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Dr Nils Krause LL.M. (Durham)

Partner
Professionally outstanding and very well networked; fast and pleasant.
— Competitors, JUVE Handbook 2022/2023
Hamburg
About

Dr Nils Krause advises domestic and foreign companies/financial investors on national and cross-border M&A transactions (asset and share acquisitions) as well as on private equity/venture capital transactions. His expertise also includes corporate restructuring (group restructuring, structural measures), complex carve-outs, ongoing support in matters relating to corporate law, and the establishment of joint ventures. In addition, Nils advises companies on legal ESG issues and corporate compliance matters.

In addition to his German admission to the bar, Nils is admitted as a solicitor in England and Wales. He is admitted as a specialist lawyer for commercial and corporate law as well as tax law based on his practical experience. Nils has also been teaching M&A at Bucerius Law School for many years. He regularly publishes on M&A, corporate law, and ESG topics. He is also a frequent speaker at international and national conferences on these topics.

He has been listed in the JUVE Handbook of Business Law Firms for many years as a frequently recommended lawyer for M&A and corporate law. Handelsblatt Best Lawyers regularly lists him as one of the best lawyers for M&A and corporate law in Germany, and WirtschaftsWoche lists him as one of the most renowned lawyers for M&A and corporate law. Chambers Global lists him as one of the 30 leading lawyers in Germany for corporate/M&A – mid market.

Nils headed DLA Piper's German Corporate/M&A practice group for many years before being appointed International Co-Head of Corporate Legal Products and Innovation for the firm.

Areas of FocusTechnologyCorporateMergers and Acquisitions
Professional QualificationsRechtsanwalt admitted with Hanseatische Rechtsanwaltskammer HamburgSolicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales

EXPERIENCE

  • Advising strategic investors on buy-side M&A transactions in various sectors.
  • Advice on structuring and conducting auctions for sell-side M&A mandates.
  • Advice on market entry and the establishment of cross-border joint ventures in Europe/Asia.
  • Advising life science and consumer goods companies on the implementation of ESG solutions.
  • Advice on serial M&A transactions as part of buy-and-build strategies for private equity portfolio companies.
  • Structuring international investment vehicles for high-net-worth individuals Advising on a wide range of private equity/venture capital transactions in the technology sector.
  • Advising on various reorganisation mandates and the implementation of structural measures, including carve-out transactions.
  • Advice on corporate compliance investigations and issues relating to directors' and officers' liability.
Languages
  • German
  • English
Education
  • Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, First State Examination
  • Hanseatisches Oberlandesgericht Hamburg, Second State Examination
  • Durham University, LL.M.
  • Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, Dr. jur.

Awards

  • JUVE Handbook 2024/2025: One of the leading names in M&A (under 50) and frequently recommended for M&A and corporate law; “extremely strong commercial understanding in deals, very good negotiator,” “technically outstanding, very well connected,” competitors)
  • Legal 500 Germany 2025: Recommended for corporate law and M&A: mid-sized deals (EUR100 - EUR500 million)
  • Chambers Global 2025: Recommended for M&A (mid-market) and listed as one of the leading M&A lawyers (mid-market); “Dr Nils Krause puts himself in his clients' shoes, even in highly complex scenarios, and provides valuable practical advice”, client
  • Handelsblatt in cooperation with Best Lawyers 2025: Recommended for corporate law and M&A
  • WirtschaftsWoche 2025: Recognised as “Top Lawyer” for M&A and corporate law in Germany

Publications

  • Practical Handbook on ESG – Fundamentals, Significance, and Implementation in Companies, 1st edition, 2023 (co-editor)
  • Club Deals in M&A Transactions, Betriebs-Berater 2021 (co-author)
  • BB Legislative and Case Law Report on Corporate Finance and M&A 2020/2021, Betriebs-Berater 2021 (co-author)
  • New approaches to corporate compliance, Börsen-Zeitung 2021 (co-author)
  • Global M&A market faces turning point, Börsen-Zeitung 2020 (co-author)
  • Private equity investments in family businesses (author), in: Business succession (editor Wiese)

Prior Experience

Nils worked for an extended period in the corporate department of an English commercial law firm in London and was a guest researcher at Harvard Law School and a visiting fellow at the University of Oxford. Nils also worked for an extended period in investment banking (global banking – M&A) at a leading international bank in Frankfurt. Before joining DLA Piper in 2011, he was a partner at another international business law firm, where he worked in the firm's China Desk, among other areas.

LECTURER

At Bucerius Law School in Hamburg Nils lectures a course on “Practical Aspects of Mergers & Acquisitions” and on “International Mergers & Acquisitions”.

Memberships And Affiliations

  • Hamburg Corporate Law Group
  • Schmalenbach Society for Business Administration
  • Scientific Association for Corporate and Company Law
  • German-American Lawyers' Association

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