Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP today announced that real estate lawyer Cornelia Thaler joined the firm as a partner in the Frankfurt office.
Cornelia Thaler is one of the most prominent lawyers in the German real estate sector. She regularly
advises property owners, developers, investors and financial institutions on real estate transactions and
related financing. She previously led Clifford Chance’s German real estate practice for eight years.
“Willkie is recognized in Germany as a leading transactional firm, most notably for private equity
and M&A. We plan to leverage this platform to play a leading role in the real estate sector,” says
Ms. Thaler.
“We are excited to continue on our growth path with the addition of Cornelia Thaler,” commented
Georg Linde, managing partner of Willkie’s Frankfurt office. “With her addition, we will take the
real estate practice, including financing, to a new level as we clearly aim for the top of the market.
As in all of our practice areas, we strive to advise our clients on their most important and most
challenging matters.”
Complex transactions are a particular strength of Willkie. Recently, Willkie has advised
GoldenTree on the HSH Nordbank transaction, Unternehmensgruppe Theo Müller on the sale of the
Nordsee restaurant business, and CVC on the acquisition of Bosch Packaging. Willkie has also been
the long-standing advisor of various mid-cap private equity funds such as ARDIAN and 3i.
Recent real estate transactions include the combination of Kaufhof and Karstadt, the sale of the
department stores at Cologne Hohe Strasse and Dusseldorf Carsch-Haus, and Acciona Energía on
the sale of its German wind power assets. Further, Patrizia Germany and Domicil Real Estate Group
belong to the firm’s roster of real estate clients.
Ms. Thaler’s addition follows the arrivals of well-known real estate financing lawyer Dr. Ralf
Defren and real estate attorney Dr. Moritz Vettermann (Counsel). Together with Wolfgang
Münchow (Counsel), and Dr. Markus Lauer (to join imminently), who has a wealth of experience in
advising clients who hold residential assets, these additions showcase Willkie’s strength across all
relevant areas of the real estate sector.
Dr. Moritz Vettermann states: “I am very happy to see that the building of our real estate practice,
which we started a year ago, is receiving another big push. We very much look forward to working
together with Cornelia.”
Source: www.willkie.com
