Legal 500, 2024

Experienced researchers also compile annual market overviews of the various practice areas in order to provide the most current overview of the global legal market.

The firm received a top-tier result for its outstanding expertise in the areas of fund structuring, private clients and non-profits. In total, the publisher ranked 30 POELLATH professionals, two of which were included in the “Hall of Fame” for their outstanding expertise, one newly appointed counsel was listed as a “Rising Star” and several professionals were ranked as “leading”.

One of the two advisors inducted into the “Hall of Fame” is Dr. Andreas Richter. Clients refer to him as a “superstar” and “star of the German private wealth sector”. He is impressive due to his “outstanding expertise” and is a “Thought Leader” in family office/cross-border tax and estate planning. He is “highly qualified, very experienced in cross-border matters, an excellent lawyer and also a ‘gifted networker’”. He has “impressive judgment and strategic skills” and is characterized by his “calm, understated style that has great substance”.

His co-leaders in the practice are Dr. Stephan Virskorf and Dr. Katharina Gollan. Dr. Richter and Dr. Viskorf both focus on advising on tax issues at the interface of succession and inheritance law, while Dr. Gollan is one of the primary contacts for the foundation and non-profit sector. Her colleague Dr. Katharina Hemmen deal with all tax issues in connection with marriage contracts, as well as relocation and exit taxation. Dr. Martin Liebernickel also receives praise: He is “very experienced in family business and business succession”.

“The team is impressively large and consists of a considerable number of very capable people.” They are “technically excellent, reliable and efficient”, have “broad expertise”, complement each other very well and work “seamlessly together”. They have the “ability to manage and supervise large-scale projects and sensitive issues in a first-class manner”. Clients conclude that: “They are first class. We place POELLATH at the top.”

The firm also receives a top-tier result in fund structuring thanks to co-lead Amos Veith, who is also ranked as a “Leading Partner” and impresses everyone with his “high level of professional expertise and outstanding commitment”. His colleague Dr. Peter Bujotzek is also greatly appreciated: He is “very experienced and efficient. He knows and focuses on all aspects relevant to the transaction without getting bogged down in insignificant details. He is an asset, especially in legal and tax fund structuring, is always available, always solution-oriented and pragmatic.”

The advisory portfolio also includes regulatory and tax law issues, usually under the leadership of co-head Dr. Jens Steinmüller, who also advises on investment solutions and supervises fund investments. The entire department is therefore “just as experienced in advising on investor-specific regulatory requirements as it is in the implementation of EU legal frameworks in connection with ESG, fundraising and contractual documentation”. The team is “highly specialized and interdisciplinary. The personal contact and quality of services are outstanding.” In addition to the above-mentioned partners, these standards are guaranteed by the core lawyers Dr. Philip Schwarz van Berk and Dr. Stephan Schade.

In the area of “corporate law and M&A”, references praise the “comprehensive expertise in corporate law, transaction structuring” and tax law for its “excellent quality”. Dr. Eva Nase supports public and private companies in transformation law matters and public takeovers. The M&A team advises on national and international acquisitions and sales, restructuring and distressed M&A, including the tax aspects.

Co-practice heads, Dr. Michael Best and Gerald Herrmann, in particular, are known for their tax expertise in the transaction and fund sector, while co-head Dr. Hardy Fischer and Dr. Sören Reckwardt primarily provide tax advice on large real estate transactions for funds and real estate companies.

The latter thus cover the tax side of real estate and construction law, in which the firm is an “experienced advisor in real estate transactions” with “particular expertise in advising on portfolio transactions for commercial and residential real estate, as well as real estate transactions for project development”, supplemented by expertise in real estate financing and joint ventures, which round off the range of advice.

References therefore praise the “highly competent team” for its “first-class efficiency”. Practice head Dr. Stefan Lebek is “very competent, creative and fast. A very pleasant professional to work with”. Dr. Matthias Durst, who also acts as the practice manager, also receives a great deal of praise from clients: He is “an excellent partner with strong negotiating skills and a very high level of expertise”, who “supported and advised us in all facets of the negotiations as they progressed, not only legally but also in a very solution-oriented manner”. His “negotiating skills and the calm way he always handles complicated situations and gets them back on track and thereby advances the negotiations” are particularly emphasized. Dr. Marcel Guenoub “is also an outstanding transaction lawyer. He reliably keeps an eye on all the details and always has them ready. In negotiations, he is very assertive, highly competent and goal-oriented.” The entire team “functions excellently in each practice area and especially across the board. Each team member is always informed about key data and progress and can therefore support the client in the best possible way at all times. Every issue is handled with a sense of proportion and in a solution-oriented manner, and every lawyer involved offers solutions to bring the process to a successful conclusion. You can always tell that the team has extensive experience in handling complex transactions.”

This positive assessment also applies to the transaction expertise in the private equity sector, where the firm advises not only the large and mid-cap sector, but also related areas such as financing, distressed M&A, insolvency and restructuring. Dr. Benedikt Hohaus is “particularly well-known” for advising management teams and on management participations. He is a “Leading Partner” in this field. The practice heads are Jens Hörmann and Dr. Tim Kaufhold and other core lawyers are Tobias Jäger, Philipp von Braunschweig, Dr. Frank Thiäner and Dr. Barbara Koch-Schulte.

In the venture capital sector, the firm also has an advisor, Christian Tönies (“outstanding advisor personality”), who was inducted into the “Hall of Fame” due to his outstanding expertise.

He heads the team together with Dr. Michael Inhester. References attest that Dr. Inhester is “an excellent moderator” [he] is particularly good at leading large shareholder voting rounds and bringing them to a viable consensus”. His colleague Adalbert Makos “is an all-purpose weapon. He is extremely precise, delivers excellent results and is always approachable.” Other core lawyers are partners Tobias Jäger and Dr. Sebastian Gerlinger, as well as counsel Andreas Kühnert and Markus Döllner, who provides “outstanding and very goal-oriented advice”, which distinguishes him as a “Rising Star”. Dr. Gerlinger is also praised for his “comprehensive VC knowledge”. He has an “extremely pleasant way of communicating and negotiating” and is a “calm, level-headed sparring partner with a wealth of experience and a broad portfolio of negotiation strategies”. As a result, references attest to “very good substantive support”, “short response times” and “legally sound advice”. “The cooperation with POELLATH has always been at the highest level. There is one contact person for all issues, who coordinates and either deals with the matter himself and is available to answer questions, or calls in experts from other teams. The quality of the work is excellent.”