GvW Sets Course for the Future: New Management Board

The partnership of GvW Graf von Westphalen has elected a new firm management at its partners' meeting in Hamburg: In future, Dr Maximilian Emanuel Elspas and Christian Mayer-Gießen will  manage the firm together as Joint Managing Partners. They succeed Christof Kleinmann and Dr Robert Theissen. After more than 16 successful years in office, both are leaving the management board at their own request, but will remain partners of the firm.

"We would like to thank Christof Kleinmann and Robert Theissen warmly for their outstanding work and great commitment. They have shaped GvW over many years and developed it into one of the leading independent commercial law firms in Germany," explains Dr Marco Zessel, Chairman of the Partners' Council at GvW. "With the election of Dr Maximilian Emanuel Elspas and Christian Mayer-Gießen, we are consciously focusing on continuity and renewal at the same time."

The new management is taking over GvW in a phase of many changes in which artificial intelligence will shape the industry. Like their predecessors, Dr Maximilian Emanuel Elspas and Christian Mayer-Gießen stand for a team-oriented management culture and will continue to develop GvW's strategic direction in close cooperation with the partnership and the established business service units in areas such as client orientation, digitalisation and artificial intelligence.

"We are very pleased with the trust that the firm has placed in us," emphasise Dr Maximilian Emanuel Elspas and Christian Mayer-Gießen. "GvW stands for outstanding legal expertise, partnership-based cooperation and an open corporate culture. Together with our colleagues, we want to use these strengths to lead the firm into a successful future."

Dr Maximilian Emanuel Elspas advises national and international clients from the energy industry and other sectors on all matters relating to energy law. The Munich-based partner heads the energy focus area at GvW and is Joint Head of the ESG focus area, where he helps shape the strategic integration of the energy transition, sustainability and regulation. Before joining GvW, the 53-year-old gained management experience at another leading commercial law firm in Germany.

Christian Mayer-Gießen is a member of the Corporate/M&A practice group and advises domestic and foreign companies on all aspects of commercial and corporate law. In addition, the 53-year-old has extensive experience in managing complex mass proceedings. In recent years, the Hamburg partner has held various positions within GvW, including as partner responsible for personnel for many years and currently as Chairman of the Remuneration Committee and the Hamburg Office Coordinator. Christian Mayer-Gießen joined GvW 25 years ago as a legal trainee and has been actively involved in shaping the firm's culture for many years.

Christof Kleinmann and Dr Robert Theissen will be devoting more time to their legal activities in future. Both have successfully led the firm as Managing Partners since 2009 in a challenging market environment and, as representatives of the partnership, have contributed to GvW's current positioning. This positioning can also be seen in the figures: The number of lawyers rose from 92 to 255 in the period between 2010 (after the spin-off of the Freiburg and Cologne offices) and 2025, while turnover more than tripled in the same period to just under €100 million. In addition, the law firm was once again voted the most popular medium-sized law firm to start a career in Germany.