German Counsel Joins Arnold & Porter's Competition Team In Brussels
Brussels, October 1, 2007 -- Arnold & Porter LLP announced today that competition lawyer Axel Gutermuth has joined the firm as counsel in the Brussels office. Mr. Gutermuth is a German national with a broad range of experience in merger control and other competition law matters, both EU and German. He joins partners Marleen Van Kerckhove, Tim Frazer, Luc Gyselen and Susan Hinchliffe, bringing the total European Competition Practice team to 11 lawyers. The team works closely with the firm’s deep bench of US antitrust team members, including global head of antitrust William Baer, who regularly spends time in the Brussels office.
“We welcome Axel’s broad EU experience, particularly his expertise with German competition authorities and prior EU merger control work,” said Marleen Van Kerckhove, head of Arnold & Porter’s European Competition Practice. “He will complement and add depth to our team and we will be able to better serve our existing and future clients with a broader reach in Germany.”
Mr. Gutermuth has nearly a decade of experience in private practice, covering merger control, litigation, agency investigations, compliance advice, and other regulatory matters. He has assisted clients in several first and second phase merger proceedings before the European Commission, the Bundeskartellamt in Germany, and other national competition authorities. He regularly advises clients on the compliance of joint ventures and other cooperation agreements with competition law and the specific rules on research and development, technology transfer, production, and distribution. He represents clients in cartel investigations, EC anti-subsidy and anti-dumping procedures, State aid procedures, and appeals to the European Court of First Instance and Court of Justice.
Mr. Gutermuth is qualified in Germany, a member of the New York Bar, and an associated member of the Brussels Bar. He joins Arnold & Porter LLP from the Brussels office of Wilmer Hale, where he had been counsel to the firm.
Commenting on his arrival, Mr. Gutermuth said “Arnold & Porter has a prime antitrust practice in the United States and a formidable team of lawyers in Europe. The growing Brussels office provides an excellent platform to provide high-quality work to the firm's and my existing and future clients. I am excited about this opportunity."
The firm's Brussels office was established in the summer of 2003. The work that the European Competition Practice team has conducted over the past year includes several second phase EU merger investigations, a number of cartel investigations, several appeal cases before the European courts, a pending State aid application, several administrative investigations before EU and national antitrust authorities, and general antitrust advice and competition compliance. The team covers all areas of business, with particular expertise in the areas of pharmaceutical/life sciences, fast-moving-consumer-goods, shipping, financial services, and industrial products.