References

Data protection has long been part of everyday business life, even in manufacturing, and not just since the GDPR. What the GDPR has promoted is the international acceptance of national data protection law. It has created a new awareness, also at the U.S. company Celanese. Data protection is no longer just a cost factor, but a real asset.

Yoga connects, creates (mental) balance and simply does you good. Although the health-promoting effect has been scientifically proven, yoga is currently still lacking legal recognition as an integral part of preventive health care and health protection in Germany. A large omission, which showed up straight in the corona crisis. The BDY would like to change this - and our lawyers support it with full conviction.

The law firm GvW Graf von Westphalen has achieved a major success for its client before the European Court of Human Rights: The ECHR not only admitted the complaint filed in early 2013, but has now affirmed a violation of the European Convention on Human Rights as well and adjudicated compensation to the complainant represented by GvW (Bajić v. North Macedonia – Application No. 2833/13, judgment of 10 June 2021).

Cube Bikes produces bicycles “made in Germany”. However, many of their components have to be imported from outside the EU and are therefore subject to customs duties. Our customs law specialists Dr Lothar Harings and Franziska Zegula advise this client with a particular focus on exemptions from customs rules that may apply.

The Federal Administrative Court has dismissed all six pending appeals against the planning decision on the Fehmarn Belt Fixed Link. Construction of the tunnel may therefore now also begin in Germany. GvW advised the State of Schleswig-Holstein and was represented by a Hamburg team consisting of Dr Ronald Steiling (lead), Corinna Lindau, Dr Dietrich Drömann, Prof. Dr Christian Winterhoff, Dr Andreas Wolowski, Saskia Soravia, Dr Stefanie Ramsauer, Dr Annika Bleier, Felix Kazimierski and Niclas Langhans. (BVerwG 9 A 6.19, 9 A 7.19, 9 A 9.19, 9 A 10.19, 9 A 11.19, 9 A 12.19 and 9 A 13.19).

Webasto Group, a leading supplier to the automotive industry headquartered in Stockdorf, Germany, has divested its majority shareholding in a sino-foreign joint venture company to its former Chinese joint venture partner.

ÄHF Immobilienfonds GbR has sold Ärztehaus Friedrichshain to the Canadian NorthWest Healthcare Properties REIT. In terms of deal volume, the transaction is one of the largest deals in the asset class of ambulant health centres in Germany. GvW Graf von Westphalen provided legal advice on the sale and liquidation of the fund.

Football is king at H-Hotel Group’s new H4 Hotel in Mönchengladbach. Its location right next to the stadium and the theme rooms depicting the history of the Borussia Dortmund football club make this new hotel unique and a must for any football enthusiast. Our lawyers had the pleasure of advising H-Hotels Group on the creation of its first football-themed hotel and took the chance to visit this amazing place shortly after its opening.

Allgäu Airport, a former military airport near Memmingen, is now in its eleventh year of operating as a civil aviation airport. It is a project from entrepreneurs in the region for the region: 76 shareholders provided 26m euros of equity for the successful operation of the airport, serving over 40 destinations. In this video, Ralf Schmid, Managing Director of Allgäu Airport, looks back to the first day of operation and legal milestones in the development of the airport.

The Turkish aluminum manufacturer Assan Alüminyum Sanayi ve Ticaret A.Ş. ("ASAS") is developing an approximately 80 hectares large area at the former steel plant Rasselstein in Neuwied. GvW Graf von Westphalen advised the metal industry company in the purchase of the property from ThyssenKrupp and supported ASAS in negotiations with the City of Neuwied on matters of urban development.

Wilhelm Schröter opened his first elbgym location at Gorch-Fock-Wall in Hamburg in February 2012. Since then elbgym has opened two more five-star gyms in the heart of Hamburg and will continue its growth without diluting the brand. elbgym is all about doing real and down-to-earth workouts in a classy environment, as members of the GvW team were able to check out themselves during a workout class which they took at Gorch-Fock-Wall and which we documented on camera.

The Max Bögl group of companies has developed a new local public passenger transport system. The system called “Transport System Bögl” (TSB) uses magnetic levitation, or “maglev” technology and provides a clean and cost-efficient means of transport for better mobility in inner city areas. The technology is becoming increasingly popular also in other countries: Max Bögl’s most recent export order was the sale of its TSB to China. The company’s plans include building a 3.5 km test track in Chengdu and extensive marketing activities to promote the technology in China – all through a sales partnership with a Chinese company.

Alnatura also won the dispute against dm in the second instance: The organic food company was allowed to extraordinarily terminate the contract with dm-drogerie markt. The OLG Frankfurt decided this today and rejected the appeal of the drugstore chain (file no. 12 U 13/17).