Jones Day > Munich, Germany > Firm Profile

Jones Day > The Legal 500 Rankings

Banking and finance > Fintech Tier 2

Jones Day is well versed in topics pertaining to cryptocurrencies, distributed ledger technology (DLT) and blockchain, this expertise is frequently called upon by financial institutions in the context of implementing innovative business models as well as matters pertaining to DLT-based platforms; as was recently demonstarted in the assistance with setting up various tokenisation platforms. Other clients include fintech companies, which the team assists with crypto broker licensing procedures. Practice heads Ivo Poslushny (private equity transactions and venture capital financing rounds) and Nick Wittek (blockchain, cryptocurrencies, financial market infrastructure) are the key contacts.

Industry focus > Telecoms Tier 2

Jones Day routinely supports clients from the telecoms, satellite, aviation and IT industries in regulatory matters and in regulatory proceedings, including proceedings before the Federal Network Agency and court proceedings, practice head Holger Neumann is a key contact here. Noteworthy is the representation of Google in model proceedings pertaining to the regulation of over-the-top services. He also advises on frequency allocation and frequency transmission, compliance projects, the regulation of drones and connected driving projects.

Intellectual property > Patent litigation: patent lawyers Tier 2

Jones Day's patent attorney team distinguishes itself with expertise in multi-jurisdictional disputes involving parallel infringement, invalidity and opposition proceedings. In combination with the firm's global positioning, it is considered one of the first points of contact for large international corporations, although its client base also includes German companies. Olga Bezzubova heads the European patent attorney team in Munich, while Dorothée Weber-Bruls leads the physics practice group. The key contact for the engineering dispute resolution practice is Gerd Jaekel; and Christian Paul heads the forensic team for the chemical and pharmaceutical sectors.

Capital markets > Structured finance and securitisation Tier 3

With particular strengths in the Fintech sector, Jones Day is predestined to advise on matters related to distributed ledger technologies. This includes, for instance, advice to financial institutions on setting up tokenisation platforms and implementing blockchain-based interest rate derivatives. Fintech expert Nick Wittek is frequently in charge and one of the key contacts; as is practice head Ulf Kreppel, who focuses on securitisation transactions across various asset classes.

Corporate and M&A > M&A Tier 3

Jones Day handles large and mid-cap M&A deals as well as Chinese transactions, the latter via its China desk, which is led by practice head Ansgar Rempp (cross-border M&A and private equity transactions) and Ulrich Brauer (cross-border mergers and acquisitions). The team is also involved in transatlantic transactions, including public takeovers, going-private transactions, joint ventures and equity investment sales, with instructions coming from corporations, private equity houses and venture capital investors. Adriane Sturm primarily advises on transactions in the automotive sector, Markus Weber assists chemical companies with cross-border carve-outs, and Martin Schulz acts for strategic and PE investors. Michael Bartosch (M&A, private equity and venture capital transactions) joined from Baker McKenzie in August 2023.

Industry focus > Energy Tier 3

Jones Day focuses on supporting international projects and transactions, including related financing issues, thereby covering oil and gas as well as nuclear power, hydrogen and renewable energies. These competencies are regularly called upon by asset managers, project developers as well as energy companies and are complemented by regulatory expertise and experience in the prevention and resolution of disputes; Practice head Johannes Willheim also regularly advises clients on arbitration, regulatory and antitrust proceedings.

Information technology > Data protection Tier 3

Jones Day offers advice and support in transactions, data breaches and cyber attacks, including related reporting obligations to authorities and those affected, as well as internal investigations. Martin Lotz is a key contact for the latter area, where he routinely cooperates with the compliance team. Other cross-practice capacities include the cooperation with the Munich-based life sciences team, such as the advice to pharmaceutical companies on data protection. The practice is led by the renowned data protection expert Undine von Diemar and primarily acts across the technology, life sciences and fintech sectors.

Intellectual property > Patent litigation: solicitors Tier 3

Jones Day's focal areas are reflected in the division of its practice management: Gerd Jaekel leads matters in the technology area, where the group assists clients with FRAND-related disputes before the Federal Court of Justice and the Federal Patent Court among other matters. The chemical and pharmaceutical sectors form the second pillar, which is led by Christian Paul; recently, the practice represented various global pharmaceutical companies in nullity and opposition proceedings.

Intellectual property > Patent prosecution Tier 3

Jones Day houses a specialist patent attorney unit that has established a strong reputation in the healthcare, pharmaceutical and life sciences sectors. Embedded within the firm's global network, the group is also well equipped for cross-border matters and large disputes. Olga Bezzubova, who acts as co-head of the firm's global patent prosecution practice as well as head of the German team, has particular experience in the life sciences sector. Dorothée Weber-Bruls is responsible for physics and is further adept in mechanical engineering matters.

Private equity > Venture capital Tier 3

Thanks to cross-practice and cross-location cooperation, Jones Day supports investors, start-ups and companies in financing rounds, investments and cross-border transactions, with particular expertise in new areas such as high-tech, Internet, fintech, medtech, the environment and renewable energies. Transaction support is a key strength of Ansgar Rempp (VC and PE), while Stefan Schneider and Ivo Posluschny are key contacts for financing rounds and investments; they are also experienced in transactions.

Germany > Antitrust Tier 4

Jones Day‘s comprehensively covers all aspects of German and EU antitrust law and advises on merger control proceedings as well as on matters at the interface between state aid and investment law in connection with FDI procedures. The expertise in the contentious sphere includes cartel damages and abuse proceedings; this is complemented with competencies in fine proceedings, compliance and support during official investigations. Among the key contacts are Carsten Gromotke (merger control and abuse proceedings), Jürgen Beninca (fine proceedings and cartel damages), Philipp Werner (merger control and state aid law) in Brussels, Johannes Zöttl (cartel damages and compliance) and Kevin Wilcock, who is experienced in antitrust transaction support.

Compliance > Internal investigations Tier 4

Jones Day‘s German division of its global investigations and white collar defense practice is experienced in ​​internal investigations and cooperations with investigative authorities. Recent instructions include the assistance with allegations of misconduct, corruption, employment law-related crime and money laundering; the team also handles cross-border investigations. Practice head Thomas Preute has forensic expertise pertaining to corruption, antitrust and competition law, export control, fraud as well as human rights. European counsel Michael Mayer is experienced in anti-corruption matters as well as issues pertaining to Russia and Eastern Europe.

Dispute resolution > Commercial litigation Tier 4

Jones Day impresses with its experience in M&A disputes as well as construction and engineering conflicts, for which Thomas Weimann is one of the key contacts. He jointly leads the team with Johannes Willheim, who, in addition to his arbitration expertise, also has extensive competencies in energy disputes, primarily in cross-border proceedings concerning gas price adjustments. Dieter Strubenhoff also has expertise in disputes in the construction, plant engineering and infrastructure sectors as well as in the aviation and life sciences industries.

Public sector > State aid Tier 4

Jones Day's cross-location EU state aid practice counts large German and European companies as well as state ministries among its client base and regularly acts for them in state aid and notification proceedings before the European Commission. Due to ancillary antitrust competencies, the team is adept at examining various state aid cases on both the plaintiff and defendant side as well as in competitor lawsuits. In this context, practice head Philipp Werner's expertise is particularly valued, who, in addition to his litigation skills, also advises on state aid compliance pertaining to restructuring, public tenders and privatisation.

Real estate and construction > Real estate Tier 4

Jones Day's team cooperates closely with the M&A practice on matters pertaining to the real estate sector, thus advises on transactions as well as financing matters; the latter is a key strength of practice head Sandra-Christiane Kamper. The team acts across various asset categories, including logistics, residential and office as well as individual hotel properties and hotel portfolios. Another focus is the advice on commercial tenancy agreements.

Restructuring and insolvency > Restructuring Tier 5

Jones Day frequently advises on cross-border restructurings, here, the practice recently acted across the automotive and hotel industries. The team's expertise corresponds with the experience of practice head Olaf Benning, who advises on out-of-court structuring as well as insolvency proceedings and distressed M&A matters. This is complemented by Sandra Christiane Kamper's expertise in the restructuring of non-performing loans and government debt.

Germany > Employment Tier 7

Due to its close cooperation with the firm's corporate and M&A team, Jones Day's employment practice is particularly experienced in supporting transactions as well as restructuring and reorganisations; here, clients also benefit from the group's international network. The practice is further experienced in employment disputes before court and arbitration boards. Friederike Steininger, who is also adept at company pension schemes and false self-employment audits, heads the practice.