Dentons Europe has appointed two new partners. Michael Graf has joined the firm’s German tax practice group and Robert Bastian has joined the German private equity group. They are based in the Frankfurt office.
Graf has strong expertise in the field of international tax law and is experienced in advising multinational enterprises as well as private equity funds. He is also a certified tax advisor.
Bastian specializes in private equity law and M&A, and has been advising leading private equity funds on general corporate issues and corporate litigation for a decade. He has also supported an excellence program for members of supervisory boards of the Deutsche Aktieninstitut (DAI) as a lecturer from 2010 to 2012.
Graf and Bastian joined Dentons on May 1, 2013 from the HAARMANN Partnership Company. They were joined by Counsel Dr. Friedrich Toepel who is experienced in complex litigations, especially in post-M&A and shareholder disputes, and liability of institutions. He works in German and international arbitration proceedings. Since 2009, Toepel has also been an adjunct professor at the University of Bonn.
Andreas Ziegenhagen, managing partner for Germany, said: “We are delighted to welcome Michael and Robert to our Frankfurt office. Their arrival marks an important step for our German teams, especially in the context of the Dentons combination, as we will be able to increase the quality of our cooperation both in Germany and globally. The signs point towards growth in Germany and I am confident that Michael and Robert will take advantage of the growing opportunities here.”
