Bird & Bird appoints three partners, one Senior Counsel and five Counsel in Germany

Bird & Bird has announced the appointment of three partners, one Senior Counsel and five Counsel in Germany, including:

Dr. Jonas Baier, LL.M. (Dispute Resolution, Frankfurt), who advises national and international companies on dispute resolution, with a particular focus on insurance law, insurance-related litigation and regulatory issues in the insurance sector. He also advises companies in the automotive supply industry on legal issues arising throughout the supply chain, with a special emphasis on warranty disputes as well as the enforcement and defence of supply stoppages, both in and out of court.

Oliver Belitz (Commercial / Tech & Comms, Frankfurt), who advises at the intersection of technology and law. A recognised AI expert, he covers the entire AI ecosystem—from global foundation model developers and AI integrators to end-user corporations. His focus includes AI regulation (notably the EU AI Act), AI governance, AI contracting and liability. He also leads large-scale IT transactions and advises on highly regulated outsourcing and cybersecurity projects in the financial sector. With strong technical expertise and continuous evaluation of the latest AI models, he also actively contributes to the firm’s legal tech strategy.

Jürgen Schlinkmann (Real Estate, Munich), who provides comprehensive advice across the entire real estate value chain—from project development and transactions (asset and share deals, forward deals, sale & leaseback) to all aspects of asset and portfolio management. His expertise includes renewable energy (notably photovoltaic systems, battery storage, e-mobility charging infrastructure and hydrogen), as well as logistics and industrial assets, hotels and hospitality, retail and office properties. He also advises on building digitalisation and automation.

The firm has also promoted Daniela Gudat (Employment, Frankfurt) to Senior Counsel, along with the following lawyers to Counsel:

Dr. Johannes Döveling, LL.M. (Commercial / Data Protection, Frankfurt)

Luiza Jeske (Dispute Resolution, Hamburg)

Karoline Kniha (Public Procurement, Munich)

Markus Schönherr (Corporate / M&A, Düsseldorf)

Tilman Sörgel (Finance & Financial Regulation, Frankfurt)

According to Dr. Uwe Lüken, Germany Managing Partner at Bird & Bird, these promotions reflect the individuals’ talent, expertise and ambition, which are considered key to the firm’s continued development and ability to deliver innovative solutions to clients, particularly in areas related to technology, digitalisation and regulation.

Internationally, the firm has appointed a total of 19 partners, three Senior Counsel, 20 Counsel and five Legal Directors.