Image of Kristina Klaaßen-Kaiser

Kristina Klaaßen-Kaiser

European Head of Corporate/M&A, Düsseldorf

Overview

Rechtsanwältin

Experience

Kristina is European Divisional Lead for the Corporate Division. She has specialised experience in national and international mergers & acquisitions (including public takeovers and joint ventures) and corporate law (law on stock corporations and company groups, corporate reorganisations, corporate governance, capital markets).

Transactions of significance where substantial involvement can be disclosed have included:

  • Vodafone Group on the carve-out of its tower business and the €12bn IPO of Vantage Towers AG
  • thyssenkrupp on the €17.2bn sale of its elevator business to a consortium led by Advent and Cinven
  • Covestro AG on, inter alia, the €1.6 billion acquisition of the Resins & Functional Materials business from Royal DSM
  • thyssenkrupp AG on the planned and ultimately cancelled European steel joint venture with Tata Steel
  • Curetis on the planned merger of its business with OpGen
  • thyssenkrupp AG on a number of other strategic transactions, including on the division of the group into the two independent companies, the sale of all shares in Brazilian steel mill TK CSA and prior acquisition of minority shares from Vale S.A., the sale of their US steel coating plant to ArcelorMittal/Nippon Steel and several business agreements
  • Bayer AG on the carve-out of its plastic division Bayer MaterialScience and the subsequent IPO of Covestro AG
  • Reckitt Benckiser on the spin-off of its German HygieneHome business
  • Sunways AG on the acquisition of a majority stake by Chinese solar company LDK Solar and the subsequent public takeover offer
  • Serco Group on the sale of German stakes
  • GPC Biotech on the cross-border merger with Agennix Inc.
  • P&I Personal & Informatik AG on the entry and exit of Carlyle Group as well as later entry of HG Capital
  • Deutsche Börse on the planned merger with NYSE Euronext
  • E.ON on the joint venture with Brazilian MPX Group
Professional experience

  • 2015 to date Partner, Linklaters
  • 2009 - 2015 Managing Associate, Linklaters
  • 2008 - 2009 Associate, Linklaters
  • 2005 - 2008 Associate, Hoffmann Liebs Fritsch & Partner, Düsseldorf
Education

  • 2004 - Second Legal State Examination (2. Juristisches Staatsexamen)
  • 2002 - 2004 Landgericht Dortmund, legal traineeship (Referendariat)
  • 2001 - 2002 London Metropolitan University, LL.M., London
  • 2001 - First Legal State Examination (1. Juristisches Staatsexamen)
  • 1996 - 2001 Westfälische Wilhelms-University of Münster, law studies
Languages

German, English, French