Germany

Overview

If there is one word that explains the success of our involvement with companies in Germany and throughout the DACH (Germany, Austria, Switzerland) region, it’s trust. Trust that reflects our decades of service to German companies dating back to the 1950s, when we represented the Federal Republic of Germany as it negotiated its first U.S.-German double taxation treaty. Trust that stems from our attorneys’ long involvement with such organizations as the German American Chamber of Commerce and the American Council on Germany. Trust that is nurtured by our ongoing Referendar program, through which young German attorneys join us in our U.S. offices as part of their training. Trust that is reinforced by collaboration with local law firms throughout the DACH region. And trust that is built on our comprehensive and intimate understanding of local laws, cultural nuances, critical issues, and global business goals. 

As a result, we have maintained a high profile throughout the region, working across numerous industries from manufacturing to service with Germany’s “hidden champion” Mittelstand companies that range in size from small family firms to major international closely held enterprises, with multinational conglomerates along with DAX-listed public companies, and with Germany-based private equity shops. We routinely assist with in-bound investments and U.S. tax matters and facilitate immigration efforts to allow our clients to send team members to the United States for work activities. We have also negotiated executive employment arrangements, worked on the financing and development of renewable energy projects, and defended clients in defamation suits. As litigators, we’ve helped clients through bankruptcy, antitrust, restructuring, privacy, and intellectual property cases along with bet-the-company business disputes. And with the support of our team of attorneys throughout Europe, the United States, and the rest of the world, we have helped open doors for all manner of cross-border transactions and related issues.

With a strong commitment to our clients throughout the DACH region, we have built lasting relationships and established Alston & Bird as a trusted advisor. This commitment runs both ways, whether we’re working with German entities doing business in the United States or with U.S. companies dealing with issues in Germany.

We know the terrain. We know our clients well. We understand your business. We’re at home in this world.

Experience

• Represented a Frankfurt, Germany-based airport management company in its acquisition of a leading developer and manager of airport retail operations in the U.S.
• Represented the German Treuhandanstalt (Trust Authority) in connection with complex federal litigation in New York that arose out of the reunification of Germany.
• Initiated several Competent Authority tax proceedings on the mitigation of double tax on dual country residents.
• U.S. tax counsel to one of the largest foreign multinational financial services groups.
• Represented a European private equity group in connection with the financing and acquisition of the North American operations of a German vitamin and generic prescription drug maker.
• Counsel to a European private equity firm in connection with various agribusiness investments in the United States.
• Advised a number of significant European multinational companies in connection with their U.S. structurings, restructurings and operations.
• Represented foreign banks in various bankruptcy litigation matters.
• Defended a national bank of a foreign state in a multimillion-dollar federal turnover proceeding.
• Represented the U.S. subsidiary of a foreign government-owned broadcast company in connection with significant antitrust litigation.
• Represented foreign sovereigns or their agencies in various international litigation matters.
• Recovered a multimillion-dollar artwork through federal litigation on behalf of a foreign estate.
• Counsel to a U.S. subsidiary of a global renewable energy project owner and operator in connection with the financing and development of several biogas, solar and wind energy projects across the U.S.
• Represented a global energy and power-focused private equity firm in the financing and acquisition of seven gas-fired power generation plants in the northeastern U.S. through a newly formed project company.
• Successfully defended European based cloud computing company against multimillion-dollar business defamation and Telecommunications Act claims at trial.