Gleiss Lutz

What Gleiss Lutz does

Gleiss Lutz is a German full-service independent law firm headquartered in Stuttgart, operating as a partnership under the legal name Gleiss Lutz Hootz Hirsch PartmbB Rechtsanwälte, Steuerberater. The firm advises on corporate/M&A, private equity, competition and antitrust, banking and finance, restructuring, real estate, tax, employment, data protection, public law, dispute resolution, and industry-specific mandates in automotive, healthcare and life sciences, digital economy, and ESG. It serves national and international corporations (its primary segment), listed companies, family businesses, growth-stage companies and startups, healthcare/life sciences clients, and public authorities. The firm operates from eight offices — Berlin, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Munich, Stuttgart (HQ), Brussels, and London — with international mandates coordinated through a flexible best-friend network of partner law firms covering 170+ countries.

Gleiss Lutz generates revenue through professional services billed on hourly rates, fixed fees, or retainer arrangements depending on client and matter type, and does not disclose pricing publicly. Its go-to-market is partner-led enterprise advisory, with named partners originating and overseeing complex multi-jurisdictional mandates alongside cross-functional teams of associates. Notable mandates include advising Volkswagen and Commerzbank supervisory boards, Infineon on the EUR 570M acquisition of an ams-OSRAM sensor portfolio, ZF Friedrichshafen on the billion-EUR sale of its ADAS business to Harman, Meyer Werft on a EUR 10B cruise vessel contract with MSC, GlobalLogic (Hitachi Group) on the synvert acquisition, and SAICA on the acquisition of THIMM Group.

On the technology side, Gleiss Lutz has deployed Harvey's third-party generative AI platform firm-wide for legal drafting, document analysis, translations, and contract comparison — with all outputs undergoing mandatory human review — and has extended Harvey access to all trainee lawyers. The firm also operates a secure Client Collaboration Platform (CCP) for data exchange with clients and supports its delivery through thought-leadership publishing, topical newsletters, events/webinars, and active participation in Chambers, Best Lawyers, JUVE, and Legal 500 rankings.

Name

Gleiss Lutz

Legal name

Gleiss Lutz Hootz Hirsch PartmbB Rechtsanwälte, Steuerberater

Website

https://gleisslutz.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1949

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Gleiss Lutz is a German full-service independent law firm headquartered in Stuttgart, with eight offices across Germany, Brussels, and London, serving multinational corporations, listed companies, family businesses, and public authorities on complex cross-border M&A, competition, healthcare, and regulatory matters.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Legal Advisory Services

NAICS

Offices of Lawyers (54111), Legal Services (5411)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro primary industry

Transaction Tax Structuring & Deal Advisory (BPAHAOAJ)

Keywords

• Legal advisory services
• Corporate and M&A law
• Competition and antitrust
• Healthcare and life sciences law
• Cross-border legal counsel

Headquarters

HQ city

Berlin

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices8 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Legal Advisory Services: Professional legal services billed on hourly rates, fixed fees, or retainer arrangements depending on client and matter type. The firm advises on corporate/M&A, competition, healthcare, digital economy, and other practice areas.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Gleiss Lutz is a full-service independent German law firm providing partner-led legal advisory across corporate/M&A, competition, banking & finance, real estate, restructuring, tax, employment, public law, dispute resolution, ESG, healthcare & life sciences and digital economy practice areas. Legal services are billed via hourly attorney rates, fixed project fees, or retainer arrangements, with cross-border mandates coordinated through a global best-friend law firm network and AI-assisted workflows using the Harvey platform.

Product overview

Gleiss Lutz is a full-service law firm providing legal advisory services across multiple practice areas including corporate/M&A, private equity, restructuring, competition/antitrust, banking and finance, real estate, tax, employment, data protection, public law, dispute resolution, and industry-specific practices for automotive, healthcare, digital economy, and ESG. The firm does not offer software products but provides legal services to corporate clients, financial investors, and public entities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Corporate / M&A Legal Advisory Partner-led advisory on cross-border M&A, complex transactions including carve-outs and distressed M&A, private equity transactions, and corporate governance matters for national and international corporate clients and financial investors.
• Competition / Antitrust Legal Advisory Competition law advisory covering cartel defense, merger control, antitrust investigations and follow-on damages litigation, including landmark German Federal Court of Justice truck cartel decisions and Bundeskartellamt matters.
• Banking & Finance Legal Advisory Legal advisory on lending, structured finance, capital markets, regulatory matters for banks and financial institutions, with notable mandates including advising Commerzbank on the UniCredit takeover bid.
• Healthcare & Life Sciences Legal Advisory Sector-specialist legal advisory for pharmaceutical, medical device, healthcare service and health insurance clients, recognized as Chambers Germany Healthcare & Life Sciences Law Firm of the Year for two consecutive years. Covers healthcare regulatory, pharma, medical devices and health insurance matters.
• Real Estate Legal Advisory Legal advisory on real estate transactions, asset deals, project development, leasing and real estate-related tax matters.
• Restructuring Legal Advisory Legal advisory on corporate restructurings, reorganizations, distressed M&A and insolvency-related transactions, including restructuring of the KraussMaffei Group for Sinochem.
• Tax Legal Advisory Tax advisory led by Co-Managing Partner Johann Wagner, covering German and international tax law, structuring of M&A and real estate transactions, tax aspects of reorganizations and restructurings, and tax litigation.
• Employment Legal Advisory Legal advisory on German and international employment law, including individual and collective labor law, restructurings, executive compensation and works council matters.
• Public Law / Public Procurement Legal Advisory Legal advisory on public law, public procurement, regulatory approvals and government relations for public authorities and corporate clients.
• Dispute Resolution / Litigation Dispute resolution and litigation services, including cartel damages litigation, constitutional and administrative disputes, and other high-stakes court proceedings such as the truck cartel landmark decision at the Federal Court of Justice.
• ESG & Digital Economy Legal Advisory Legal advisory on ESG, sustainability and digital economy topics, including ESG governance and reporting studies, cybersecurity and incident response, Legal Tech, and metaverse-related legal questions.
• Client Collaboration Platform (CCP) Secure digital platform used by Gleiss Lutz for communicating, exchanging data and collaborating with clients in a secure manner on client matters.

Quantifiable outcome

• EUR 10 billion contract facilitated for Meyer Werft with MSC Cruises
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• HarveycoreTechnology or Integration · 19 February 2026Gleiss Lutz has implemented Harvey's AI platform across its operations for drafting, document analysis, translations, and contract comparison. The firm has expanded Harvey access to all trainee lawyers as a key milestone, embedding AI capabilities early in legal training alongside governance guidelines and training programs. Impact is strongest in repetitive, high-volume, and highly structured tasks including first drafts, document analysis, and contract comparisons.
• e-fellows.netminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership for law student recruitment and career portal access, helping attract young legal talent to the firm.
• DAI (German Academic Institute for Lawyers)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCooperation on ESG study examining sustainability in corporate governance and reporting among listed and non-listed companies.
• Chiomenti Law FirmcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerItalian law firm partner for joint events and international client matters. Listed as event co-host with Cuatrecasas and Gide Loyrette Nouel.
• Cuatrecasas, Gonçalves Pereira, S.L.P.coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSpanish law firm partner for joint events and international client matters including GlobalLogic-synvert transaction.
• Gide Loyrette Nouel Law Firm, LLPcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrench law firm partner for joint events and international client matters.
• Pérez-LlorcacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSpanish law firm engaged on GlobalLogic-synvert transaction for Spain and Portugal matters.
• Walder WysscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSwiss law firm engaged on GlobalLogic-synvert transaction for Switzerland matters.
• Hadef & PartnerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUAE law firm engaged on GlobalLogic-synvert transaction for Middle East matters.
• HonigmancoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUS law firm engaged on GlobalLogic-synvert transaction for USA matters.
• BrodiescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUK law firm engaged on GlobalLogic-synvert transaction for UK matters.
• SchoenherrcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCentral European law firm engaged on GlobalLogic-synvert transaction for Croatia matters.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Noerr: Independent German full-service law firm with strong M&A, regulatory, and IP practices. Comparable mid-to-upper tier German independent competitor with similar GTM and structure.
• Allen & Overy / A&O Shearman: Recently merged global elite firm with strong Frankfurt presence, competing for banking, M&A, and capital markets mandates across German corporates and financial institutions.
• Latham & Watkins: US-headquartered global elite firm with a growing Frankfurt office, competing aggressively for German and European M&A, PE, and capital markets mandates alongside Gleiss Lutz.
• Hengeler Mueller: Germany's other leading independent full-service law firm with comparable headcount, similar partner-led model, and overlapping M&A, corporate, and antitrust practices. Closest structural analogue to Gleiss Lutz in the German elite independent segment.
• Clifford Chance: Global law firm with a flagship Frankfurt office and strong banking, finance, and corporate practices. Directly overlaps with Gleiss Lutz on financial-institution and large-cap transactional mandates.
• Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer: Global elite law firm with a major German practice and deep M&A, antitrust, and dispute resolution capabilities. Directly competes with Gleiss Lutz on cross-border German-headquartered mandates.
• White & Case: Global law firm with a long-established German practice in Frankfurt, competing for cross-border M&A, banking, and disputes work for DAX and large-cap clients.
• Taylor Wessing: Germany-rooted international law firm with strength in technology, IP, and private equity. Competes with Gleiss Lutz for mid-cap and tech-sector mandates and on cross-border German-led deals.
• Linklaters: Global elite law firm with a substantial German office network and corporate/M&A, banking, and capital markets strengths. Competes for the same DAX and large-cap international mandates as Gleiss Lutz.

Broad incumbents

• CMS Francis Lefebvre: European-headquartered full-service law firm with a sizeable German practice across corporate, regulatory, and employment. Offers overlapping capabilities as part of a broader pan-European platform rather than a German-specialist niche.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/gleiss-lutz

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Gleiss Lutz