DLA Piper has advised the founding shareholders of Deekeling Arndt Advisors in Communications GmbH (DAA) on the sale of the majority of their shares to Havas Group. The founders Egbert Deekeling and Olaf Arndt who prior to the transaction held the majority of shares and also lent their names to DAA, will remain in charge over the long term and continue to head over the company’s operative business as shareholders and managing directors. The company name will also remain unaffected.

Deekeling Arndt Advisors (DAA), one of the most prestigious communications consultancies in Germany, was founded in 1995 and employs more than 70 consultants in Düsseldorf, Berlin, Frankfurt and Munich, They provide strategic communication, reputation management and crisis communication advice. Since 2016, DAA is the exclusive German partner of the AMO Group, one of the leading global partnership of corporate and financial communications consultancies.

The Havas Group is one of the world’s largest global communications groups. Founded in 1835 in Paris, the Group now employs 20,000 people in more than 100 countries.

The DLA Piper team was led by Hamburg-based Corporate partner Dr Benjamin Parameswaran, and senior associate Dr Philipp Clemens, supported by Employment counsel Dr Henriette Norda, and Frankfurt-based Litigation and Regulatory counsel Semin O, Frankfurt. Further support was given by Frankfurt-based Tax senior associate Marc Fellner and associate Andreas Habig.

Financial advisors to the sellers were MCF Corporate Finance under the lead of Dr Christoph Stoecker who advised on the structured sales process.