Staffan Illert

Staffan has specialised experience in relation to international M&A transactions and transformational corporate restructurings; corporate advice to listed companies as well as corporate disputes.

He is named as a leading M&A and corporate lawyer in Germany under 50 years by JUVE Directory 2024/2025 and highly regarded by IFLR1000 (2024/2025), and is ranked by Chambers and Partners in Corporate/M&A: high end capability in Germany (2024/2025). 

Work highlights

• E.ON: advising on various transactions, including the takeover of innogy and the change of business areas with RWE, the spin-off of Uniper and the subsequent sale to Fortum, the sale of the heating current business to Lichtblick, its investment in ENEVA (Brazil).
• Deutsche Börse: advising on various transactions, including its acquisition of Kneip Communication S.A., its proposed all-share merger of equals with London Stock Exchange Group, its proposed business combination with NYSE Euronext as well as its acquisition of FX trading platform 360T, Swiss index provider STOXX and Indexium.
• Uniper: advising on various transactions, including its stabilization in 2022.
•  thyssenkrupp: advising on various transactions, including the sale of its elevator business Elevator Technology and the IPO track prepared in parallel, the proposed split in the two separate companies Materials and Industrials, as well as the planned European steel joint venture with Tata Steel.
• HSBC: advising on its acquisition and subsequent integration of listed HSBC Trinkaus & Burkhardt.
• Asklepios Kliniken: advising on the takeover of RHÖN-Klinikkum AG.
• Qiagen: advising on the planned takeover of US technology group Thermo Fisher Scientific.
• Deutsche Bank group: advising on numerous corporate law and directors liability matters.
• Trans-o-flex: advising its shareholders on its sale to Geodis S.A.
• Fresenius SE: advising on its transformation into a SE & Co. KGaA.
• Instone Real Estate Group:advising on its transformation into a SE.
• HelloFresh: advising on its transformation into a SE.
• GPC Biotech: advising on its cross-border merger with Agennix (US).

Staffan has joined Linklaters in 2006 as an Associate and was appointed partner in 2013. He completed a secondment at Linklaters New York in 2008.

• 2013 to date Partner, Linklaters
• 2009 - 2013 Managing Associate, Linklaters
• 2008 - 2009 Secondment, Linklaters New York
•  2006 - 2009 Associate, Linklaters Cologne and Düsseldorf
• 2005 - Internship, Linklaters London

As part of his pro bono work, Staffan has founded and is management board member of one of the largest Parkinson-foundations in Germany (Prof Klaus Thiemann Stiftung).

Staffan studied law at the University of Passau and Bonn.

He speaks German, English and French.

Staffan regularly publishes articles in German and English-language journals and handbooks; he lectures M&A as part of the Master of Law programm of the University of Münster.