Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has confirmed it is to close its Cologne office with all 18 of the partners there set to relocate to other offices. 

The closure will see 16 partners moving from Cologne to Duesseldorf, while the final two partners – private equity specialists Ludwig Leyendecker and Kai Hasselbach – will move to Munich alongside six associates.

It it understood that most of the 55 Cologne associates will also transfer to Duesseldorf, however Freshfields declined to confirm exact numbers of staff or associates moving.