What activelaw does

activelaw (legal name: activelaw Offenhausen.Wolter PartmbB) is a full-service German commercial law firm founded in 1960 and headquartered in the CTH Tower in Hannover. The firm is organized as a Partnerschaft mit beschränkter Berufshaftung (PartmbB), a partnership with limited professional liability specific to German law, and is owned and operated by its partner attorneys with no external investors or parent entity. It employs 130 staff including 40 lawyers and four notaries, and operates from three regional offices (two in Hannover plus Düsseldorf and Berlin), serving clients across Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, and beyond.

The firm's offering is structured around three core pillars: Legal Services for Companies (cross-disciplinary business advisory covering corporate, employment, banking/finance, restructuring, aviation, real estate, construction, medical, insolvency, commercial criminal, and administrative law), Legal Services for Private Individuals (employment disputes, traffic law, family/inheritance matters), and a Notary office handling formations, real estate transactions, and authentications. A Strategy Consulting product extends the offering into compliance and expansion advisory. The firm uses standard legal practice management and document management systems; no proprietary technology platform, API, or AI tooling is disclosed. Pricing is quote-based, governed by the German Lawyers' Fees Act (RVG) for statutory matters and individually negotiated for complex engagements, with non-binding initial consultations offered as a lead generation mechanism.

activelaw serves a horizontally diversified client base across SMEs, large corporations, investors, public sector entities (municipalities and authorities), and private individuals, with named specializations in aviation financing (EUR 5.6 billion in advised transactions cumulatively), SOKA-BAU social fund disputes, and public/municipal law. Go-to-market relies on direct engagement, professional referrals, regional presence, and network partnerships with organizations such as Niedersachsen.Digital, UVN, Die Familienunternehmer, GATE e.V., and GBAA, supplemented by content marketing, event sponsorship, and a 4.8/5 Google rating across 123 reviews. Recent strategic activity includes the May 2026 partner promotions of Edward Stoye and Dr. Anton Barrein, the lateral hire of Dirk-Ulrich Mende (former Lord Mayor of Celle) to anchor Public Law, and advisory on the EUR 27 million state-guaranteed syndicated financing for BISON Polymers GmbH.

Name

activelaw

Legal name

activelaw Offenhausen.Wolter PartmbB

Website

https://activelaw.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1960

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

activelaw is a full-service German commercial law firm founded in 1960 and headquartered in Hannover, with 40 lawyers and four notaries across offices in Hannover, Düsseldorf, and Berlin, serving SMEs, corporations, public sector entities, and private individuals across 20+ practice areas.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Legal Services

NAICS

Offices of Lawyers (54111)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro primary industry

Real Estate & Construction Law (BPAHAAAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Family & Private Client (Trusts & Estates) Law (BPAHAAAK)

Keywords

• Commercial legal services
• Notary services
• Employment law
• Aviation law
• Insolvency law

Headquarters

HQ city

Allee

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Legal Advisory Services: Professional legal representation and consultation fees for corporate and individual clients across all practice areas including corporate law, employment law, banking/finance, aviation, real estate, and more.
2. Notary Services: Notarial services provided by four notaries (Dr. Christoph Wolter, Richard Prechtel, Dr. Alexander Nefzger, Felix Semper) for business formation, real estate transactions, and other notarial matters.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

activelaw is a full-service German commercial law firm that provides cross-disciplinary legal advisory and representation to companies and private individuals across more than 20 practice areas, including corporate, employment, banking and finance, restructuring, real estate, aviation, construction, medical, public sector, insolvency, and criminal/tax law. The offering is supplemented by notary services delivered by four in-house notaries for company formations, real estate transactions, and other notarial matters, enabling bundled legal-plus-notary mandates under one roof.

Product overview

activelaw is a German commercial law firm offering integrated legal and notary services through three core offerings: Legal Services for Companies (cross-disciplinary business legal advice), Legal Services for Private Individuals (personal legal matters), and Notary Services (provided by four notaries). The firm operates as a unified platform supplemented by specialized practice-area modules including Employment Law, Commercial Lease Law, Banking & Finance Law, Aviation Industry Services, Public Sector & Administrative Law, SOKA-BAU Claims Services, Insolvency Law, Medical Law, Commercial Criminal & Criminal Tax Law, Traffic Law, and Strategy Consulting. This structure enables the firm to provide comprehensive legal advisory and representational services spanning advisory, transactional, and litigation matters.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Legal Services for Companies Cross-disciplinary legal advice and representation for businesses across all areas of law, including corporate, employment, banking and finance, restructuring, aviation, real estate, construction, medical, public sector, insolvency, commercial criminal, and administrative law.
• Legal Services for Private Individuals Legal advice and representation for private clients in personal legal matters, including employment disputes, traffic law, family law, and inheritance matters.
• Notary Services (Notar) Notarial services provided by four in-house notaries (Dr. Christoph Wolter, Richard Prechtel, Dr. Alexander Nefzger, Felix Semper) for company formations, real estate transactions, authentication of documents, and other notarial matters.

Quantifiable outcome

• EUR 27 million state-guaranteed syndicated financing successfully arranged for BISON Polymers GmbH
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• AURICON management consultancyminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 26 May 2026Management consultancy collaboration on BISON Polymers financing transaction - led by Valentin Röttger, worked alongside activelaw team on the EUR 27 million syndicated financing deal
• Niedersachsen.Digital e.V.minorOthersRegional digital economy association partnership - network partner providing cross-referrals and industry connections for the law firm
• Unternehmerverbände Niedersachsen (UVN)minorOthersEntrepreneurial association of Lower Saxony - network partner connecting the firm with regional businesses
• Institut der Niedersächsischen Wirtschaft e.V.minorOthersInstitute of Lower Saxony's economy - network partner for business connections and industry insights
• Die FamilienunternehmerminorOthersAssociation of family-owned businesses - network partner connecting the firm with SME clients
• Per Mertesacker StiftungminorOthersCharitable foundation partnership - firm sponsors the foundation's social initiatives
• German Business Aviation (GBAA)minorOthersTrade association for business aviation - network partner relevant to the firm's aviation industry practice
• TUS 96 Recken / Turnverein Hannover-BemerodeminorOthersLocal sports club sponsorship - firm supports regional sports teams as part of corporate social responsibility
• FM LeasingPartner GmbHminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAircraft leasing partner - collaboration partner for aviation financing transactions, mentioned as ideal partner for investment projects in the aviation sector
• GATE e.V.minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAviation supplier association - firm serves as legal advisor for GATE e.V., providing proximity to recurring issues affecting supplier companies

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Noerr Partnerschaftsgesellschaft: Noerr is a German-led international law firm offering full-service commercial advice with strong practices in corporate, regulatory, and public sector work — comparable in breadth to activelaw but with broader international reach.
• FPS Rechtsanwälte: FPS is a German full-service commercial law firm with comparable size, multi-office presence, and practice breadth covering corporate, employment, real estate, public sector, and finance — a strong size-and-scope comparable to activelaw.
• GSK Stockmann: GSK Stockmann is a German full-service commercial law firm focused on real estate, banking, corporate, and public sector work — highly comparable to activelaw in practice mix and mid-market positioning.
• Luther Rechtsanwaltsgesellschaft: Luther is a leading German full-service commercial law firm with multiple offices and comparable breadth across corporate, employment, finance, real estate, and public sector practices — closely mirroring activelaw's positioning but at a larger national scale.
• Rödl & Partner: Rödl & Partner is a German-origin international professional services firm combining legal, tax, and audit — closely comparable to activelaw's interdisciplinary full-service model, particularly for mid-market German Mittelstand clients.
• Heuking Kühn Lüer Wojtek: Heuking is a major German full-service commercial law firm with nine offices across Germany and broad practice coverage including aviation, banking, real estate, and public sector — a direct comparable in scope and depth.
• Becker Büttner Held (BBH): BBH is a German law firm focused on regulated industries (energy, infrastructure, public sector, insurance) with comparable breadth to activelaw, particularly overlapping in public sector advisory and commercial/employment work.

Broad incumbents

• CMS Germany: CMS is a major international law firm with full-service coverage in Germany across all of activelaw's practice areas — a broader incumbent offering similar capabilities at much larger scale, including corporate, finance, employment, and real estate.
• PwC Legal Germany: PwC Legal is the legal arm of the Big 4 firm in Germany, offering multidisciplinary advisory across corporate, employment, regulatory, and finance — overlapping with activelaw's commercial advisory services and competing for the same mid-market corporate clients.
• Taylor Wessing Germany: Taylor Wessing is an international law firm with a substantial German practice covering corporate, finance, real estate, and employment — overlapping with activelaw's offerings but at significantly larger scale and with international reach.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/activelaw.hannover
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/activelaw

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles24 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 activelaw