Linklaters, Clifford Chance (CC) and Allen & Overy (A&O) have landed roles on Volkswagen's potential $19bn (£11.5bn) takeover of German truck and bus manufacturer MAN, reports The Am Law Daily.

Volkswagen has increased its stake in MAN from 29.9% to 30.47%, and under German takeover law, this requires it to make a mandatory offer for the remaining shares it does not already own.

Linklaters corporate and M&A partners Hans-Joachim Holzapfel and Stephan Oppenhoff in Frankfurt are advising Volkswagen, while CC auto industry group head Johannes Perlitt and M&A partners Wolfgang Richter and Arndt Stengel in Frankfurt are also providing acting for the company along with antitrust partner and Duesseldorf office head Joachim Schuetze.

Germany's Hengeler Mueller is advising MAN, after also advising Porsche on matters related to ongoing merger work with Volkswagen.

Meanwhile, Wilhelm Reinhardt, chair of the German corporate practice at Latham & Watkins in Frankfurt, is advising Volkswagen's financial adviser Credit Suisse on the MAN bid. A&O M&A partner Hartmut Krause in Frankfurt is representing Volkswagen's other adviser, Rothschild.

A merger between MAN and Volkswagen would create Europe's largest truck maker, surpassing rivals such as Volvo and Daimler.

CC also represented Volkswagen in August 2009 on an agreement to acquire 49.9% of Stuttgart-based automaker Porsche, while Linklaters also enjoys a close relationship to Volkswagen, having handled work for the company related to its transaction with Porsche.

The Am Law Daily is a US affiliate title of Legal Week.