Kompetenzen Grundwerk Legal Arbeitsrecht

expertise

We’re completely at home when it comes to labour law

You can count on us when you need to deal with collaborations and confrontations

As specialist lawyers for labour law we advise both nationally and internationally active companies as well as corporate bodies and managers in all questions relating to individual and collective labour law.

About to undergo a restructuring or transfer of operations? Need advice on drafting service and employment contracts or about remuneration and bonus systems? Require support in preparing for a dismissal, legal representation in dismissal protection proceedings before the courts or enforcing and defending against contractual claims? We are the perfect partner for you in these and all other labour law matters.

We can also support you when facing the works council and all other codetermination bodies and workforce representatives in the corporate codetermination process – as a negotiator, your right hand or as a sparring partner in the background.

Our legal advice covers all matters relating to codetermination, whether reconciliation of interests, social plans or works agreement, such as defending unjustified demands for participation or legal disputes in decision proceedings. We can also help in the negotiation of union / company collective agreements with trade unions.

Advice from the point of market entry in Germany

National borders barely play a role for today’s companies. Cross-border situations such as tapping into new markets, shifting production abroad or cross-border deployment of staff are all commonplace. We have extensive experience in advising foreign companies from the moment they enter the German market and we are familiar with the problems that foreign parent companies face in terms of the specific characteristics of German labour law. The services we provide in this context include:

Preparation and structuring of the German company in line with the principles of German labour law
Drafting service and employment contracts and supporting their implementation
Advice on and structuring of transfers of operation if the market entry occurs as a result of the takeover of another company (see also transaction consultancy in this respect)
Coordination of advice from highly-qualified colleagues from our or your network in related legal fields (immigration law, corporate law, tax law, administrative law)
Ongoing advice in all labour law matters even after successful market entry

Compliance consultancy

Given the increase in regulatory requirements, compliance in business processes presents ever increasing challenges for companies. Employee data protection, the issue of bogus self-employment and the General Equal Treatment Act (AGG) are just a few examples of where you may encounter potential pitfalls.

Be on the safe side with a labour law compliance system: standardised measures, processes and rules of conduct ensure that you can identify labour law risks within your company precisely at an early stage and either reduce or eliminate them. We can advise on their introduction and adaptation.

Executive counselling

Change is an integral component of modern careers, which encompass many stations. Now more than ever, board members and other executives would be wise to examine the legal framework of their employment critically:

Complex compensation models with short- and long-term incentives, profit-sharing models, pension commitments by their employer, and non-compete clauses must all be evaluated, while liability risks must be identified and mitigated, especially when operational and legal responsibility are separate from each other.

A change of control must be responded to in the same way as the termination of the employment contract. We are reliable and experienced partners at your side.

Transaction consultancy

We can advise you on the purchase or sale of companies. Whether it is a purchase or sale of a group of companies or individual companies, a share deal or an asset deal, we know and understand the complex processes in all their subtleties and know what you will need to be aware of when it comes to labour law. We also always keep an eye on the economic context. Our services include the following:

Preparation of the transaction by advising on a suitable structuring from a labour law perspective
Carrying out of due diligence
Advising on the negotiation of the purchase contract
Drafting new service and employment contracts and supporting their implementation
Advice on and implementation of restructuring measures before, during or subsequent to the transaction

Sports employment law

With all its various legal peculiarities, labour law in professional sport gives rise to specific issues, such as in terms of the content and scope of employment and remuneration, as well as when it comes to changing employer.

In Dr Heiko Reiter, GRUNDWERK Legal has a renowned expert in this area. Dr Reiter teaches and consults in the field of sports employment law and is co-editor of the standard reference work and practical handbook ‘Arbeitsrecht im Profisport’ [Labour law in professional sport]. Benefit from this expertise yourself: we provide advice to both clubs and athletes.