New office in Stuttgart – GvW Graf von Westphalen expands to sixth German location

From now on, GvW Graf von Westphalen will be present in all major German business cities. With the opening of its sixth German office in Stuttgart, the firm is now able to serve its many small- and medium-sized business clients from the State of Baden-Württemberg directly in their home area.

“For us as a full-service law firm for SMEs operating across Germany, Stuttgart was a logical choice”, the two firm’s two Managing Partners Christof Kleinmann and Dr Robert Theissen explain. “Our long-standing clients in the area appreciate being able to talk to us personally. This is particularly important to our medium-sized industrial clients we advise, for example, on their business relationships with China, export-related issues and corporate housekeeping.

The founding team includes Dr Marcus Schriefers und Axel J. Klasen, who came to the firm from the Stuttgart office of the business law firm Heussen. Dr. Schriefers is an acclaimed expert in the logistics field and advises clients like Daimler, Metro or Schöffel on logistics and transport law, as well as companies like Kärcher on distribution law and contract structuring. Axel J. Klasen is a specialist in employment law and advises clients on restructurings and collective employment law matters. He negotiates works council agreements for clients, represents employers on works-level arbitration committees and conciliation bodies and offers legal advice on collective bargaining.

The GvW Management adds: “The addition of logistics and transport law complements our existing range of services. This interfaces nicely with our customs and international trade practices, or with our regulatory experts in the transport sector. Employment law is of great importance in the area and a key element that completes the full-service package offered by our Stuttgart office.”

Dr. Schriefers and Mr. Klasen are joined by GvW Partners Christian Kusulis (Competition and Antitrust Law), Dr Grace Nacimiento (Digital Economy and Telecommunications) and Dr Christian Zerr (Hospitality, Litigation), who will now shift their base more to the Stuttgart office.

Dr. Marcus Schriefers and Axel J. Klasen are quoted on their move as saying: “We look forward to the exciting project of building a new location for this renowned firm in Stuttgart. With its philosophy of close collaboration across locations and practice areas, this firm provides an ideal setting for smooth and efficient integration and the successful development of our office. GvW is a top-rated law firm that offers us great prospects for developing our business and is extremely attractive to high-calibre applicants.

GvW currently has over 160 lawyers with offices in Berlin, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Munich, Brussels, Istanbul and Shanghai. In recent years, the firm has not only seen strong growth in its headcount but, according to the latest edition of the “JUVE Rechtsmarkt” journal, also ranks among the six firms with the highest revenue growth last year.