Herbert Smith Freehills LLP > Brussels, Belgium > Firm Profile

Herbert Smith Freehills LLP Offices

Herbert Smith Freehills LLP
CENTRAL PLAZA
RUE DE LOXUM 25
1000 BRUXELLES
Belgium
Visit website 32 2 511 74 50 32 2 511 77 72

Herbert Smith Freehills LLP > The Legal 500 Rankings

Belgium > Competition: EU and global Tier 2

At Herbert Smith Freehills LLP, the team is 'able to pull from the firm’s resources across the globe to deliver insightful advice', making it an advisor of choice for major international corporates, particularly those from the TMT, energy, pharmaceutical and consumer sectors. 'Charismatic' managing partner Kyriakos Fountoukakos acts as global head of the competition, regulation and trade practice. Lode Van Den Hende is noted for his state aid expertise, while Daniel Vowden has significant experience of advising on foreign direct investment control and analogous regimes. Of counsel Peter Rowland is the name to note for merger control work.

Practice head(s):

Kyriakos Fountoukakos

Other key lawyers:

Lode Van Den Hende; Daniel Vowden; Eric White; Peter Rowland; Camille Puech-Baron; Morris Schonberg

Testimonials

‘The Brussels team were highly knowledgeable, proactive and solution-orientated in our efforts to engage with the EU. They also knew who to engage with and at what level.’

‘Eric White and Lode Van Den Hende took the lead on our efforts and assured we stayed on the most likely track for success.’

‘They are logical and also very practical because they know how the business works.’

‘Kyriakos Fountoukakos has stood out for a long time. He is of course the expert on EU competition law, but is also knowledgeable in global competition law practice, which gives you “packaged” advice as a global client. His friendly, soft communication style is also helpful for the clinets not to be panicked even when the situation is tough.’

‘They have a truly global reach and top antitrust lawyers in the major jurisdictions.’

‘Kyriakos Fountoukakos has significant expertise on antitrust and competition.’

‘The Herbert Smith team delves well into the details and commercial aspects of the matters they work on. They are great project managers and are able to pull from the firm’s resources across the globe to deliver insightful advice. They stick to deadlines and respond to feedback. They are able to interact effectively with non-lawyers and extract the information that they need. ’

‘Kyriakos Fountoukakos is a great lawyer, with a charismatic personality. He has great communication skills and is able to speak the language of business people. He is well connected in Brussels and can give insightful advice on strategic matters.’

Key clients

Uber

Comcast / Sky UK / Sky Deutschland

Google

The Coca-Cola Company

United Group

Sumitomo Corporation

Mitsubishi Corporation

Synthomer

British American Tobacco

Eni

Capital & Counties Properties

Altra Industrial Motion

SMBC Aviation Capital

Work highlights

  • Representing a car manufacturer in parallel investigations by the European Commission and the UK Competition and Markets Authority in relation to automotive end-of-life vehicles.
  • Advised Altra Industrial Motion on the merger control aspects of its $4.95bn acquisition by Regal Rexnord Corporation.
  • Represented the Coca-Cola Company in an abuse of dominance antitrust investigation launched by the European Commission.

Belgium > Customs, trade, WTO and anti-dumping Tier 3

Herbert Smith Freehills LLP regularly represents clients in trade disputes and arbitration, with the team's expertise encompassing WTO and ICSID disputes around customs and sanctions measures as well as, increasingly, complaints under the EU's Foreign Subsidies Regulation. Regulatory questions are also a key area of focus for the team, which advises multinational companies and trade associations in connection with EU sanctions and export control measures. Lode Van Den Hende leads the practice and is an expert in WTO litigation and international trade regulation. Other key contacts include Eric White, who regularly advises clients on post-Brexit UK-EU trade relations, and Morris Schonberg, an expert in subsidy control matters.

Practice head(s):

Lode Van Den Hende

Other key lawyers:

Eric White; Morris Schonberg

Testimonials

‘HSF delivers outstanding performance in the most complex EU law issues. They provide well-structured and practical advice with the focus on the client’s objectives. They achieve positive judgments in the EU General Court and the Court of Justice.’

‘Eric White is one of the most experienced European jurists. He leverages his deep understanding of the EU founding principles and precedents of their application and regulations to develop winning strategies.’

‘The team has outstanding capabilities in advising clients on new matters where there are no legal precedents – it truly stands out for its innovative approach. In particular, it has already established itself as a thought leader in relation to the Foreign Subsidies Regulation, a new instrument introduced recently by the European Commission.’

‘Lode Van den Hende stands out for his clear advice to clients on a very broad range of competition matters. He is a go-to name on competition matters in the energy sector, in particular, and has an outstanding profile in this sector. In addition, Morris Schonberg is also a rising star – he has exceptional knowledge and is outstandingly dedicated.’

‘Good leverage of a team with prior government experience.’

‘Eric White is a calm and measured voice in any storm, and brings solid perspective as a former EU Commission official to trade problems.’

Key clients

The Southern African Customs Union

British Sugar

British American Tobacco

AerCap

Work highlights

  • Acted for AerCap in claims under its aviation insurance policies relating to the loss of aircraft and engines in Ukraine and Russia following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the imposition of international sanctions.
  • Represented the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) in a bilateral dispute with the EU under the EU-Southern African Development Community Economic Partnership Agreement concerning a SACU safeguard measure on certain EU poultry imports, one of the first trade arbitrations under an EU FTA.

Japan > Antitrust and competition: International firms and joint ventures

The competition, regulation, and trade department at Herbert Smith Freehills LLP is jointly led by Brussels-based Kyriakos Fountoukakos, Hong Kong-based Adelaide Luke, and Tokyo-based Joel Rheuben, who was promoted to Of Counsel in May 2023. With a strong international network, the practice is able to advise on cross-border merger control, cartel and regulatory investigations, and outbound antitrust and competition law cases, as well as distribution agreements and joint ventures.

Practice head(s):

Kyriakos Fountoukakos; Adelaide Luke; Joel Rheuben

Testimonials

‘Joel Rheuben leads matters quite well. His responses are always quick and practical. One of the best lawyers in this area.’

‘Their advice is always quite clear and practical, and in particular, not conservative compering with other law firms, which helps us very much.’

‘The entire team over nations works very closely and seamlessly.’

‘Joel Rheuben is an excellent competition lawyer. His ability to translate complex antitrust regulation into easy to understand and practical commercial advise is very valuable.’

‘They have deep understanding of clients’ needs and deep expertise on each jurisdiction.’

‘The HSF competition team are able to distil complex and sometimes academic antitrust regulations into practical and commercial legal advice.’

‘Kyriakos Fountoukakos is a leading global competition lawyer. He really is a “go to” lawyer for any competition matter.’

‘They have extensive knowledge of antitrust law and its related area including the business and latest trends.’

Key clients

Sumitomo Corporation

Mitsubishi Corporation

NEC Software Solutions UK

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc.

MUFG Bank, Ltd.

SMBC Aviation Capital

Work highlights

  • Advised Sumitomo Corporation on the merger control aspects of a number of transactions.
  • Assisted Mitsubishi Corporation in relation to making an EU filing for Mitsubishi’s joint venture with Mitsubishi HC Capital Inc.
  • Advised NEC Software Solutions UK on the merger control aspects of its completed acquisition of Capita Secure Solutions and Services.

Herbert Smith Freehills LLP > Firm Profile

Herbert Smith Freehills is a leading global law firm with over 5,000 people, including 2,600 lawyers, in 24 offices across Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, the Middle East and the US.

As one of the world’s leading law firms, we advise many of the biggest and most ambitious organisations across all major regions of the globe. Our clients trust us with their most important transactions, disputes and projects because of our ability to cut through complexity and mitigate risk. We offer local insight and seamless cross-border service in all major regions. Positioned to support the major trade flows, we help the world’s top companies thrive in the global economy.

Seven of our 24 global offices are located in Europe including offices in Belfast, Brussels, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Madrid, Milan and Paris. A pre-eminent and recognised firm in litigation, arbitration, contentious regulatory work, public and private M&A, private equity, capital markets, infrastructure, dispute resolution, real estate, restructuring and insolvency, PPP, energy, ESG and banking and finance; we have advised on European transactions for over 50 years and today our multidisciplinary teams act for international clients conducting business across Europe and the rest of the world. Herbert Smith Freehills is now a top 20 firm in Continental Europe by lawyer headcount.

We work with domestic and international investors, governments, financial institutions and asset managers as well as IBEX 35 companies and a large number of CAC 40 and SBF 120 companies. With a major focus on cross-border work we operate seamlessly within our global network partnering with our clients to gain an in-depth understanding of their environment to provide our clients with the highest level of service.

Our EU law experts have handled a large number of cases in the EU courts and guide clients through the EU’s legislative and administrative processes. Our teams have an excellent understanding of the workings of the EU, drawing on the experience of former secondees, officials and judges at the European Commission and EU courts. Our Brussels office is also the hub of our global International Trade/WTO practice, acting on disputes under the WTO dispute settlement mechanism and advising on market access strategies, sanctions, export controls and trade remedy matters.

Herbert Smith Freehills is the largest fully integrated law firm in Asia Pacific and is one of the world’s top ranked and most experienced energy & resources firms; a globally pre-eminent and recognised firm in litigation, arbitration and contentious regulatory work; and an international leader in M&A, private equity, capital markets, infrastructure and banking and finance.

Visit our website to read more about our vision, our determination to drive diversity, inclusion and responsible business, and our ambition to redefine legal services for the digital-first age.