Hall Of Fame

Rising Stars

IT transactions and outsourcing in Germany

Baker McKenzie

Baker McKenzie's IT team supports well-known international companies in IT transactions and outsourcing projects. All sectors are covered, with a focus on the financial, pharmaceutical, software and automotive industries. Clients from the latter are regularly advised on connected cars and autonomous driving. Matthias Scholz is a key contact for the introduction of new business models in the financial and pharmaceutical segments, including related tax law issues, while Simone Rieken is experienced in software development, data protection, transactions and IT contracts. Patrick Wilkening, who joined from Hengeler Mueller in October 2022, is another key contact for IT and IP contract drafting. The practice is led by Michael Schmidl (outsourcing) and Michaela Nebel (transactions), who replaced former co-head Holger Lutz (outsourcing, hardware and software contracts, e-commerce and data protection), who joined Clifford Chance in June 2023.

Responsables de la pratique:

Michael Schmidl; Michaela Nebel


Bird & Bird LLP

Bird & Bird's team is experienced in supporting cross-border outsourcing projects and tech transactions and acts on behalf of large companies from the technology, communication, retail, consumer goods, financial and services segments. Co-head Fabian Niemann advises on IT law as well as regulatory issues, while co-head Henriette Picot frequently supports outsourcing projects. Jörg-Alexander Paul complements this with expertise in business process outsourcing (BPO).

Responsables de la pratique:

Fabian Niemann; Henriette Picot


Autres avocats clés:

Jörg-Alexander Paul; Simon Assion


CMS

CMS supports traditional IT and outsourcing projects, IT transactions as well as digital transformations. This is complemented by cross-practice expertise, which is utilised in contentious proceedings based on failed IT projects as well as data protection issues pertaining to transactions. Sebastian Cording is experienced in the introduction of ERP systems as well as in software licenses and the drafting of cooperation agreements, including recent instructions in connection with ​​e-mobility. The client roster includes financial institutions and corporations from the automotive, pharmaceutical and technology sectors as well as media companies. Markus Häuser's expertise corresponds with the team's overall focus; another key contact is Frederik Leenen (alternative sourcing), who made partner in July 2022.

Responsables de la pratique:

Markus Häuser


Les références

‘Comprehensive market knowledge and correspondingly well-developed contract documents for outsourcing and service mandates in the IT and technology segment, even in constellations with a carve-out character.’

‘Dr. Markus Häuser: Excellent knowledge of the IT & outsourcing sector, with practical feedback and applicability.’

‘Fast and targeted information on specific questions about transactions and outsourcing. Created an outsourcing agreement that has provided very strong financial security for our business.’

Noerr

Noerr supports financial service providers and insurance companies as well as companies from the pharmaceutical, technology and automotive sectors in outsourcing contracts as part of carve-outs, transaction-related license agreements and strategic cooperations. Thomas Thalhofer is a key contact for outsourcing and multisourcing projects and has expertise in IT litigation; he jointly leads the practice with Torsten Kraul, who focuses on outsourcing, IT transactions as well as the implementation of digital business models and the application of new technologies. Peter Braut is another key member and complements this with data protection expertise. In April 2023, AI expert David Bomhard joined Aitava.

Responsables de la pratique:

Thomas ThalhoferTorsten Kraul


Autres avocats clés:

Peter Bräutigam; Joachim Schrey


White & Case LLP

White & Case LLP is experienced in sourcing, outsourcing and technology-related transactions and complements this with expertise in the outsourcing of IT infrastructure as well as application management, business process outsourcing and cloud computing. The team acts primarily, but not exclusively, for clients from the finance, insurtech, energy and automotive sectors, which benefit from the cross-practice and cross-location cooperation. The team is led by Jost Kotthoff (sourcing, outsourcing and various technology transactions; also system integrations and software licensing) and includes data protection and cyber security expert Detlev Gabel and Martin Munz (IT, sourcing and contract law). Local partner Mathias Bogusch is a further contact for sourcing transactions, commercial agreements, joint ventures and cooperation agreements and complements this with expertise in IP with a focus on software and data.

Responsables de la pratique:

Jost Kotthoff


Autres avocats clés:

Detlev Gabel; Martin Munz; Mathias Bogusch


Principaux dossiers


  • Advising the energy company E.ON SE on the establishment of a joint venture with Igneo Infrastructure Partners with the aim of further advancing the expansion of high-speed broadband infrastructure and supplying 1.5 million households and large customers across Germany with fiber optic broadband connections.

  • Advising wefox Holding AG on the $400 million Series D financing round.

  • Advising various banks on the implementation of changed regulatory and data protection requirements regarding outsourcing relationships in contractual and procedural terms.

Covington & Burling LLP

Integrated into the international network, Covington & Burling LLP comprehensively covers all relevant interfaces and sectors. Banking regulatory issues pertainig to IT are routinely handled by Lars Lensdorf, who is experienced in IT law, outsourcing, digitisation and data protection. Matters pertaining to the life sciences and digital healthcare area are a key focus of  Moritz Hüsch, who frequently assists with technology-based transactions, license agreements and cooperations. Growth areas were cloud-related projects and regulatory topics.

Responsables de la pratique:

Lars Lensdorf; Moritz Hüsch


Principaux clients

GEA Group AG


METRO AG / METRO Digital GmbH


Principaux dossiers


  • Advising ZF Friedrichshafen AG on a tech M&A deal.

  • Advising the Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen (ZDF) on the procurement of cloud-based IT infrastructure services (IaaS).

  • Advising Nielsen IQ on IP, IT and data protection law during the takeover of GfK.

DLA Piper

DLA Piper is led by Stefan Engels (IP, media law) and comprehensively covers various relevant topics, including feasibility studies, transitional services agreements, post-merger integration and outsourcing projects. Cross-border matters are covered thanks to the international network. Among the key contacts are Jahn Geert Meents (strategic IT and other technology projects, innovative developments) and Jan Pohle (technology and data law).

Responsables de la pratique:

Stefan Engels


Autres avocats clés:

Jan Geert Meents; Jan Pohle


Principaux clients

ResMed Inc


Atos


Principaux dossiers


  • Ongoing advice to one of the world’s largest IT service providers on various IT and business process outsourcing projects with national and international blue chip customers.

  • Advising a German automotive manufacturer on the reassignment of the private cloud operations of the manufacturer itself as well as all subgroups and companies of the parent company worldwide as part of a pilot project.

Hogan Lovells International LLP

Hogan Lovells International LLP regularly cooperates with other locations as well as the corporate practice and is well versed in transaction support. The team focuses on risk examination at the interface between IT and IP, including risks associated with the use of open source software; the use of personal and non-personal data as well as advice on potential losses of know-how. This is complemented by expertise in joint venture formations for the development and use of new technologies and the out-licensing of software. This focus is mirrored by the practice heads Stefan Schuppert (IP, contract law and data protection), Martin Pflüger (IT, e-commerce, data protection with a focus on technology, life sciences, automotive), Marcus Schreibauer (outsourcing, IT transactions, data protection, cyber security) and Christian Tinnefeld (data protection, data security, IT law; litigation).

Principaux clients

BMW


Mercedes-Benz


Boston Consulting Group


Covestro


UniCredit Bank AG


Go1


British American Tobacco Group


Cygna Labs


PTC


Goldman Sachs


IDEAL Versicherungsgruppe


VALOREO


Aareon AG


IT Frankfurt GmbH


Limehome


Motherson


Maguar Capital


Syserso Networks


Erste Abwicklungsanstalt


Principaux dossiers


  • Advising Covestro on the sale of its additive manufacturing business to the Stratasys Group.

  • Advising BMW and Mercedes-Benz on the sale of Share Now to Stellantis.

  • Advising Go1 on the acquisition of Blinkist.

Latham & Watkins LLP

Latham & Watkins LLP routinely supports IT transactions, including carve-outs and the sale of software platforms thanks to the cooperation with the M&A experts. The practice also regularly assists with outsourcing projects in the financial sector, including related regulatory matters. Interfacing data protection issues are handled by Wolf-Tassilo Böhm and Joachim Grittmann. Susan Kempe-Müller's and Thies Deike's expertise in contract drafting and IP matters is frequently requested in a transactional context with a focus on software and data.

Responsables de la pratique:

Susan Kempe-Müller; Thies Deike; Wolf-Tassilo Böhm


Autres avocats clés:

Joachim Grittmann


Principaux clients

Hg


Partners Group


EG Group


Keysight Techologies


Yapily


Chemondis GmbH


Principaux dossiers


  • Advising Hg on the sale of Transporeon, a leading cloud-based transportation management software platform, to Trimble.

  • Advising Partners Group on the acquisition of a majority stake in Cloudflight, a leading full-service provider for industrial digital transformation in Europe, from Deutsche Beteiligungs AG.

  • Advising the EG Group on the IT carve-out as part of the acquisition of the OMV petrol station business in Germany.

Luther Rechtsanwaltsgesellschaft mbH

Luther Rechtsanwaltsgesellschaft mbH specialises in the logistics and technology sector and, in cooperation with the M&A team, supports companies and technology service providers in transactions and outsourcing, where Christian Kuß advises on new technologies such as AI and big data. Michael Rath is well versed in regulated outsourcings, EBA compliance as well as data protection. The transaction support includes the design and negotiation of relevant documents, the implementation of post-closing measures as well as sourcing and IP matters; Wulff-Axel Schmidt is a key contact for the latter.

Responsables de la pratique:

Wulff-Axel Schmidt


Principaux clients

Deutsche Telekom AG


Arvato Systems / Bertelsmann


BASF


Bayer


MCM Klosterfrau


Deutsche Bank / Postbank


Hapag Lloyd


Thyssenkrupp


Riedel Communications GmbH & Co. KG


Staffbase GmbH


SBM Holding


Principaux dossiers


  • Advising China Lodging Holdings Singapore Pte Ltd in connection with the post-merger integration following the takeover of Deutsche Hospitality/Steigenberger.

  • Advising Riedel Communications GmbH & Co. KG on the acquisition of all shares in Simplylive Ltd., a software provider for multi-camera production based in Hong Kong.

  • Advising Collaboration Betters The World SA (CBTW), a Belgian technology service provider, on the strategic acquisition of IT Frankfurt GmbH.

Pinsent Masons Rechtsanwälte Steuerberater Solicitors Partnerschaft mbB

Integrated into the international network, Pinsent Masons Rechtsanwälte Steuerberater Solicitors Partnerschaft mbB's TMT practice assists with sourcing and outsourcing particularly at the Munich location. This expertise was demonstrated in supporting a major German bank in an outsourcing project as well as a large-scale project pertaining to the development and maintenance of software in the telecoms sector. Stephan Appt is experienced in this sector and regularly supports transformation projects, BPOs and managed services projects. This is complemented by the cross-location cooperation with the Frankfurt and Düsseldorf locations. The practice acts across various sectors, including technology, life sciences, healthcare and automotive.

Responsables de la pratique:

Stephan Appt


Principaux clients

DXC Technology


Wolters Kluwer / CCH Tagetik


Telefónica


Principaux dossiers


  • Advising a German telecommunications company on an outsourcing project in the area of ​​network hardware and software.

  • Advising DXC Technology on data migration to the Google Cloud as part of an outsourcing project for a major German bank.

  • Ongoing advice to Wolters Kluwer / CCH Tagetik on outsourcing IFRS applications to the cloud.

SKW Schwarz

SKW Schwarz offers outsourcing expertise in the banking sector, which is called upon by software developers, companies and banks. This is complemented by data protection expert Matthias Orthwein's experience as well as the industry expertise in the healthcare sector, where the practice advises hospital groups on the sourcing of IT infrastructure. Other sector capacities include the energy sector, as was demonstrated in supporting an IT outsourcing service provider for municipalities on several outsourcing projects. Other core topics are SaaS projects and cloud-based business models. Since January 2023, Daniel Meßmer, who specialises in the implementation of software and cloud-based business models, has been the sole head of the practice; former co-head Andreas Peschel-Mehner (IT and IP) remains part of the team. Franziska Ladiges (data protection) was appointed to partner in January 2023.

Responsables de la pratique:

Daniel Meßmer


Principaux clients

Finanz Informatik Technologie Service GmbH & Co. KG


Robert Bosch GmbH


Principaux dossiers


  • IT legal advice to Finanz Informatik Technologie Service GmbH & Co. KG on a public tender with five different providers. The IT legal advice included the complete contract negotiations for the IT framework agreement as well as appendixes on regulation and data protection.

  • Advice on contractual law for items GmbH on IT outsourcing with the Hagen municipal utilities. The mandate included contract negotiations for the IT framework agreement with all systems.

GÖRG Partnerschaft von Rechtsanwälten mbB

GÖRG Partnerschaft von Rechtsanwälten mbB supports financial institutions, companies and start-ups with a cross-practice approach in national and cross-border IT and business process outsourcing projects. The team assists with traditional contract law, employment law, data protection as well as regulatory issues pertaining to the finance and insurance sectors. Florian Schmitz heads the practice and comprehensively advises on IT, outsourcing and digitisation.

Responsables de la pratique:

Florian Schmitz


Les références

‘Pleasant cooperation, pragmatic advice.’

‘Florian Schmitz and his team are great.’

Principaux clients

Deutsche Bank AG


Deutsche Telekom AG/T-Systems International GmbH


European XFEL


Greencom Networks GmbH


HELLA Gruppe


HUK-COBURG


Samsung Electronics


Ufenau Capital Partners


X1F Gruppe


Principaux dossiers


  • Advising T-Systems on the long-term partnership with Google Cloud to introduce sovereign cloud solutions.

  • Advising the HELLA Group on the partial realignment of its IT, including supporting a tender for outsourcing/SAP services.

  • Advising MYTY Group AG on investments in the norisk Group and the Strichpunkt design agency.

Greenberg Traurig Germany

Greenberg Traurig Germany follows a full-service and cross-locational approach and assists with transactions and outsourcing as well as clients' representation in related litigation. Start-ups, technology corporations and well-known companies benefit from the expertise at the interface between technology, media, data and telecommunications law, which was recently demonstrated in supporting the acquisition and operation of data centers as well as advising a network operator on outsourcing. Viola Bensinger heads the practice and is well versed in cross-border technology transactions, software development and licensing projects.

Responsables de la pratique:

Viola Bensinger


Autres avocats clés:

Christoph Enaux; Laura Zentner


Les références

‘The firm stuck to estimated pricing and informed us in advance when new work required additional fees and always sought our approval first.’

Principaux clients

PayPal


Abercrombie & Fitch


Amazon Media und Amazon Studios


Snap Inc.


Zoom Communications Inc.


Volvo Trucks


GlobalLogic


CLIQ AG


Media Broadcast GmbH


Manscaped Inc.


Vonovia SE


Digital Turbine / Fyber


Jump Crypto Holdings LLC


Deutsche Mutimedia Service GmbH


50Hertz Transmission GmbH


Vidaa


Foxxum GmbH


nLighten (f/k/a) TNIC B.V.


Spendesk


Testmo GmbH


Papaya Global Inc.


Anonos Inc.


Principaux dossiers


  • Advising data center operator nLighten / TNIC on outsourcing data center operations, including research and development contracts and patent strategies.

  • Continued advice to Volvo Trucks on its collaboration with Daimler Truck in the joint venture to develop and market fuel cell technology for commercial vehicles, in particular to equip the joint venture with data, patents, software, etc.

  • Advising GlobalLogic on numerous large projects to create special software and IT solutions in the automotive and healthcare sectors.

Heuking

The IP, Media & Technology team at Heuking advises on IT security, data protection as well as the introduction of cloud-based systems, including related litigation, and frequently acts across the healthcare, finance, energy and telecoms sectors. The partner roster was strengthened in January 2023 with the appointments of Christine Grau (IT, cyber security) and Lutz Martin Keppeler (outsourcing, technology-related transactions) to equity partners, while Marcel Maybaum (IT and M&A) made salary partner.

McDermott Will & Emery Rechtsanwälte Steuerberater LLP

McDermott Will & Emery Rechtsanwälte Steuerberater LLP's team supports national and international large corporations and medium-sized companies in transactions as well as the drafting of cooperation agreements and SaaS contracts, practice head Wolfgang von Frentz frequently took the lead here. Further key competencies include the advice on market entry, particularly in the healthcare sector, and transaction-related data protection matters. Ralf Weisser (outsourcing, license transactions) retired in December 2022.

Responsables de la pratique:

Wolfgang von Frentz


Autres avocats clés:

Christian Masch


Principaux clients

Amalgam


Dentsply Sirona


Intersnack Group GmbH & Co. KG


Unister


Van Eupen Logistik


Oppenhoff

Oppenhoff's IT&C practice is experienced in the outsourcing of business processes as well as IT services and was recently instructed on related contentious matters pertaining to outsourcing contract obligations. The team is led by Marc Hilber (technology-related transactions, especially joint ventures, as well as outsourcing and software development projects) and Jürgen Hartung (outsourcing, IT projects and e-commerce; data protection).

Responsables de la pratique:

Marc Hilber; Jürgen Hartung


Autres avocats clés:

Patrick Schwarze; Christian Saßenbach


Les références

‘Very friendly and competent team. Complete transparency regarding the invoicing.’

‘Dr. Marc Hilber: Client-oriented and quick response to short-term inquiries; friendly and professional interaction with in-house colleagues.’

‘Dr. Marc Hilber is a great colleague: high technical skills, great understanding of the commercial drivers of the issues and a very pleasant personal approach without losing sight of the goal of legal representation.’

Principaux clients

AUCTUS Capital Partners AG


tesa SE


Principaux dossiers


  • Advising Digital Vision Group GmbH, a subsidiary of the Auctus Group, on the acquisition and integration of STRANET AG and Smaser AG.

Taylor Wessing

Taylor Wessing regularly supports IP-related transactions thanks to Tim Jonathan Schwarz's specialisation in transactions in which the use, licensing and utilisation of intellectual property are the focus. The team recently supported a large-scale partial sale of IP rights in the gaming sector. Paul Voigt (IT and data protection law) heads the practice, which also includes Mareike Gehrmann (digitisation projects) and Malek Barudi (copyright and media law); the latter two made partners in April 2023.

Responsables de la pratique:

Paul Voigt


Principaux dossiers