CMS advises Panasonic Europe on cross-border merger to reorganise European governance structure
Hamburg, 04.10.2024 – Panasonic, one of the world’s leading electronics manufacturers, has made some organisational changes aimed at further streamlining the governance structure of its European business. German company Panasonic Business Support Europe GmbH has been merged into Panasonic Europe B.V., its parent, which is Panasonic’s European headquarters, located in the Netherlands. The UK branch of Panasonic Business Support Europe GmbH will now operate as a branch of Panasonic Europe B.V. The merger became effective on 30 September 2024.
An international CMS team headed by Dr Eckart Gottschalk (partner) and Dr Philipp Koch (counsel) advised Panasonic on all legal aspects of the transaction. The focus was on providing corporate and employment law advice on the merger in conjunction with CMS Netherlands, and on project management.
Founded in 1918, the Panasonic Group is today a global leader in developing innovative technologies and solutions for wide-ranging applications in the consumer electronics, housing, automotive, industry, communications and energy sectors. The Panasonic Group switched to an operating company system on 1 April 2022, with Panasonic Holdings Corporation serving as a holding company and eight companies positioned under its umbrella. The Group reported consolidated net sales of JPY 8,496.4 billion for the year ended 31 March 2024, equivalent to around EUR 54.3 billion.
CMS Germany
Dr Eckart Gottschalk, Lead Partner
Dr Philipp Koch, Counsel
Sonja Schanze, Associate
Tjorben Drawe, Associate, all Corporate/M&A
Dr Daniel Ludwig, Partner
Dr Jacob Hinze, Counsel, both Employment & Pensions
CMS UK
Nick Crosbie, Partner
George Yuill, Senior Company Secretary, both Corporate/M&A
CMS Netherlands
Britt Straat, Candidate Civil Law Notary
Ymke van Loon, Candidate Civil Law Notary
Panasonic Europe
Volkhard Pfaff, General Counsel, Wiesbaden
Daniela Gardiner, Head of Legal Local Sales Operations, Bracknell
Claudia Neif, Head of Legal DACH, Wiesbaden
Markus Rein, HR Director, Hamburg
Christian Konertz, Employee & Labor Relations Manager, Hamburg
Press Contact
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