The partners of Gleiss Lutz voted unanimously on Saturday to open an office in Hamburg through the integration of Rittstieg Rechtsanwälte. This will become Gleiss Lutz’s sixth office in Germany following the opening of the Düsseldorf office in September 2009. The integration is expected to become effective as of 1 October 2010.
Rittstieg Rechtsanwälte, a high-end transaction boutique and one of the leading corporate practices in Germany, will further strengthen the Gleiss Lutz corporate team. The firm, a Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer spin-off, was founded in 2000 by top German corporate/M&A lawyers, Dr. Andreas Rittstieg and Dr. Rüdiger Zeller. Within a short space of time, the firm acquired a strong reputation for complex transactions and corporate advice and today counts six partners and four associates.
The corporate practice of Gleiss Lutz is one of the leading in the German market. More than 130 lawyers, including 37 partners work in the corporate group, accounting for over half of the firm’s 260 lawyers. In line with the firm’s strategy to grow the practice, Gleiss Lutz had already appointed six new corporate partners in 2009, including three lateral hires: Thomas Hitzer from Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer; Patrick Kaffiné from Lovells and Thomas Menke from Baker & McKenzie.
Dr. Rainer Loges, Managing Partner of Gleiss Lutz commented: “The addition of Rittstieg fits perfectly into our strategy to grow the corporate practice with excellent lawyers. Rittstieg is a perfect fit. We all have the highest demands on the quality of our work, share the same partnership culture and strongly believe in the importance of a personal relationship of trust with our clients. Further, Hamburg is an important economic region in Germany which promises considerable potential for us.“
Dr. Andreas Rittstieg added: “We have proven in the past ten years that we can handle complex matters with the same quality as major leading law firms. Joining forces with Gleiss Lutz means that we can now offer our clients direct access to the resources of one of the leading full-service law firms in Germany. What is more, we can provide access to an excellent established international network through Gleiss Lutz’s Alliance with Herbert Smith and Stibbe on the one hand and the excellent relationships to other leading independent firms worldwide.“ The Alliance of Gleiss Lutz, Herbert Smith and Stibbe has more than 2,000 lawyers in 30 offices covering 20 jurisdictions.
To accelerate the integration of the new office into the firm’s network, well-known Gleiss Lutz Corporate/M&A partner Dr. Fred Wendt and associated partner, Dr. Johann Wagner, will relocate to Hamburg. Dr. Johann Wagner will build up the tax practice in the new office. Other practice areas will be established in the medium term.
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