Home / CMS Lawyers in Austria / Peter Huber
Portrait ofPeter Huber

Peter Huber

Partner

CMS Reich-Rohrwig Hainz
Rechtsanwälte GmbH
Gauermanngasse 2
1010 Vienna
Austria
Languages German, English

Peter Huber is a Corporate/M&A lawyer. He is a partner and head of the CMS Austria international transaction team and has decades of professional experience in corporate transactions, including more than four years at leading investment banks. His areas of expertise are M&A (including privatisations and public takeovers) and corporate law (including corporate governance) in Austria and Central and Eastern Europe. 
Peter Huber advises numerous large Austrian companies and major shareholders as well as shareholder groups on corporate transactions, restructurings, shareholder agreements and governance structures as well as on legal issues arising from shareholder activism. He also advises large private equity firms on investments and exits.
He has authored numerous publications in the field of corporate and takeover law as well as the leading commentary on the Austrian Takeover Act.

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"He gives high-level reasoning and is nearly always reachable."

Chambers Europe, 2024

„He gives high-level reasoning and is nearly always reachable.“

Client feedback, Chambers Global 2024

"He is very known and very well established."

Chambers Europe, 2023

"He is very known and very well established."

Chambers Global, 2023

Memberships & Roles

  • Austrian Bar Association
  • International Bar Association
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Awards & Rankings

  • Peter Huber is named by Chambers Global and Chambers Europe as a leading expert (Band 1) in corporate law and M&A in Austria and South-Eastern Europe and has also received top rankings in other directories and publications.
  • The German business newspaper Handelsblatt ranks Huber among the best lawyers in banking and finance law, corporate law and mergers and acquisitions (Best Lawyers Ranking 2020).
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Publications

  • Huber/Matt, Zur Änderung des Börsegesetzes, ecolex 2016, 139.
  • Huber (Hrsg), Übernahmegesetz Kommentar2 (LexisNexis, 2016).
  • Huber/Kmec/Simo, The European Stock Corporation in Slovakia, in Jannott/Frodermann (Hrsg), Handbook of the European Stock Corporation – Societas Europaea2 (2014).
  • Chapter 2.3: Austria, in Kurney/Whalley (Hrsg), International Business Acquisitions: Major Legal Issues and Due Diligence4 (2014).
  • Gedanken zum Sanierungsprivileg im österreichischen Übernahmerecht, in Hainz/Krejci (Hrsg), Festschrift Johannes Reich-Rohrwig (Manz, 2014).
  • Überlegungen zum gemeinsamen Vorgehen, GesRZ 2010, 13.

Entscheidungsbesprechungen:

  • Anmerkung zum Obersten Gerichtshof (OGH), 9.9.2015, 6 Ob 97/15f, GesRZ 2015, 401.
  • Anmerkung zum Obersten Gerichtshof (OGH), 13.3.2014, 6 Ob 37/14f, GesRZ 2014, 257.
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Education

  • 1988 – LL.M., Yale Law School, New Haven
  • 1987 – Dr. iur., Law, University of Vienna
  • 1987 – Mag. rer. soc. oec., Business Administration, University of Vienna
  • 1985 – Mag. iur., Law, University of Vienna
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Feed

28/11/2023
CMS advises Alder Investment III
Press release - 23.11.2023Alder Investment III, a Nordic private equity fund, which focuses on the development of environmentally sustainable companies, recently closed a transaction to acquire a majority stake in Insort, a maker of high-tech imaging solutions for the food industry, used for optical sorting of food products. Alder was advised by CMS on all legal aspects and certain tax aspects of the trans­ac­tion. "Our ability to cover all relevant legal aspects of the transaction enabled us to provide highly specialised advice on a wide range of topics, which is particularly helpful for investment in a high-tech company. It has been a pleasure working with Alder on this transaction. Congratulations to all parties involved," said Peter Huber, Partner and Head of Corporate Transactions at CMS Vienna. The Corporate/M&A team consisted of lead partner Peter Huber, senior associate Marco Selenic and associate Livia Landskron. Tax structuring issues were handled by partner Sibylle Novak and senior associate Thomas Aspalter. Other team members who provided extensive due diligence and transaction documentation support were senior associate Jia Schulz-Cao (IP), partner Daniela Krömer and associate Shima Babanzadeh (employment), partner Marlene Wim­mer-Nistel­ber­ger (regulatory), partner Dieter Zandler and senior associate Vanessa Horaceck (competition). About Alder Alder is a Nordic investment fund with the aim of creating the best possible conditions for long-term development of environmentally sustainable technology and services companies. With a mix of industrial and financial expertise and with an interest in entrepreneurship as a driving force, Alder creates profitable growth in close cooperation with companies. For more information, visit www. alder. se. About Insort Founded in 2011, Insort GmbH is a global technology leader in vision solutions for the food industry. Insort GmbH focuses on the development, production and marketing of digital sorting and control systems based on its proprietary Chemical Imaging Technology (CIT®). CIT® is a hyperspectral imaging technology designed for maximum performance, which enables the classification of food products based on their chemical composition and is used in-line and in real time. In a very short time, Insort has managed to establish itself globally in the highly competitive digital sorting market with its successful machine series called Sherlock. The company currently employs around 60 people at three locations (Austria, USA, Canada). For more information, visit www. insort. at.
14/09/2023
Austria makes it permanently possible for GmbHs and AGs to hold virtual...
With the enactment of the Virtuelle Gesell­schafterver­sammlungen-Ge­setz (VirtGesG) in mid-July 2023, Austrian lawmakers have created the permanent possibility for private limited liability companies (GmbH)...
10/05/2023
Highlights of the CMS M&A Study 2023 and European M&A market update
The dealmaking landscape in Europe has been heavily impacted by economic uncertainty, an unstable financing market, valuation struggles, and increased governmental regulatory pressure. Nonetheless, we are proud to share that CMS advised on a record-breaking 509 M&A transactions last year. We would like to invite you to a breakfast event that we are jointly organising with the Federation of Austrian Industries. The event will provide highlights of the CMS European M&A Study 2023 and the latest M&A trends in Austria & CEE. Presentations will be followed by an interview with our guest from Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG and networking. Please find the full agenda below and join us for a morning of valuable insights and meaningful connections. We look forward to your participation! *Event language: English & German
22/09/2022
CMS M&A-Ausblick: Boom oder Einbruch?
M&A expectations run high: Almost all respondents (88%) are currently considering M&A. Undervalued targets and distressed sales to drive activity: The biggest buy-side driver of M&A is expected to be the availability of undervalued deal targets. On the sell-side, distressed situations are expected to be the biggest driver, cited by 26% of respondents. Valuation gaps: seller/buyer valuation gaps are seen as the biggest obstacles to M&A. Cost of financing to increase: As many as 87% of all respondents expect financing to be tighter compared with 2021 – this includes 45% who expect it to be much more difficult. ESG rises up the M&A agenda: Some 90% of respondents expect ESG scrutiny in their dealmaking to increase over the next three years, compared to 72% in 2021’s survey. Despite facing a far more difficult deal environment, 73% of dealmakers expect the level of European M&A activity over the next year to increase, up from 53% this time last year, according to the tenth edition of the European M&A Outlook, published by CMS in association with Mer­ger­mar­ket.  The report offers a comprehensive assessment of dealmaking sentiment in Europe’s M&A market. It reflects the opinions of 330 corporates and private equity firms based in Europe, the Americas and Asia-Pacific about their expectations for the European M&A market in the year ahead. Louise Wallace, Head of the CMS Corporate/M&A Group, said: "Despite ongoing geopolitical uncertainty, rising inflation and interest rates, 2022 has seen M&A largely above or in line with pre-pandemic levels with of a number of large M&A deals, particularly in the Industrials, Technology, Real Estate and Consumer sectors.  Financial sponsors remain very active and corporate executives continue to discuss possible deals, and all are sending clear and strong signals that deal-making activity is likely to continue at a high level in the coming months." While respondents’ expectations may be high, seller/buyer valuation gaps are expected to be the biggest obstacle to M&A as sellers struggle to let go of previous all-time high valuations and buyers wish to acquire repriced assets. They are also keenly aware that borrowing will be more costly and less readily accessible. No less than 87% of respondents say they expect financing market conditions to be tougher than last year, including 45% who expect them to be significantly more challenging. Hammering home this reality, not a single respondent believes that financing conditions will be easier than last year.  A more challenging business environment will have its upsides however: just over a fifth (21%) of dealmakers cite undervalued targets as the biggest buy-side driver of activity, while 26% view distressed situations as the biggest driver on the sell-side. The other key focus for respondents is the rise of environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors. As many as 90% of respondents anticipate ESG coming under closer focus in their dealmaking over the next three years, compared with 72% in last year’s survey. The proportion of respondents expecting ESG scrutiny to significantly increase has nearly doubled to 48% from 26% 12 months ago. The trend could not be clearer. Malte Bruhns, Co-Head of the CMS Corporate/M&A Group, said: " Investments that incorporate ESG metrics can help you invest successfully for the long term. In our view, society is undergoing a paradigm shift towards sustainability, and companies, investors and governments need to prepare for a significant shift of capital. It is becoming increasingly important for companies to implement a clear sustainability strategy, with institutional investors having implemented ESG commitments into their investment decisions." In terms of sector-level activity, buyers are more upbeat on TMT than any other sector, which is justified given that it has consistently claimed the largest share of M&A value in Europe over the past decade, correlating with increasing rates of digitalisation and connectivity. A third (33%) of respondents expect it to see the highest growth over the next 12 months, a further 35% anticipating it to be the sector which delivers the second-highest growth.
16/12/2021
Legal guide for company directors and CEOs in Austria
ESG obligation for directors and CEOs 1. Do existing directors' duties contain obligations that apply to matters that could be categorised as an ESG consideration, e.g. the environment, employee welfare...
23/11/2021
The Technology M&A Review I The Austria Chapter
Second Edition
24/03/2021
CMS: European M&A environment flips to ‘buy­er-friendly’ in response to...
Europe has returned to a ‘buy­er-friendly’ environment, after the COVID-19 pandemic created more risk-averse attitudes. CMS’ latest annual M&A study identified significant increase in liability caps...
02/02/2021
The Technology M&A Review - Edition 1 I The Austria Chapter
The Austrian technology M&A landscape has remained active notwithstanding the onset of covid-19. Austria, which is home to numerous high-tech companies that produce both cutting-edge hardware and software...
23/09/2020
Who dares wins: European M&A Outlook 2020
European dealmaking downcast, but distressed opportunities emerging The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a heavy toll on European dealmaking activity. However, opportunities remain for those willing to take...
09/06/2020
Impact of COVID-19 on European M&A activity
The CMS Corporate/M&A Group teamed up with investment bank Credit Suisse to analyse the financial and legal implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on M&A transactions in Western Europe
15/05/2020
The world’s first open industry platform for lawyers launches
The world’s first open industry platform for lawyers launches  •    Lupl is a first-in-kind partnership between major global companies and law firms •    The platform has commenced private...
03/10/2019
European M&A Outlook 2019: European M&A executives cautious over dealmaking...
Weak economic indicators, uncertainty surrounding Brexit and growing protectionism in global trade have contributed to a shift in sentiment in the M&A community and the beginning of a downturn in dealmaking...