Clifford Chance expands Restructuring & Insolvency team with two partners

Global law firm Clifford Chance is expanding its global Restructuring & Insolvency law practice with the hiring of two market leading and highly experienced partners in Germany: Patrick Schulz (pictured, left) and Andreas Steiger (pictured, right) will be joining the firm on 1 June 2024. The hire of two top tier restructuring partners will strengthen the Restructuring & Insolvency team in Germany, led by Managing Partner Stefan Sax, and further enhance Clifford Chance’s global capabilities in this area. Both partners join from American law firm Sidley Austin.

“Our Tier 1 Restructuring & Insolvency practice continues to grow. We will be welcoming two new partners, Patrick Schulz and Andreas Steiger, in Germany. Together with them, we will further deepen the German bench as well as our European and global restructuring capabilities. An exciting development both for our clients and for our firm”, stated Giuseppe De Palma, European Head of Global Financial Markets at Clifford Chance.

“Attracting two eminent restructuring partners in times when restructuring expertise is in high demand underlines our strategic focus on qualitative growth as well as Clifford Chance’s elite standing for restructuring and insolvency in the market and by our new colleagues”, said Stefan Sax.

“This is perfect timing”, added Philip Hertz, who leads the Global Restructuring & Insolvency Group of Clifford Chance. “Together with the two highly experienced and recognised partners Patrick Schulz and Andreas Steiger, we will further deepen the German bench as well as our international restructuring capabilities. This is an extremely exciting development both for us and for our clients.”

The enhanced team will continue to build out their focus on cross-border creditor and company side work, including expanding our relationships with key financial sponsors. “These hires will further solidify our reputation as one of the leading firms for this type of work in the market”, comments Oliver Kronat, who leads the German Global Financial Markets practice at Clifford Chance. “In addition, we now have more opportunities in the cross-border private equity and financing outside the previous core activities of our restructuring practice.”

These latest appointments to Clifford Chance’s global Restructuring & Insolvency team follow the recent hire of US partners Brian Lohan and Maja Zerjal Fink in New York in March.

Andreas Steiger

Andreas Steiger advises secured and unsecured creditors, distressed investors, debtors, shareholders and sponsors on financial and operational restructurings in both insolvency and non-insolvency situations, predominantly in a cross-border context with a focus on complex capital structures. He is a proven expert in all aspects of German insolvency law. Legal 500 has been listing Andreas Steiger as a “Next Generation Lawyer” for restructuring since 2022, in Chambers he has been listed continuously since 2021 and in 2023 he was included in the 40 under 40 by Juve.

Patrick Schulz

Patrick Schulz advises companies, investors, sponsors as well as secured and unsecured creditors on financial and operational restructurings both outside and in the context of insolvency proceedings. He has extensive experience in advising on cross-border and multinational restructurings and distressed transactions, particularly in cases with complex financing structures. Patrick Schulz also advises on German insolvency and restructuring law. In 2024, Legal 500 named him “Next Generation Lawyer” for restructuring (Germany). The German business magazine “WirtschaftsWoche” honoured him last year as one of the most renowned lawyers for restructuring.

Along with Stefan Sax, Patrick Schulz and Andreas Steiger as partners, the core Restructuring & Insolvency team boasts three counsels and four associates across Clifford Chance’s German offices.