Bird & Bird welcomes Sandra Schuh in Germany, Floor van Heijst in the Netherlands and Hiro Iwamura in Japan

International law firm Bird & Bird today appoints Floor van Heijst as a partner in its Finance & Financial Regulation practice in Amsterdam, and Corporate and M&A expert Dr. Sandra Schuh, LL.M. as a partner in its Frankfurt office as of 1 September 2024.

Floor has over 13 years’ experience advising clients on leveraged and acquisition finance matters, specialising in investment grade facilities, fund finance, and asset-based financings. She previously worked at Freshfields and NautaDutilh and has strong connections within the industry, including with some of the leading banks, fund lending, and private equity communities in the Netherlands. 

Floor’s arrival further bolsters the firm’s strategic growth of its international Finance & Financial Regulation team in the Netherlands and Europe following the recent arrival of finance experts Federico Del Monte and Corrado Fiscale in Bird & Bird’s Milan office. 

Sandra advises on national and cross-border M&A transactions including joint venture projects and corporate matters with more than 12 years of legal advisory experience in this field. She joins from Pinsent Masons where she was a senior associate. She specialises in advising clients in the Industrial sector, in particular Automotive and Energy, on the optimisation of group structures, corporate restructurings, entity management, corporate governance and corporate compliance matters. Sandra also has extensive experience advising foreign companies and investors, particularly Japanese clients, entering the German and the EU market. Sandra’s arrival is a key part of Bird & Bird’s growth strategy, with the firm hiring 10 new Corporate partners over the last year.

Commenting on her move, Sandra Schuh adds: “Bird & Bird’s international one firm approach, the emphasis on longstanding client relationships and comprehensive legal advice as well as the new office in Tokyo will provide me with the perfect platform to support German and international clients as they look to expand across borders. I am very much looking forward to working with my new colleagues in Germany and internationally.” 

September 2, 2024. With the opening of the firm’s new office in Tokyo, Sandra will be working closely with Corporate partner Hiro Iwamura  and five other team members on the ground in Japan to support Japanese clients with their cross-border work.

Christian Bartsch, CEO of Bird & Bird adds: “Opening an office in Tokyo’s tech-rich ecosystem combined with the increasing demand from Japanese clients to expand globally, was therefore a natural next step for the firm."