Mayer Brown expands antitrust capabilities with arrival of Christian Horstkotte and Dr. Johannes Weichbrodt in Germany

Mayer Brown today announced that it has expanded its Antitrust & Competition practice in Düsseldorf with the appointment of a team led by partners Christian Horstkotte and Dr. Johannes Weichbrodt. Both partners will join Mayer Brown from Baker McKenzie on January 1, 2021 with three associates.

Christian has extensive experience advising on complex merger control proceedings and cartel investigations before German and EU competition authorities, acting on some of the largest antitrust proceedings in recent years. Christian was head of the German antitrust practice at Baker McKenzie for almost 10 years and will lead Mayer Brown's Antitrust & Competition practice in Germany, working from the Düsseldorf and Brussels offices.

Johannes represents clients on global antitrust and compliance investigations with a focus on the automotive and heavy industry, consumer goods and retail sectors. A key aspect of his work is assisting foreign companies in Latin America with their compliance programs.

"With Christian Horstkotte, one of the leading experts in antitrust law, we are strengthening our leading Antitrust & Competition practice globally. Dr. Johannes Weichbrodt's expertise in the area of compliance rounds off this nicely," said Dr. Guido Zeppenfeld, the office managing partner for Germany. "Their arrival enhances our continental European coverage in this area and extends our ability to offer integrated advice before competition authorities worldwide to our clients. We have recruited an experienced team in response to strong demand from our clients for European advice in the area of antitrust law. We are very pleased to have attracted lawyers of their caliber to Mayer Brown."

"The development of Mayer Brown's antitrust law practice in Germany in synergy with the firm's pan-European capabilities offers huge potential for additional client engagements," commented Christian Horstkotte.

Dr. Johannes Weichbrodt added: "Clients currently face the increasing globalization of antitrust rules. We look forward to steering our clients through this complex area and working with Mayer Brown's renowned global antitrust team, which is an ideal platform for our international experience."

The partner duo join Mayer Brown with associates Teresa Gerold, Matthias Jannausch and Prof. Dr. Eugen Wingerter.

The addition of Christian Horstkotte and Dr. Johannes Weichbrodt to Mayer Brown's Düsseldorf office follows the partner hires of Bernina Butt (Banking & Finance), Ulrich Helm (Litigation & Dispute Resolution) and Dr. Hagen Köckeritz (Employment & Benefits).