Dusseldorf, Germany - Baker & McKenzie advised Telefónica Deutschland Holding AG on antitrust, regulatory and employment law matters in the context of the restructuring measures in the acquisition of its competitor E-Plus. The merger, which creates the largest German mobile service provider by customer numbers, was closed late yesterday (30 September 2014).

The acquisition, which was announced in July 2013 by Telefónica Deutschland, was approved by the EU Commission last month. The merger control proceedings were complex and the approval was subject to strict conditions. Numerous antitrust, regulatory law, and employment law restrictions had to be met prior to completion. Baker & McKenzie advised both Telefónica and E-Plus comprehensively on all these issues.

"This merger was one of the most complex restructuring mandates in recent years, not least because of its strict antitrust restrictions," commented Dr. Burkard Goepfert, employment law partner at Baker & McKenzie's Munich office. "We are very pleased to have participated at such a decisive point in this important transaction."

Telefónica Germany Holding AG, which is listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange's Prime Standard, is part of the Spanish telecommunication group Telefónica SA and operates primarily under the product brand O2 in Germany. The Telefónica Group with a worldwide presence spanning 24 countries and a customer base of more than 313 million connections is the largest telecommunication company in the world. The merger with E-Plus creates one of the largest telecommunications providers in Germany.

Baker & McKenzie's cross-practice teams regularly advise on complex transactions, restructuring and reorganization projects.

Legal advisor Telefónica:

Baker & McKenzie

Lead:

Employment: Dr. Burkard Goepfert (partner, Munich)

Antitrust: Christian Horstkotte (partner, Dusseldorf)

Procurement: Prof. Dr. Joachim Scherer (partner, Frankfurt)

Team:

Employment: Daniela Rottmeier (associate, Munich), Dr. Steffen Scheuer (partner, Munich), Dr. Alexander Wolff (partner, Berlin)

Antitrust: Sarwenaz Kiani (associate, Frankfurt), Marc Lager (associate, Vienna), Ghazale Mandegarian (associate, Dusseldorf), Thomas Obersteiner (associate, Vienna), Dr. Johannes Teichmann (associate, Frankfurt), Dr. Anika Yomere (associate, Dusseldorf)

Procurement: Caroline Heinickel (counsel, Frankfurt).