Partner

Dr. Matthias Kuß

Rechtsanwalt, Notary Public

Languages

German
English

Social media

Matthias Kuss advises German and international investors on the structuring of real estate transactions (asset and share deals) as well as on real estate portfolio development and optimisation in different asset classes, such as office, retail, hotel or residential. He also assists his clients with real estate development and all relevant real estate, planning and environmental law issues, as well as with asset management, including commercial leases. Furthermore, Matthias has long-standing experience in advising on public commercial law and procurement law matters, including public-private partnerships.

Matthias is also a certified lawyer for administrative law and a registered notary in Berlin. He joined CMS in 1998 and became a partner in 2004. Alongside his advisory practice, he regularly teaches at, amongst others, the International Real Estate Business School (IRE/BS).

Matthias Kuss has been listed for years in the Best Lawyers ranking of the Handelsblatt in the category "Germany's Best Lawyers for Real Estate".

Awards & Recognitions

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Listed for Real Estate

Deutschlands beste Anwälte 2025 – Handelsblatt in Kooperation mit Best Lawyers
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„Oft empfohlen“ für Immobilien- und Baurecht

JUVE Handbuch, 2024/2025
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„harter Verhandler“, Wettbewerber

JUVE Handbuch, 2024/2025
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Listed for Real Estate

Deutschlands beste Anwälte 2024 – Handelsblatt in Kooperation mit Best Lawyers
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„Oft empfohlen“ für Immobilien- und Baurecht

JUVE Handbuch, 2023/2024
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Listed for Real Estate

Deutschlands beste Anwälte 2023 – Handelsblatt in Kooperation mit Best Lawyers
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"reliable, dedicated, conciliatory and solution-oriented", "comprehensive understanding of the law, high level of economic expertise", clients; "pragmatic and solution-oriented", competitor

JUVE German Commercial Law Firms 2022 (GCLF)
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"Recommended" for Real Estate

JUVE German Commercial Law Firms 2022 (GCLF)
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"very good and reliable advisor", client; "pragmatic, reliable and solution-oriented negotiator", competitor

JUVE German Commercial Law Firms 2021 (GCLF)
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"Recommended" for Real Estate and Construction

JUVE German Commercial Law Firms 2021 (GCLF)
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"very good, competent and in-depth handling of large transactions, strong personal commitment, always adequate and appropriate approach, very reliable", client

JUVE German Commercial Law Firms 2018 (GCLF)
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"very professional, in-depth knowledge, pragmatic and organized approach, very recommendable", client

JUVE German Commercial Law Firms 2015 (GCLF)
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"the ‘reliable, excellent’ Matthias Kuss"

The Legal 500 EMEA, 2015
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"professional competence coupled with entrepreneurial thinking" (clients)

JUVE German Commercial Law Firms 2009 (GCLF)
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"no doubt one of the best negotiators in Germany" (clients)

JUVE German Commercial Law Firms 2009 (GCLF)
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„kollegial u. lösungsorientiert“, Wettbewerber

JUVE Handbuch, 2022/2023
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„Oft empfohlen“ für Immobilien- und Baurecht

JUVE Handbuch, 2022/2023

Relevant experience

Real estate transactions

Advising Berlinovo on the sale of more than 15,000 residential units
Assisting Topdanmark/PKA with the development and sale of a real estate portfolio consisting of more than 3500 residential and commercial units
Advising Outlet Centres International on the development, optimisation and sale of designer outlet centres in Zweibrücken and Wolfsburg
Assisting Austrian S IMMO AG with the development and optimisation of its entire German real estate portfolio
Advising LFPI on developing and running a hotel portfolio in Germany
Advising Union Investment on the acquisition of a large number of portfolio properties and project developments
Advising LLB Kapitalanlagegesellschaft on the acquisition and optimisation of a large number of portfolio properties and project developments, including employment agencies, hotels, nursing homes, office buildings and shopping centres
Advising the federal state of Brandenburg on real estate and public law matters in relation to the construction of the Tesla Gigafactory in Grünheide near Berlin

Procurement Law

Advising Alliander in the context of the tender for the installation and operation of electric car charging stations in Berlin
Advising the federal state of Brandenburg on public-private partnership projects to plan, construct, finance and operate buildings for the Ministry of Finance and two more ministries
Advising BER Berlin Brandenburg Airport on procurement law and compliance matters in relation to cases of corruption
Advising IBM in the context of the awarding of contracts for supercomputer systems
Advising the Ministry for Economic and European Affairs of the federal state of Brandenburg in the context of evaluating the state’s public procurement law

Public Commercial Law

Assisting ArcelorMittal in the context of water abstraction licences at the group’s Eisenhüttenstadt site
Advising Süd BG on public law and funding law issues in the context of its investment in HAP, a manufacturer of robot systems
Advising CMP on environmental and funding law issues in the context of the acquisition of UKM Group
Assisting DIH/BRE with the project development and conclusion of urban development contracts for Alexanderplatz in Berlin
Assisting online retailer with planning and building law issues related to the company’s logistics centre in Leipzig

Publications

Procurement Law – Comprehensive Commentary on the Law of Public Contract Awarding (editor with Dr. Klaus Heuvels, Dr. Stefan Hoess, Dr. Volkmar Wagner and co-author) in second, expanded and updated edition, Verlag Kohlhammer 2021
Lindner-Figura / Oprée / Stellmann, Geschäftsraummiete, 2. Kap. "Vertragsparteien", author together with Dr Gerd Leutner, C.H.BECK-Verlag, 2017
Procurement Law – Comprehensive Commentary on the Law of Public Contract Awarding (editor with Dr. Klaus Heuvels, Dr. Stefan Hoess, Dr. Volkmar Wagner and co-author), Verlag Kohlhammer 2012
Viering, Liebchen, Kochendörfer, "Management Services in the Life Cycle of Real Estate, Urban Planning Agreements" 2007, p. 5 et seqq.
Schulte/Schäfers/Pöll/Amon, Real Estate Manual of the Public Sector, "Legal Framework Conditions for Public Private Partnership", Rudolf Müller Verlag 2006, p. 347 et seqq.
"Factory Outlet Center – Legal Framework Conditions for the Implementation in Germany", Der Immobilienbewerter - Informationsdienst für Sachverständige 2006, 6 et seqq.
"Petition for a Declaratory Judgment; Duty to Object; Authority to Submit Applications; Required Make; Proof of Equality; Lack of Declarations", Vergaberecht 2005, pp. 130 et seqq.
"Award procedures: Leaner Awarding Thanks to Prequalification?", Immobilien Zeitung 2004
"Principle of Competition and Equal Treatment Precept in Negotiated Procedure", Vergaberecht 2002, pp. 299 et seqq.
"Delayed Decision of Awards Chamber; Signature of Tender; Subsequent Submission of Documents; Disproportionately Low Cost Tender", Vergaberecht 2002, pp. 95 et seqq.
"Ad-hoc Notifications Collide with Personality Right", Handelsblatt 2000
"Guiding Principle That Court Proceedings Must be Public", Wissenschaftlicher Verlag – WVB 1999

Memberships & Roles

German Council of Shopping Centers e.V.
gif e.V.
Arbeitsgemeinschaft Verwaltungsrecht Berlin, Brandenburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
Bundesvereinigung Öffentliches Recht (BÖR e.V.)
forum vergabe e.V.
Ernst-Reuter-Gesellschaft e.V.
ULI
ImmoEbs
Berlin Chamber of Notaries

Lectures list

"Legal & Tax Due Diligence" - Kontaktstudium Immobilienökonomie (129. Studienjahrgang); IRE/BS Immobilienakademie Universität Regensburg, Berlin am 10.07.2023
"Legal & Tax Due Diligence“ – Kontaktstudium Immobilienökonomie (125. Studienjahrgang); IRE/BS Immobilienakademie Universität Regensburg, Berlin am 05.07.2022
„Legal & Tax Due Diligence“ – Kontaktstudium Immobilienökonomie (121. Studienjahrgang); IRE/BS Immobilienakademie Universität Regensburg, Berlin am 05.07.2021
„Legal & Tax Due Diligence“ – Kontaktstudium Immobilienökonomie (117. Studienjahrgang); IRE/BS Immobilienakademie Universität Regensburg, Berlin am 08.07.2020
„Legal & Tax Due Diligence“ – Kontaktstudium Immobilienökonomie (28. Studienjahrgang); IRE/BS Immobilienakademie Universität Regensburg, Berlin am 03.07.2019
"Berlin zwischen Wohnungsnot, Gentrifizierungsangst und Bürgerwillen – Wer schützt eigentlich die Immobilienwirtschaft?", participation in the panel headed by Berlin Senator of Justice Thomas Heilmann at 1. Berliner Immobilienkongress on 24 May 2016
"Legal Due Diligence" - refresher course on real estate economics (13th study program Rhein/Ruhr); IRE/BS Immobilenakademie University Regensburg, 9 September 2015
"Laws on Real Estate Purchase Agreements and Heritable Building Rights" – Refresher course on real estate economics (24th study program Berlin), Berlin, 11 April 2015
"Ways out of Procurement Law and Simplification of Procedure", Berlin, 3 June 2015, Leipzig, 11 June 2015
"Structuring and Conducting Negotiated Procedures with Legal Certainty", Leipzig, 5 June 2014, Berlin, 19 June 2014
"The New EU Award Directives: Substance and Current Discussion", Berlin, 6 June 2013, Leipzig, 13 June 2013
"Bidding Strategies for Successful Tendering for Public Contracts", Berlin, 7 June 2012, Leipzig, 14 June 2012
"Termination and Cancelation of Award Procedures", Leipzig, 31 May 2011, Berlin, 9 June 2011
"Information, Communication and Documentation in the Award Procedure", Berlin, 2 June 2010, Leipzig, 9 June 2010
"Dealing with Objections", Leipzig, 10 June 2009, Berlin, 18 June 2009
"The New Procurement Law in Germany and in the European Union – Chances and Need for Action" for the "Economy, Management and Law" workshop of the Berliner Wirtschaftsgespräche e.V., 27 March 2007
"Procurement – a flexible approach", conference "Wirtschaft im Fluss", Berlin, July 2004
"Planned award of contracts for services according to the so-called A-Model", European symposium on procurement law, Vienna, November 2003
Various in-house seminars on public law topics since 2002
"The Appraisal Process in Procurement Procedures", seminars in a number of German cities in 2002

Education

2002: Qualified as a certified lawyer for administrative law
1998: Admitted as a lawyer
PhD on constitutional law topic
1995 - 1996: Research assistant at Freie Universität Berlin
Law studies at Freie Universität Berlin and trainee lawyer at Higher Regional Court Berlin

Practice Areas

Real Estate & Public Real estate transactions and financing Legal asset management Public Commercial Law & Procurement

sectors

Healthcare

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