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Dr Moritz von Hesberg MBA (UCT)

Partner
Our collaboration with Moritz von Hesberg is unique. (...) The advice is holistic in the best sense of the word.
— Client, Legal 500
Hamburg
About

Dr Moritz von Hesberg is a member of the Corporate/M&A practice group in our Hamburg office. He advises numerous German and international clients. A particular focus of his work is the structuring and execution of complex, cross-border transactions, in particular joint ventures. In addition, he regularly advises portfolio companies of private equity and venture capital funds on acquisitions. As part of his corporate governance focus, Moritz also regularly advises on corporate compliance including the corporate support of international investigations. Another focus of his work in both M&A and corporate governance is advising on issues related to ESG.

Moritz advises mostly clients from the life sciences and biotechnology industry, the logistics and shipping sector, as well as technology and consumer goods companies.

While being qualified as a lawyer, Moritz also holds an MBA from the University of Cape Town where he still teaches as a visiting lecturer in the international MBA program with an elective on M&A. In addition, Moritz holds several advisory board mandates in German and South African companies and publishes regularly on corporate and corporate compliance topics.

Areas of FocusEnergy and Natural ResourcesInfrastructure, Construction and TransportLife SciencesCorporateLitigation, Arbitration and InvestigationsMergers and AcquisitionsPrivate Equity
Professional QualificationsRechtsanwalt admitted with Hanseatische Rechtsanwaltskammer Hamburg

EXPERIENCE

  • Advising Unilever on various corporate and M&A mandates, recently on the sale of the Pfanni potato production Site to Aviko Rixona in a complex strategic transaction including a long term supply agreement.
  • Advising the Hoyer Group, a global leading logistics group, on the acquisition of pan-asiatic Kerry-ITS group with companies in Singapore, China, Vietnam and Thailand.
  • Advising Stockholm based Stillfront Group, an international market leader in the area of online games, on its acquisition of Sandbox Interactive GmbH, a successful gaming start-up based in Berlin, for a purchase price of EUR130 million plus variable purchase price components.
  • Ongoing advise of team.blue, a portfolio company of Hg Capital, with regard to various corporate and M&A topics, in particular as deal counsel on numerous European acquisitions.
  • Advising Hapag-Lloyd on its USD4.6 billion merger with United Arab Shipping Company, the largest container liner company of the Middle East, and on its USD5.6 billion business combination with the container shipping activities of the largest South American carrier, Compañía Sud Americana de Vapores.*
  • Advising a large German automotive company on an internal investigation relating to potential misconduct in a joint venture company.

*Denotes experience from a previous firm

Languages
  • German
  • English
  • Italian

Awards and Recognitions

  • JUVE Handbook 2024/2025: Frequently recommended for M&A; “Brilliant lawyer.”
  • JUVE Rechtsmarkt 2023: Recommended as one of the “Top 40 under 40” lawyers across Germany.
  • Legal 500 Germany 2025: Recommended for industry focus: healthcare and life sciences, compliance, corporate law as well as M&A: mid-sized deals (EUR100 - EUR500 million); “Our collaboration with Moritz von Hesberg is unique. We benefit enormously from the expertise of the lawyer and his team and their ability to react extremely quickly. The advice is holistic in the best sense of the word.” and “Comprehensively informed, very analytical and reliable, balanced and well-balanced communication with the opposing side. Communicative and technically adept, even in interfacing areas. Fast reaction times, approachable and available at all times.”
  • Handelsblatt in cooperation with Best Lawyers: Recognised as “Best Lawyer” for corporate law and M&A.
  • WirtschaftsWoche 2024: Listed as German “Top Lawyer” in the area of M&A.
Education
  • University of Cape Town, Master of Business Administration, 2019
  • Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen, Dr. iur., 2015
  • Kammergericht Berlin, Second State Examination, 2012

Publications

  • “Auswirkungen des Verbandssanktionengesetzes auf die gesellschaftsrechtliche Organisation (international tätiger) Konzerne“, Betriebs-Berater, 03.08.2020, p. 1743
  • The chapter on Accounting Fraud in the German handbook on the criminal liability of corporations published in the Beck Verlag, 2019
  • Dissertation on liability in (international) corporations for violations of the law in subsidiaries, 2016

Seminars

  • Lecturer at the Graduate School of Business of the University of Cape Town on M&A (in the Master of Business Administration program)
  • Lecture on Internal Investigations at the Bucerius Law School

Prior Experience

Prior to joining DLA Piper Moritz worked for more than five years for an international law firm in the fields of M&A as well as Corporate Compliance, most recently as a Principal Associate.

Memberships And Affiliations

  • Wirtschaftsstrafrechtliche Vereinigung e.V.
  • Hamburgische Rechtsanwaltskammer
  • Bucerius Alumni e.V.

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Phone

+49 40 188 88 163
(Work, Hamburg)
+49 162 24 97 946
(Work)