Willkie Farr & Gallagher has hired Markus Lauer as a partner in Frankfurt, adding to the firm's M&A and corporate practice.

Lauer, who had been with Herbert Smith Freehills since 2015, advises industrial clients, private equity houses and financial institutions. He was an adviser in the sale of the fashion house Escada, owned by the Mittal family, to the private equity firm Regent, based in Beverly Hills, California.

He also advised on some of the most prominent public M&A transactions in the German market, including those involving Grammer, Ningbo Jifeng, Vonovia, Deutsche Wohnen, GSW, GAGFAH, Italmobiliare, HeidelbergCement, KUKA, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, LSE, Deutsche Börse, Goldman Sachs, McKesson, Barclays and UBS.

Lauer joins the firm at a time when the premium transaction market is growing and the firm has been expanding in Germany.

"We are very pleased that Markus Lauer is joining the firm," said Georg Linde, managing partner of the firm's Frankfurt office. "Historically, we've always been quite strong in private equity transactions, and with this addition, we are adding expertise in other types of transactions as well."

Willkie announced last week that Cornelia Thaler, a prominent real estate lawyer, would join the firm as a partner in Frankfurt to head its real estate practice.

"We don't hesitate when we see a great opportunity to add this kind of talent to our firm," Linde said.

Last year, Ralf Defren joined Willkie's transaction practice as a partner from Hengeler Müeller.

A spokesperson for Herbert Smith Freehills said in a statement that the firm "thanks Markus for his contribution over the past 4 years and wishes him well."

Lauer will join Willkie in March or possibly earlier, Linde said.

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