Graf von Westphalen to open new office in Düsseldorf

Graf von Westphalen (GvW) will open a new office in Düsseldorf in April 2012, making it one of only a few major independent law firms in Germany to have a presence in all key economic regions of the country. Christof Kleinmann, Co-Managing Partner at GvW, says of the decision: "We had been looking into opening an office in Düsseldorf for some time. Our clients and the various foreign law firms in our international network encouraged us to make this move. The new office will help us penetrate the German market even better. In view of the large number of Chinese companies based in the region, the Düsseldorf office will also be a key asset for our very active and successful China business."

The opening of the Düsseldorf office represents a logical move for GvW. The firm already advises several major companies in the Rhine/Ruhr economic region. Robert Theissen, Co-Managing Partner at GvW, says: "As a major national law firm, we are pleased to be able to also offer our services in North Rhine-Westphalia. This will enable us to provide efficient coverage of the entire German market."

Corporate law will be a key focus of the new office, with real estate law and public procurement law also playing an important role.

Effective February 1, 2012, Malte J. Hiort (38) will join GvW as a new partner in the corporate law practice. Additional appointments at the partner level will further expand the new team in Düsseldorf, which also intends to work closely with the partners in GvW's Frankfurt office, particularly in the areas of corporate and real estate law.

Robert Theissen says of the new hiring: "We are very pleased about Mr. Hiort's appointment, which will strengthen our international corporate practice. We are also confident that we will soon be able to report additional high-caliber hires."

Malte J. Hiort, who had previously worked for Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP in Frankfurt, Cologne and New York since 2004, specializes in national and international mergers and acquisitions and legal advice for insurance companies. Among other clients, he advised Deutsche Postbank AG in the sale of its insurance holdings to Talanx AG. He also advised a trust of the Mittal family (ArcelorMittal) in the acquisition of the operative business of ESCADA AG from insolvency as well as American Express in the takeover of payback operator Loyalty Partner.

Malte Hiort comments: "GvW's dynamic and successful growth over the last few years, the successful strategic expansion of the firm's international corporate practice and the strong development of its China business have impressed me. With its open, cooperative corporate culture, GvW represents an excellent platform for my practice. Opening a new office together with my colleagues at GvW is a rare opportunity."

The new office will be located in Königsallee 61 in the new "köblick" building. "Aside from a great view over the central moat, the ‘Kö-Graben', the eighth-floor offices come with first-class facilities in an exclusive and central location," Christof Kleinmann says in explaining the key reasons for selecting this location.