restructurings, and is also strong in contract drafting and dispute resolution.

Germany > Public sector > State aid

Jones Day impresses with its cross-practice and cross-location cooperation and advises private companies from the energy sector and aviation as well as public institutions and EU member states. In addition to assisting with state aid matters, the team possesses further experience in EU and national court proceedings as well as state aid investigations before the European Commission. Frequently recommended competition and state aid lawyer Philipp Werner heads the practice.

France > EU, competition and distribution

Much of Jones Day’s work in the competition sphere is cross-border, with the Paris team often working with other offices. Practice head Eric Barbier de la Serre led a team including Italian colleagues to successfully appeal Crédit Agricole Consumer Finance’s fine by the Italian Competition Authority, while the Brussels team, headed by Brussels-based Charlotte Breuvart, acted for French client EDF in numerous acquisitions and joint ventures, gaining clearance from global competition authorities such as the European Commission, FCA and Polish and Chinese authorities. With a practice covering merger control and representation in cartel cases, the firm also covers state aid. Counsel Eileen Lagathu is also noted.

Germany > Antitrust

The Jones Day team is active on national and international level and represents a large number of clients before the Federal Cartel Office and the European Commission. The antitrust experts primarily operate from offices in Düsseldorf, Frankfurt and Brussels and handle antitrust fine and damages compensation proceedings, merger controls as well as abuse of market power issues, related competition law and antitrust compliance matters. Johannes Zöttl in Düsseldorf, whose main areas of expertise include abuse of market power matters, jointly heads the group with experienced antitrust litigator Carsten Gromotke in Frankfurt. Jürgen Beninca (cartel fines and damages proceedings) and Philipp Werner, who is experienced in merger control and based in Brussels, are other key figures.