Second German Office Announced
CHICAGO — The international law firm of McDermott Will & Emery today announced the opening of its second office in Germany. Implementing the next stage of its European growth strategy, McDermott will open its new Düsseldorf office on September 2, 2002. Düsseldorf’s international business community, industrial profile and significance as a center for international mergers and acquisitions and as a patent litigation center firmly align it with McDermott’s practice strengths and client base. Founding the Firm’s newest office are Dr. Thomas Hauss, Konstantin Günther and Volker Teigelkötter, all formerly at Menold & Aulinger. Recognized as practice leaders in the areas of corporate, German and cross-border mergers and acquisitions, capital markets, antitrust and competition, intellectual property and labor, McDermott’s new Düsseldorf team reflects the Firm’s multidisciplinary excellence.
"Our major clients tend to be very active despite the current business climate. It is our objective to extend our geographic reach so as to better serve them. We realize that Germany is a complex market which demands a multi-office presence and find that Munich and Düsseldorf perfectly fit with our client base and growth objectives," stated Larry Gerber, Firm Chairman.
"Our new Düsseldorf team is known for its business acumen and quality advice," added Firm Vice Chairman Alan Olson. "They are a perfect fit with our emphasis on business counseling."
"McDermott is known as a firm for high quality legal advice and for a sound and coherent strategy of expansion in Europe. By joining them we can put an excellent set of resources at their disposal – both in terms of geography and practice areas, while providing our clients with the experience base of 900 professionals," commented Konstantin Günther.
The Firm has been advising European and American clients for many years in cross-border mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, capital markets transactions and in the full range of commercial legal services. Most recently, for example, a cross-office team led by the Firm’s New York-based German Practice advised on the sale of the plastic container and closure businesses of Schmalbach-Lubeca AG, headquartered in Ratingen, Germany, a portfolio company of Allianz Capital Partners, to Amcor Limited for the purchase price of Euro 1.725 billion (US$1.56 billion).
Biographical Notes
Konstantin Günther focuses his corporate practice on mergers and acquisitions and capital markets. The focus of his M&A experience is on cross-border transactions, involving the coordination of multiple local counsels and multi-country assignments. Recently, Mr. Günther and his team have been advising Fuji Photo File (Europe) GmbH, the European headquarters of the Japanese Fuji group, on all major corporate and merger and acquisition transactions in Europe. He also advises underwriting banks and issuers on Initial Public Offerings and Secondary Offerings. Mr. Günther has been retained by several well-known German investment banks on a number of IPOs and capital market related transactions. His practice includes inter alia advising listed and private stock corporations regarding convertible bonds and stock option programs; setting up holding structures; capital increases, decreases and restructurings; and the German Transformation Act. Mr. Günther attended the University of Tübingen Law School, the University of Geneva Law School in Switzerland and the Freiburg University Law School. He is admitted to practice in Germany and New York, and received his LL.M. from the University of Pennsylvania. Mr. Günther is fluent in German, French and English.
Dr. Thomas Hauss, who will head the Firm’s Düsseldorf intellectual property practice, practices in the area of intellectual property, antitrust and unfair competition. His intellectual property and unfair competition work includes advising numerous M&A transactions, as well as providing continued advice in intellectual property related matters and license agreements. Dr. Hauss counsel inter alia one of the major German airlines in the field of IP and trademark law. He also provides antitrust and competition advice for a wide range of international business transactions. Dr. Hauss earned his law undergraduate and his Dr. jur, magna cum laude, from the University of Cologne. He is admitted to the German Bar and the Court of Appeals, Düsseldorf. Dr. Hauss is a member of the German and Düsseldorf Bar Associations and the German Association for the Protection of Industrial Property and Copyright. He is fluent in German and English.
Volker Teigelkötter is a certified Labor Lawyer (Fachanwalt Fur Arbeitsrecht). Mr. Teigelkötter advises multinationals on all aspects of labor and employment issues, including the German Act against Unfair Dismissal, the German Shop Constitution Act, labor law regarding restructuring, work force cut backs and shutdowns, European and German Transfer of Business regulations and service contracts for Germany stock corporations’ board of directors and managing directors of German limited liability companies. He has considerable experience within the field of large restructuring programs and mass dismissals of internationally operating groups. Mr. Teigelkötter is admitted to the German Bar Association and is fluent in German and English.
